Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures

As a mycelium grows, its hyphae sometimes branch and sometimes fuse together to create mushrooms and other large structures in a process known as anastomosis, Greek for “to provide with a mouth.” This dynamic, continuous process of branching and fusion allows fungal mycelia to create a huge range of different structures, while always maintaining bidirectional communication with other parts of the fungus.

Anthropomorphism is the human tendency to apply human attributes to other organisms. Many biologists seek to avoid anthropomorphizing their study subjects. Sheldrake is conflicted about the use of anthropomorphism within mycology. On one hand, concepts like the fungal “brain” and the “wood wide web” oversimplify the reality of fungal networks. However, since fungi influence nearly every aspect of life on Earth, Sheldrake wonders if many of the “human” concepts applied to fungi are actually fungal concepts to begin with.

The extended phenotype is a concept posed by evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins. He believes that an organism’s phenotype (the physical structure of its body) can be extended to include things that the organism builds and other life forms that are necessary for the organism’s survival. For example, a particular style of nest is part of the extended phenotype of many birds.