Neurodope Magazine

magine a world where plants were ankle-high, animals were microscopic, and mushrooms stood taller than a two-story house. Welcome to the Paleozoic, where Prototaxites, the Earth’s ancient fungal skyscrapers, silently towered over a planet that had no idea what hit it.

Giant Fungi: Nature’s Original Skyscrapers

Between 420 and 350 million years ago, land plants were still figuring out gravity, and the tallest trees barely cleared a few feet. Then came Prototaxites: spires up to 24 feet high and three feet wide. It was like walking into Jurassic Park… but fungal, and minus the dinosaurs.

Fossils discovered in Saudi Arabia finally revealed the culprit: a fungus. Or possibly a lichen. Or a very confused tree. We think. As National Geographic pointed out in 2007, this was a world where a six-meter fungus would stand out like a neon sign at a tea party. And yes, garlic and onions would have been handy.

Before trees, before humans, before pizza — giant mushrooms ruled the world. #Prototaxites #AncientFungi share this

From around 420 to 350 million years ago, when land plants were still the relatively new kids on the evolutionary block and “the tallest trees stood just a few feet high,” giant spires of life poked from the Earth. “The ancient organism boasted trunks up to 24 feet (8 meters) high and as wide as three feet (one meter),” said National Geographic in 2007 . With the help of a fossil dug up in Saudi Arabia scientists finally figured out what the giant creature was: a fungus. (We think.)

The Mystery That Confounded Science for 130 Years

For over a century, paleontologists argued over what these gigantic spires were. Some called them trees, others lichens, some just threw up their hands and muttered “fungus?” The debate raged across generations, like a scientific family feud with slightly dirtier hands.

Boyce, associate professor at the University of Chicago, notes: “The anatomy is evocative of a lot of things, but diagnostic of nothing.” Translation: they look like everything and nothing at the same time, which is kind of the fungal way. Meanwhile, Devil’s Tower enthusiasts quietly wondered if it might actually be a really old, petrified mushroom.

For 130 years scientists debated: tree, lichen, or fungus? Nature just smirked. #AncientMysteries #Neurodope share this

The towering fungus spires would have stood out against a landscape scarce of such giants, said New Scientist in 2007 . “A 6-metre fungus would be odd enough in the modern world, but at least we are used to trees quite a bit bigger,” says Boyce. “Plants at that time were a few feet tall, invertebrate animals were small, and there were no terrestrial vertebrates. This fossil would have been all the more striking in such a diminutive landscape.” Fossils of the organisms, known as Prototaxites , had peppered the paleontological findings of the past century and a half, ever since they were first discovered by a Canadian in 1859 .

When Mushrooms Got Really, Really Big

While the debate continued, science kept discovering massive fungal cousins. Enter Armillaria solidipes, the world’s largest living organism — a mushroom that could give Prototaxites a run for its money. It’s alive, enormous, and apparently indifferent to human awe.

Those who tried to disprove the fungus theory suggested massive mats of liverworts had somehow rolled themselves into skyscrapers. The Prototaxites research team wasn’t buying it, holding firm like a bouncer at the club of ancient life. Science, as always, is messy, occasionally arrogant, and endlessly entertaining.

Prototaxites: proof that mushrooms once had bigger ambitions than humans. #GiantFungi #Neurodope share this

But despite the fossil records, no one could figure out what the heck these giant spires were. The University of Chicago : For the next 130 years, debate raged. Some scientists called Prototaxites a lichen, others a fungus, and still others clung to the notion that it was some kind of tree. “The problem is that when you look up close at the anatomy, it’s evocative of a lot of different things, but it’s diagnostic of nothing,” says Boyce, an associate professor in geophysical sciences and the Committee on Evolutionary Biology.

And here is a little factoid video from Amazing Planet about the HUMONGOUS FUNGUS (AKA Armillaria solidipes)! The world’s BIGGEST living ORGANISM!

Lessons from a Fungal Empire

Despite over a hundred years of study, the true identity of these colossal spires remains elusive. They were bigger than your house, stranger than your dreams, and apparently indifferent to being classified. Fossils only hint at what once dominated the ancient Earth.

In the end, Prototaxites teaches humility. Humans build skyscrapers; fungi build history lessons taller than we can imagine. And if you ever step on a tiny mushroom and feel guilty, remember: it might just be a descendant of the original skyscraper that ruled the Paleozoic.

Giant mushrooms once ruled the Earth. Respect the spores. #Prototaxites #AncientFungi share this

Scientists who aimed to disprove the fungus theory suggested that the massive Prototaxites spires were actually large mats of liverworts that had somehow curled up. However, in a subsequent study, the researchers who originally put forward the fungus theory remained steadfast in their belief. Science is a complex process, and despite over 100 years of research, we are still uncertain about the true nature of these colossal spires and giant mushrooms that once dominated the ancient Earth.