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Zombie Ant Fungus
Ophiocordyceps unilateralis in the broad sense is a complex of host-specific fungi that infect carpenter ants (tribe Camponotini). Infected ants leave the canopy, climb low vegetation and clamp their mandibles onto a leaf vein in a 'death grip' before dying, after which a wiry stroma grows from the neck region and releases spores. Alfred Russel Wallace discovered it in 1859.
Not a food species; no edibility information exists.
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Mycology is an evolving science: names, classifications and safety information change as research advances. Entries are compiled from cited sources and reviewed, but may be incomplete or out of date — check the sources, and never rely on this library alone to identify or eat a mushroom.
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