Science Quickly

The Fungi Facing Extinction and the Conservationists Working Hard to Protect Them


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Conservationists are ringing the alarm about the fungi facing extinction. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List features vulnerable pandas and endangered tortoises, but it also highlights more than 400 fungi species that are under threat. Gregory Mueller, chief scientist emeritus at the Chicago Botanic Garden and coordinator of fungal conservation programs at the IUCN, and Anders Dahlberg, a professor of mycology at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, explain the critical role fungi play in our environment and ways we can protect these threatened species.


Recommended reading:

Mysterious ‘Dark Fungi’ Are Lurking Everywhere 

For fans of The Last of Us, our 2023 podcast on real zombifying fungi


E-mail us at [email protected] if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

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Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Fonda Mwangi, Kelso Harper, Naeem Amarsy and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was hosted by Rachel Feltman. Our show is edited by Alex Sugiura with fact-checking by Shayna Posses and Aaron Shattuck. The theme music was composed by Dominic Smith.

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