(ECNS) -- Chinese scientists have discovered a giant fungus in Yunnan Province, identifying both a new species and a new fungal family, Dianjunaceae, according to the Kunming Institute of Botany under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
The species, named Dianjunus rex, is the sole known member of Dianjunaceae. Its name combines “Dian,” referring to the ancient Dian Kingdom in Yunnan, with the Latin word “rex,” meaning “king,” as in Tyrannosaurus rex.
Researchers collected various specimens from both of Yunnan's subtropical and tropical forests between August 2024 and July 2025.
The fungus grows from recently dead tree roots and surrounding soil, producing fruiting bodies 20 to 50 centimeters tall. Typical specimens weigh 250 to 600 grams, while the largest specimen weighed 2.2 kilograms, making it the largest recorded fruiting body in the fungal phylum Ascomycota.
The study estimates that Dianjunaceae emerged around 65 million years ago, shortly after the mass extinction that ended the age of dinosaurs. Researchers suggest that the fungus may have occupied new ecological niches as forests recovered.
Dianjunaceae is one of 432 known monotypic fungal families. Although more than 6,000 fungal species have been recorded in Yunnan, the province may be home to more than 100,000, the study said.
(By Helen Mo & intern Liu Shuangjing)
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