Basidiospore

A sexual spore produced externally by a basidium, the characteristic spore-bearing cell of basidiomycete fungi. It commonly forms after meiosis and disperses to establish new fungal growth.

Basidium: A specialized fungal cell that produces basidiospores externally, usually on small projections called sterigmata. This is the spore-bearing cell on which a basidiospore develops.
Basidiomycota: A fungal phylum whose members characteristically produce sexual spores on basidia. Basidiospores are the defining sexual dispersal spores of this fungal group.
Spore print: A deposit of fungal spores collected on a surface to reveal their color and, sometimes, their pattern. Mushroom spore prints commonly consist of discharged basidiospores and aid identification.
Ascospore: A sexual spore produced inside an ascus, the characteristic spore-bearing cell of ascomycete fungi. Unlike a basidiospore, it develops inside rather than externally on its spore-bearing cell.
Meiosis: A cell division that reduces chromosome number by half and generates genetically distinct cells. Meiosis usually produces the haploid nuclei packaged into basidiospores.
Dikaryon: A fungal cell state containing two genetically distinct haploid nuclei that have not fused. Many basidiomycete basidia begin their development in this two-nucleus state.
Fungal dispersal: The movement of fungal propagules, including spores, away from their place of production. Basidiospore discharge and airflow determine how far spores can spread.
Conidium: An asexual fungal spore formed without sexual fusion, often on a specialized hypha. Conidia are asexual propagules, unlike the typically meiotic basidiospore.
Sterigma: A slender projection of a basidium that supports an attached basidiospore. The spore forms at the tip of this projection before release.
Karyogamy: The fusion of two nuclei to form a single diploid nucleus. Nuclear fusion in the basidium precedes the meiosis that produces spores.

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