Summary:
- Fungi used to be classified as plants.
- Now, they are known to have unique traits that set them apart from plants.
- For example, fungal cell walls contain chitin, not cellulose, and fungi absorb food rather than make their own.
- These are just a few of the reasons fungi are now placed in their own kingdom.
- There is no single, widely-accepted system of fungal classification.
- Most classifications include several phyla (the next major taxon below the kingdom) Three of the most common phyla are compared in Table below.