Dung Cannon

Figure 1. This fungus is a close up of this 2-4cm tall stem with somewhat a black top hat full of spores. The vesical below fills with fluid creating a pressure to shootoff the black ball spore like object above.

What would most of my fellow inters think was the fastest accelerating object on earth? A land animal like a cheetah, a hemi 357 engine with aftermarket add-ons for better performance, a jet in the sky, or a fungus. The answer is a fungus known as Pilobolus crystallinus. A fecal microorganism that cycles thru the animal grazer intestinal system back out into fecal matter (feces) is part of their life cycle. The question is how does this fungus get back to the mouth or entryway of the digestion system? This 2-4 cm tall fungus shoots its spores about 6feet away from its home of feces to a clearance where grazers eat. This 45mph shot in one millimeter is the fastest accelerating object on earth. I have included a video and a picture of the fungus below and above.