Ronan Byrne

This video shows real-time carbon flows inside a mycorrhizal network. Mycorrhizal fungi form a symbiotic relationship with ~ 90% of terrestrial plants and have done so for 400 million years. These specialized fungi provide plants with nutrients and water in exchange for carbon-based exudates the plant produces through photosynthesis. Current estimates say that between 4 and 20 percent of all CO2 pulled in by plants ends up stored in mycorrhizal tissues. Considering plants need to build an entire above-ground structure, a root system, and produce flowers, fruits, and seeds, this is an astounding amount of carbon to allocate to mycorrhizal biomass. A recent review study estimates that global plant communities transfer 13.1 gigatons of CO2 to the underground mycelium of mycorrhizal fungi each year – equivalent to roughly 1/3 of annual CO2 emissions from fossil fuels. The amount of time the carbon is locked up in fungi’s mycelium remains unknown. Nonetheless, the influx of such a massive amount of carbon into the soil is a boon for soil ecology, nutrient cycling, and the health of water cycles. It is no wonder the formation of terrestrial ecosystems largely started with the mycorrhizal fungi/plant partnership. Video credit: @rachaelcargill