Water is critical for life. So how does the animal body use its water? How does it maintain a healthy osmotic balance, to sustain life?

Compared to plants and fungi, the animals have the most complex bodies, with the most complex body systems. Today, we'll explore the process of development that creates this complex animal body.

Today we'll be exploring the diverse and exciting ways in which Humans have used the many fungal species that share our planet.

The basidiomycota are one of the most advanced and diverse groups of fungi, including all the puffballs, conks, and traditional mushrooms.

The ascomycota are one of two major divisions with the 'higher fungi'. Along with the basidiomycota, they have come to dominate the fungal kingdom, and have spread across all Earthly habitats.

Hidden in the soil, the glomeromycota fungi seek out and fuse with the roots of plants, to engage in a symbiosis that sustains the worlds forests.

The mysterious origin of the fungal lineage generated a diversity of fungal protozoa, which would give rise to the earliest true fungi.

The story of fungal evolution is shrouded in mystery, but what little evidence there is, suggests an incredibly long history that fundamentally influences all life on Earth.

The fungal organism engages with its community and environment in countless ways; without the fungi, much of life on Earth would not be possible.

Among all the branches on the tree of life, the fungi have perhaps the most complex, diverse, and exotic means of reproducing, both sexually and asexually.