Feast or fight: Assessing the functions of putative nematode-trapping structures in saprotrophic Agaricales.

Nematode-trapping structures are confirmed in some saprotrophic Agaricales but absent in others, with only specific species actively trapping and consuming nematodes.

• Why it matters: Understanding the function of these structures helps clarify whether nematophagy evolved for nitrogen acquisition or as a defense mechanism, filling a key knowledge gap in fungal ecology.
• What they did: The study systematically reviewed several species of saprotrophic Agaricales, observing their behavior in the presence of nematodes and documenting trapping activity in six species, including three that actively consume nematodes.
• The result: Findings reveal that only Hohenbuehelia mastrucata, Pleurotus citrinopileatus, and P. djamor trap and eat nematodes, suggesting that nematode-trapping structures may serve different functions across species, such as defense rather than nutrition.