Tropical Mycology Field Course

The course provides an overview of the diversity, taxonomy, ecology, morphology, and evolution of higher fungi (Ascomycota and Basidiomycota) through a field trip in the Amazonian Forest of Brazil. The focus is given to field Mycology techniques and identification of fungi based on macro and microscopic features. Methods for collecting, microscopy preparation and observations, storing and processing fungi will be demonstrated in the laboratory and in the field. An introduction on how to use microscopes (stereo and compound) to visualize fungal specimens will be provided and close support will be available throughout the course. Scientific papers and books dealing with fungal morphology and taxonomy will be available and discussed during the lectures.

Before the field trip: The course involves one lecture day with exercises (6h) in Copenhagen to provide an overview of the course, collecting techniques, safety, and an introduction to the kingdom Fungi, focusing on the major groups we will be encountering in the field. Among those are a variety of "zombie-ant" fungi (Cordyceps), bioluminescent mushrooms, fungus-gardening leaf-cutter ants, and many others.

The field trip: The core of the course is a mandatory 10 days in Brazil, where the students will conduct surveys in a fragment of the Amazonian Forest. Before any field activity starts, a lecture will be provided in Copenhagen and will include an overview about collecting methods, safety, curation and database of fungi we will be using during the surveys. All students will be accompanied by at least one Professor and one local field guide (usually a plant para-taxonomist) during all field activities.

The 1st day in Brazil we will leave for the students to adjust to the weather and the time-zone difference. We will also have the chance to visit some important sites in Manaus, such as viewing of the Rio Negro and the local market. Back in the hotel we will have dinner all together and discuss the course components. The students will have the chance to ask questions about the upcoming activities and meet the all the instructors and students participating in the course. 

The 2nd day we will visit INPA (National Institute of Amazonian Research in Manaus), with a 4h guided tour through INPA facilities and a 2h lecture about the Amazon Forest and the research conducted by the Institute at the field station we will be working at.

The 3rd day we will take a boat trip on the Rio Negro, exploring the forest from the water.

From the 4th to the 8th day the activities are typically surveying and field photography (morning), laboratory work (afternoon) and photographing microscopic features (evening).

The 9th day will be reserved for the lab wrap-up. The students and instructors will discuss the collected specimens, take additional photos and to prepare the materials for the presentations in the next day. In the last day (10th), at the field station, the students will present a 15 min talk (oral essay), organized in groups of 3, about one fungal group of choice (morning and afternoon), following feedback and group discussion. '

Back in Copenhagen, each student will be required to choose five fungal species among those collected and prepare a written essay about them to be submitted one week after returning to Copenhagen. It should include an introduction, material and methods and results containing taxonomic descriptions (taxonomic plates and morphological description) of macro and microscopic features, using the data collected along the field surveys. Finally, a discussion should present the selected species in context in terms of ecology, ecosystem functioning and fungal biodiversity and taxonomy. One last meeting in Copenhagen to discuss challenges related to the written component before the students hand in the essay.

The course will focus on insect-associated, saprophytic and wood-decaying fungi (i.e. insect-associated, mushrooms and wood-decaying fungi).