Very rare prehistoric mushroom appeared in Bavaria - it already existed at the time of the dinosaurs

He is a living fossil.

A prehistoric mushroom has now been discovered in the Bohemian Forest in Bavaria.

The rare plant usually only occurs in southern regions.

Munich / Neuschönau - It was almost a sensation when a family from Neuschönau in the Lower Bavarian district of Freyung-Grafenau * discovered the blue-violet fossil from another time on their meadow.

This type of mushroom, reminiscent of a marine coral, was discovered for the first time in this region.

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Neuschönau: A rare type of mushroom already existed at the time of the dinosaurs

The large meadow coral measures around five centimeters.

It goes by the cute-sounding name of blue-violet coral arm.

And so far the mushroom is unique in the Bohemian Forest.

It is an endangered species of mushroom that was first discovered here, announced the Bavarian Forest National Park Administration.

In addition to the site in Neuschönau near the national park, there are probably only six other occurrences in Bavaria.

But also in the rest of Europe, the little coral arm has become rare, knows national park mycologist Peter Karsch.

But it has also been found in Asia, India, Australia, New Zealand and North and South America.

For the mushroom expert Karsch, this is an indication that it could be a living fossil from the supercontinent Pangea.

The supercontinent existed several hundred million years ago and united all known continents into one mass.

During the same period of time there was the great mass extinction at the end of the Permian and the evolutionary development of the dinosaurs.

Neuschönau: The appearance of the little coral arm is a sign of species-rich biotopes

Mushroom expert Karsch assumes that the prehistoric plant has always grown in the Bohemian Forest.

But no one had discovered it yet.

The region south of the Bavarian Forest is actually not part of the usual range of the fungus.

For example, it is more common in the laurel forests of the Canary Islands.

The rare mushroom was only able to thrive because the family from Lower Bavaria created a species-rich flower meadow.

In doing so, it makes a major contribution to biodiversity, according to Karsch.

The fungus is very sensitive to high nutrient inputs, for example from fertilizers.

Like orchids, it is considered a pointer species for valuable, species-rich biotopes.

Intensive cultivation has made them rare.