Takahē, scouts for fungal diversity.

Speaker: Josie McGovern. The study of dung has long been a revelatory science. Analysing the dung of certain organisms is a great way to gain insight into local fungal diversity. Takahē are a unique flightless bird, endemic to New Zealand. They exhibit a heavy grazing behaviour that encourages interaction with fungi and fungal spores. DNA metabarcoding of takahē dung collected from Orokonui ecosanctuary can teach us many interesting things about dispersal and fungal species important to our forests.