Phycomyces

Order: Mucorales

Family: Mucoraceae

Genus: Phycomyces

Identifying Characteristics:

- A part of the Zygomycete fungi. Members of this order are sometimes called "pin molds"

-typically fast-growing, and their wide hyphae lack septa (is a wall, dividing a cavity or structure into smaller ones)

- Sporangiophores are upright (simple or ramified) hyphae that support sac-like sporangia filled with asexual sporangiospores

Special Adaptations:

- grow on organic substrates (such as fruit, soil, and dung).

-The sporangiospores are asexual mitospores (formed via mitosis) that are produced inside sporangia (thousands of spores) or sporangioles (single or few spores).They are released when mature by the disintegration of the sporangium, or as a whole sporangiole that separates from the sporangiophore

- The sporangiospores germinate to form the haploid hyphae of a new mycelium. Asexual reproduction often occurs continuously.,

-Sexual reproduction occurs when opposite mating types (designated + and -) come into close proximity, inducing the formation of specialized hyphae called gametangia. The gametangia grow toward each other, then fuse, forming a diploidzygote at the point of fusion. The zygote develops a resistant cell wall, forming a single-celled zygospore, the characteristic that gives its name to this group of fungi. Meiosis occurs within the zygospore, and one of the resulting recombinant nuclei survives. Upon germination, a new haploid mycelium or sporangium is formed. Some species are homothallic.