On today’s episode, we’re talking parasites: from pathogens, to freeloaders, to downright mushroom cannibals. Mendel is joined by Willoughby Arevalo to discuss some of the most far-out ways in which fungi can mooch for their livelihood, along a spectrum from benign to hyper-destructive.

Spores: the raison d'être of mushrooms. Invisible, ubiquitous, these tiny grains are in every breath we breathe. In this episode we learn a little more about how they work, and how they shape the world around them.

For many people, forest fires bring to mind one particular mushroom: the highly prized morel. Every year, thousands of humans scour the sites of the last year’s burns - hoping for a profitable harvest. But what are these fungi? What… are any fungi? Mendel waxes solo.

New season, new kingdom! As your resident mushroom fanatic, Mendel will be hosting our new series: Meet Your Fungal Associates. On this month's episode we get a little deeper into lichens, and explore the blurry edges of life, mutualism, and extremophiles.