Episode 21: Flying Salt Shakers of Death

Welcome back, citizen!

What sounds make you think of summer? For me, the sound of cicadas is a big one. These are fascinating insects on their own, but my guest, Dr. Matt Kasson from the University of West Virginia, has discovered something even more fascinating about the fungi that infect them.

If you want to learn more about this episode’s topics, here are some links:

Dr. Matt Kasson’s paper in Fungal Ecology

Protea Bioscience

What is Khat? (LiveScience.com)

Thank you to Dr. Matt Kasson for his time and past guest Kristin Wickert for suggesting our topic. Also, thanks go to Fungi Town’s patrons for their support! You can access a transcript of this episode soon, on the transcript page.

Please check out my sponsor, Lichen Landscapes, for unique cards and prints and don’t forget to enter promo code “FUNGITOWN” to get a 20% discount on your order. A percentage of sales goes to support the show!

You can also get 20% off of Zen Hen chicken treats by entering coupon code “Fungi Town.”

Fungi Town is written, directed and produced by Jen Parrilli and hosted on Podbean. Theme music is by the awesome Athens, GA band Shehehe. Sound effects: ice cream truck by ciccarelli, skateboard by situational, and ocean waves by Eelke were all found on Freesound.com. The cicada sounds are via Wikipedia Commons.

You can find Fungi Town on Facebook. Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram: @fungitownpod or email at fungitownpod[at]gmail[dot]com. Check out the YouTube channel for fungi videos! Don’t forget to become a patron and support the show!