Fungi fake flowers to fool bees

Fungus makes fake flowers - 8th March 2021

Fungi are similar to plants. They are alive. Mushrooms are a kind of fungi.

Scientists found a new fungus in South America. This fungus makes fake flowers.

The flowers look real. They smell real. But they are not real flowers.

The fungus lives near a plant. The plant usually has flowers. But the fungus stops the plant from making flowers. The fungus makes its own flowers. The fungus's flowers look similar to the plant's flowers.

This makes bees confused. They think the fungus's flowers are real. They go to the fake flowers.

Parts of the fungus go on the bees. Then, the bees fly to other places. They take the fungus with them. This helps the fungus. It can live in different places.