The kingdom Fungi constitutes an independent group equal in rank to that of plants and animals. It is a diverse clade of heterotrophic eukaryotic organisms that shares some ch- acteristics with animals and includes mushrooms, molds, yeasts as well as many other types of less well known organisms. Approximately 100,000 species have been described, which comprise less than 10% of the estimated number of fungal species in nature. Fungi can be found in every place wherever adequate moisture, temperature, and organic substrates are available; however, they also occupy extreme habitats, from hot...