1. macroscopic description of Ascomycetes and Basidiomycetes
a. Substrate • Ascomycetes: Usually grows on decayed wood, soil, leaves, animal dung and in the tissues on plants in mutual bonds. • Basidiomycetes: Tends to grow in litter of the forest floor, decayed wood, soil and also as an ectomycorrhiza in plants.
b. Spores • Ascomycetes: These are small and known as Ascospores. They appear as empty sacs with this naked feature in them. • Basidiomycetes: Forms basidiospores on the basidia often located externally on the gills, pores or spines of the body that bears its fruit.
c. Fruiting Body • Ascomycetes: These may be said to be fruiting bodies in that they are cup to flask shaped structures known as ascocarps. • Basidiomycetes: Their fruit bearing structures are comparatively more advanced. They exhibit the cap stem or foliate puffball type of morphology.
d. Hyphae • Ascomycetes: Hyphae are septate with simple pores permitting streaming of cytoplasm within living systems. • Basidiomycetes: Septate hyphae with some inclusive pores wearing clamps in certain strains for nuclear distribution.
e. Life Cycle • Ascomycetes: A primarily haploid life cycle with both asexual and sexual reproduction phases, with meiosis leading to ascospore production. • Basidiomycetes: Typically feature an extended dikaryotic phase, culminating in the formation of fruiting bodies that produce basidiospores following meiosis. 2. Search in the internet illustrations of Ascomycetes, and Basidiomycetes (5 representatives for each).
Ascomycetes
(Powdery mildew, cap fungi, morels, Neurospora, Cladonia)
