Pylum Basidiomycota
(club fungi)
25,000 species
charactericics:
- no flagellated cells at any stage
- assimilative stage(mycelium) composed of septate hyphae, occurs in two stages:
1 the primary mycelium is composed of monokaryotic (n) hyphae and is often short lived
2 the secondary myceliulm is composed of dikaryotic (n+n) hyphae and is the major, and long lived assimilataive phase
- formation of a speacial dikaryotic cell 9the young basidium) within which karyogamy and meiosis occur, leading of formation of basidiospores outside of the mature basidium
- sexual lige cycles all happlontic, involving somatogamy or spermatization leading to a long lived assimilative dikaryophase
_ macroscopic fruiting bodies (basiomata) formed in many groups9but not all)
- mostly terrestrial decomposers or symbionts of the paraasitic or mutalistic types
Class Hymenomycetes
Class Gasteromycetes
Class Teliomycetes (smut,rust)
other useful links...
refereces