Scanning electron micrograph of a sporangium, or fruiting body, of a common bread mould Mucor mucedo. Spores circulate freely in the air; this sporangium is dusted with the spores of another species of fungi, Penicillium sp. When they alight on a favourable medium, they germinate a network of hyphae (threads), the function of which is to absorb food for growth & spore production. Spores may be borne in a saclike body or sporangium. This globular structure grows at the end of a specialised hypha called a sporangiophore. The wall cracks under pressure & disintegrates, releasing the spores for dispersal. Magnification X1500 (10x8 size).