Q 01/05

A mushroom is technically which part of a fungus?

A) Its underground root system

B) Its spore-bearing fruiting body

C) Its dormant seed capsule

D) Its photosynthetic leaf

Answer · why

B) Its spore-bearing fruiting body

The bulk of the organism is the underground mycelium; the mushroom is just the part that pops up to spread spores.

Q 02/05

Fungal cell walls contain which substance, also found in insect shells?

A) Cellulose

B) Chitin

C) Keratin

D) Lignin

Answer · why

B) Chitin

Like animals, fungi are heterotrophs that digest food outside their bodies and absorb it.

Q 03/05

Genetically, fungi are more closely related to which group than to plants?

A) Bacteria

B) Algae

C) Animals

D) Protists

Answer · why

C) Animals

Mycology used to be treated as a branch of botany.

Q 04/05

Roughly how many fungal species have been formally described, out of an estimated 2.2 to 3.8 million?

A) 14,800

B) 2 million

C) 1.48 million

D) 148,000

Answer · why

D) 148,000

At least 300 of the known species can cause disease in humans.

Q 05/05

The word 'toadstool', usually meaning a poisonous mushroom, first appeared in England in which century?

A) 14th

B) 11th

C) 17th

D) 19th

Answer · why

A) 14th

'Mushroom' itself may come from the French mousseron, a reference to moss.