- Evolution of fungi
As fungi rarely fossilise, speculation on their evolution is necessarily limited.
Evidence suggests that the kingdom diverged from other life around Ma|1500, (Wang et al., 1999) with the glomeleans branching from the "higher fungi" at ~Ma|570, according to DNA analysis. (Schüßler et al., 2001; Tehler et al., 2000) Fungi probably colonised the land during the Cambrian, over Ma|500, (Taylor & Osborn, 1996) but fossils only become uncontroversial and common during the Devonian, Ma|400.in cite journal
author = Brundrett, M.C.
year = 2002
title = Coevolution of roots and mycorrhizas of land plants
journal = New Phytologist
volume = 154
issue = 2
pages = 275–304
doi = 10.1046/j.1469-8137.2002.00397.x]Early fungi
A rich diversity of fungi is known from the lower Devonian
Rhynie chert , an earlier record is absent. Since fungi don't biomineralise, they do not readily enter the fossil record; only three claims of early fungi. One from the Ordoviciancite journal
author = Redecker, D.
coauthors = Kodner, R.; Graham, L.E.
year = 2000
title = Glomalean Fungi from the Ordovician
journal = Science
volume = 289
issue = 5486
pages = 1920
doi = 10.1126/science.289.5486.1920] has been dismissed on the grounds that it lacks any distinctly fungal features, and is held by many to be contamination;cite journal
author = Butterfield, N.J.
year = 2005
title = Probable Proterozoic fungi
journal = Paleobiology
volume = 31
issue = 1
pages = 165–182
doi = 10.1666/0094-8373(2005)031] the position of a "probable" Proterozoic fungus is still not established, and it may represent astem group fungus. There is also a case for a fungal affinity for the enigmatic microfossil "Ornatifilum ". Since the fungi form a sister group to the animals, the two lineages must have diverged before the first animal lineages, which are known from fossils as early as theEdiacaran .citation
author = Miller, A.J.
year = 2004
title = A Revised Morphology of Cloudina with Ecological and Phylogenetic Implications
url = http://ajm.pioneeringprojects.org/files/CloudinaPaper_Final.pdf
accessdate = 2007-04-24 ]ee also
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Fungus#Evolutionary history References
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