What's happening?

Beneath every forest is an underground web. Plants use it to send each other messages.

Now, scientists are starting to understand their secret language.

Did you know that a mushroom is not a plant? Actually, it is a fungus.

A fungus is a kind of living thing. It breaks down dead plants and animals for food.

Find out more

Experts once thought fungiFungi are a group of living things including mold, mushrooms, and yeast. They eat organic material - usually dead things, like fallen trees and old fruit - and reproduce by spreading spores. were harmful for plants. But this is not true. In fact, they help them.

Fungi make a special connection with trees and plants. A plant gives a fungus water and sugar. The fungus gives the plant important nutrients from the soil.

The connections are very detailed. There are millions of links between trees across whole forests. Experts call it the "Wood Wide Web".

Now, they want to make a map to show how it works.

Yes! The Wood Wide Web helps plants communicateShare or exchange information and ideas.. They share food and information. It may not sound like human speech, but they are talking all the same!

No! These links are amazing. But they do not mean plants are talking. This is just a natural process that happens in forests. They cannot talk like us!