fungi

A single fungus in Oregon spans about 965 hectares of forest. An aspen grove in Utah is one genetic individual with roughly 47,000 stems. The blue whale is the largest animal known. Which one is the largest living thing on Earth depends on whether you measure mass, volume, area, or length, and on what you count as a single organism.

Real truffles can cost as much per kilogram as gold did a decade ago. The reasons are tree-root symbiosis, volatile aroma chemistry, dog-led harvests, and a short season.