While studying endemic frogs living at the foot of the Kudremukh range in India’s Western Ghats, scientists accidentally discovered an extremely unusual individual. From the body of this frog grew a mushroom of a characteristic shape. At the same time, the amphibian looked quite healthy, it was not bothered by the unusual ‘decoration’, although it is difficult to say for sure – the scientists took pictures of the phenomenon, but they could not catch the frog itself.
Adverts
The fungus resembles members of the genus Mycenae, which actively grow on dead organic matter, including dead wood. The frog of the species Hylarana intermedia did not look like a dying frog, and there were no wounds on its body through which fungal spores could penetrate the skin and somehow get a foothold there. Frog skin is usually covered with a protective mucus that kills microorganisms and parasites, so it is hard to imagine how the fungus could survive on it and grow to such a size.
