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Zombie fungus: Friend or foe?

Zombie fungus ants
Zombie fungus ants
Zombie fungus ants
 

The HBO show “The Last of Us” brought the parasitic fungus Cordyceps into the spotlight, spooking its audience with the possibility of a fungal pandemic of human zombies. We’re here for the show, but how plausible is a fungus-induced human zombie apocalypse, really?

Greg Mueller, Ph.D., the Garden’s chief scientist and Negaunee Vice President of Science, is a mycologist—meaning, a person who knows a lot more about fungi than The Rest of Us. So in our panic after watching the show, we thought we’d tap him for his thoughts on the dangers of zombie-making fungi:

Chicago Botanic Garden | Greg Mueller from Chicago Botanic Garden on Vimeo.

Thanks for playing along, Greg, and congratulations on your retirement this summer!