Stink bug cordyceps

Some species in the Ophiocordyceps group have been used in traditional Asian medicine. This species is also being studied because it contains unique natural compounds.

Where does it live?

This tiny mushroom grows in damp mixed forests where insects (usually stink bugs) live, on which it parasitizes.

Where the spores form

Stromatic. Spores ripen inside microscopic flasks called perithecia, sunk into or attached to a dense body called a stroma. The stroma often forms a club on a stalk.

Did you know?

This fungus begins its life inside an insect ending it's life. Gradually its slender body grows upward, to eventually release and carrying spores into the forest air to begin the next generation.