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Health & Science6h 53m ago
Beneath the Blue Mountains of eastern Oregon, a single honey fungus has been spreading through the roots of the forest for thousands of years, now covering nearly 10 square kilometres.
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eastern Oregon, Malheur National Forest, Blue Mountains
Who
Greg Whipple, Forest Service worker; Ferguson, Dreisbach, Parks, Filip and Schmitt, Forest Service team
What
Beneath the Blue Mountains of eastern Oregon, a single honey fungus has been spreading through the roots of the forest for thousands of years, now covering nearly 10 square kilometres.
When
Sun, 14 Jun 2026 03:16:01 GMT · 6h 53m ago
Where
eastern Oregon, Malheur National Forest, Blue Mountains ·
Why
The fungus, Armillaria ostoyae, is a root pathogen that feeds by killing trees, spreading its mycelium and rhizomorphs through soil and wood.
The Frontline Impact
How this affects you
This massive single organism, covering approximately 10 square kilometers and estimated to be thousands of years old, represents one of the largest living things on Earth by area, challenging definitions of what constitutes a single organism.
Story chain
10 events in this thread- Health & Science6h 53m agoBeneath the Blue Mountains of eastern Oregon, in the Malheur National Forest, a single honey fungus has been spreading through the roots of the forest for thousands of years, now covering nearly ten square kilometres.Open article
- Health & Science6h 53m agoA single honey fungus, Armillaria ostoyae, in Oregon's Malheur National Forest has been spreading through the roots of the forest for thousands of years and now covers nearly 10 square kilometers.Open article
- Health & Science6h 53m agoA single honey fungus, Armillaria ostoyae, in the Malheur National Forest has been spreading through the roots of the forest for thousands of years and now covers nearly ten square kilometres.Open article
- Health & Science6h 53m agoA single honey fungus, Armillaria ostoyae, has been spreading through the roots of the forest in the Malheur National Forest, eastern Oregon, for thousands of years, now covering nearly ten square kilometres.Open article
- Health & Science6h 53m agoBeneath the Blue Mountains of eastern Oregon, a single honey fungus has been spreading through the roots of the forest for thousands of years, now covering nearly 10 square kilometres.Open article
- Health & Science6h 53m agoBeneath the Blue Mountains of eastern Oregon, in the Malheur National Forest, a single honey fungus has been spreading through the roots of the forest for thousands of years, now covering nearly ten square kilometres.Open article
- Currently Reading6h 53m agoBeneath the Blue Mountains of eastern Oregon, a single honey fungus has been spreading through the roots of the forest for thousands of years, now covering nearly 10 square kilometres.
- Health & Science6h 53m agoA single honey fungus, Armillaria ostoyae, in the Malheur National Forest, has been spreading for thousands of years and now covers nearly 10 square kilometres.Open article
- Health & Science6h 53m agoA single honey fungus, Armillaria ostoyae, covering nearly ten square kilometres, has been spreading through the roots of the forest in Oregon’s Blue Mountains for thousands of years.Open article
- Health & Science6h 53m agoBeneath the Blue Mountains of eastern Oregon, in the Malheur National Forest, a single honey fungus has been spreading through the roots of the forest for thousands of years, now covering nearly ten square kilometres.Open article