// BBC UK NEWS — CRONACA
Sign of life as bright orange 'fire fungus' grows at park ravaged by wildfire
Forestry and Land Scotland said the fungus offers the hope of recovery in areas damaged by fire
A fungus that grows in places damaged by fire has been found at the site of a major wildfire in the Cairngorms National Park.
Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) said the bright orange, pyrophilous (fire-loving) fungus could be the first sign of nature's recovery at Glenmore near Aviemore.
A wildfire started in the area on 15 July and the incident, which has burned through thousands of acres of woodland and moor, continues to be monitored for hotspots.
FLS said the fungus was among the "first colonisers" of burned ground and played a role in breaking down carbon and preventing soil erosion.
Dave Clarke, FLS senior programme manager, said: "In the aftermath of any fire people always have concerns about wildlife and habitat recovery, often looking to spot the first green shoots.
"But before that stage, these charcoal-loving fungi get to work and prepare the way by gradually creating the sorts of conditions and nutrient that will accommodate plants and grasses.
"And some grasses are already beginning to re-appear."
German naturalist Carl Gustav Carus carried out the first scientific studies of pyrophilous fungi in the 1830s, external.
The orange blobs are mushroom-like "fruiting bodies" while the rest of the fungus is underground.