Cordyceps militaris is a species of fungus in the family Cordycipitaceae, and the type species of the genus Cordyceps. It was originally described by Carl Linnaeus in 1753 as Clavaria militaris.
No narrative description available for this taxon yet.
Compounds documented for Cordyceps militaris across natural-product and food-composition databases — not just the ~150 nutrients on a classic label ("nutritional dark matter").
A DNA barcode is a short, standardised stretch of genes that works like a fingerprint — enough to tell one species from another. Below is the molecular trace Cordyceps militaris has left across the world's sequence archives.
At a glance
DNA specimens180
Marker genes4
GenBank sequences10
eDNA detections154
Countries10
The DNA barcodea real sequence read deposited for this species
Cordyceps militaris HYNK25102 genes for ITS1, 5.8S rRNA and ITS2, partial and complete sequence
Variant network
Each circle is a barcode variant; bigger = more specimens, colour = region. Lines join the most similar variants and the tick marks count the mutations between them — a tight cluster is one “dialect”, a long line a more divergent lineage. Click a circle to list its actual specimens.
Other
Marker genes sequenced
★ the standard DNA barcode for this group — the short region actually read to tell this species apart. The rest are extra genes sequenced along the way.
★COI-5P★ITS10★ITS1★ITS2
animal barcodefungal barcode
Organelle genome
Besides the big genome in the nucleus, cells carry a small, circular loop of DNA inside the cell's energy factories — the mitochondria. It is inherited almost only from the mother and is a leftover from ancient bacteria that moved into the cell. The mitochondrial markers above (ND*, COX, CYTB…) are read from exactly this loop. Outer ring = one strand, inner ring = the other.
▸ Tap any coloured segment — or a gene chip — to see what it is
Pick a coloured segment on the ring — or a gene chip — to read what that gene does.
protein-codingrRNAtRNA
06Genome at a glanceGoaT · NCBI
The complete instruction manualCordyceps militaris carries — its genome. We read it from three angles — how big it is, how the DNA is packed into chromosomes, and how completely it has been sequenced — and explain how to read each value as you go.
Genome sizehow big the whole instruction manual is
Genome size32 235 000 bp
Measured in base pairs (bp) — the individual letters of DNA (human ≈ 3.2 Gb, a bacterium a few million). The chart places this genome on a logarithmic scale — each step to the right is ten times bigger — among reference organisms. Across species a bigger genome loosely tracks with larger cells, slower growth and lower-energy lifestyles (powered flight favours small genomes) — yet it does not imply more genes or a more advanced organism (the long-standing C-value paradox).
BACTERIUM Carsonella ruddii0.00016 Gb
THIS GENOME Cordyceps militaris0.03 Gb
FUNGUS0.04 Gb
INSECT0.25 Gb
HUMAN3.2 Gb
WHEAT17 Gb
FERN Tmesipteris160.45 Gb
Sequencing statusassembly quality — how far to trust these numbers
Assembly level tells you how finished the sequence is — from fragmented contigs, through scaffolds, up to a full chromosome-level assembly. BUSCO % estimates completeness: the share of genes expected to be present that were actually found. These describe the data quality, not the organism.
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Coordinate accuracy35% within 1 km
≤100 m 1 988≤1 km 765≤10 km 4 904>10 km 281
7 938 georeferenced · 1 112 without coordinates
Open the mapobservation + sensor9 050
Museum / Voucheredphysical evidence
Backed by a physical specimen — a herbarium sheet, sample or voucher held in a collection. “Vouchered” means supported by material evidence, not just an observation.
Coordinate accuracy38% within 1 km
≤100 m 43≤1 km 96≤10 km 187>10 km 37
363 georeferenced · 434 without coordinates
Open the institutions mapphysical evidence797
Cultivated / Captivenot free-living
A living individual in a botanical garden, zoo or nursery — cultivated or kept, not free-living.
Coordinate accuracy100% within 1 km
≤100 m 1
1 georeferenced · 2 without coordinates
Open the mapnot free-living3
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
10Collections & institutions
Holding institutions39 of 72 geolocated
Institutions and collections holding physical, vouchered specimens of this species — click a row to fly to it on the map.
Institution
Specimens
LDlocation not on record
99
Bernard Price Institute for Palaeontological Researchlocation not on record
86
Catholic University of Pekinglocation not on record
44
TENN-Flocation not on record
38
Uppsala, SE
32
SLU Artdatabankenlocation not on record
25
Toronto, CA
22
Kew, GB
16
Davis and Elkins Collegelocation not on record
16
Karlsruhe, DE
15
Universidade de Lisboa, Museu Bocagelocation not on record
13
Tomioka, JP
12
Ann Arbor, US
12
Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznańlocation not on record
12
Vancouver, CA
10
Oulu, FI
10
San Sebastián, ES
10
Joensuu, FI
9
Chapel Hill, US
9
Osaka, JP
9
Lincoln, US
8
FLASlocation not on record
8
Göteborg, SE
7
Helsinki, FI
7
PHlocation not on record
5
Tilburg, NL
5
Nagatoro-machi, Chichibu-gun, JP
5
Odawara, JP
4
Copenhagen, DK
4
National Institute of Biological Resourceslocation not on record
4
Durham, US
4
Pullman, US
4
Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung: Senckenberg Forschungsinstitut und Naturmuseumlocation not on record
4
Vitoria, ES
3
Acadia Universitylocation not on record
3
Blacksburg, US
3
Grupo Actinomicetales Merida Facultad de Medicinalocation not on record
3
Bando, JP
3
Colorado State Universitylocation not on record
3
Blumenau, BR
2
Jyväskylä, FI
2
Kensington, AU
2
Turku, FI
2
JA-CAGPDS-CAMlocation not on record
2
Bardejov, SK
2
Madison, US
2
Denver, US
2
Kuopio, FI
2
ILLSlocation not on record
2
Brisbane, AU
2
Museo Entomologico de Leonlocation not on record
2
Uniwersytet Łódzkilocation not on record
2
TUR-Alocation not on record
2
Metsähallituslocation not on record
1
Fungario QCAM de la Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuadorlocation not on record
1
CBDClocation not on record
1
Hobart, AU
1
Fort Hayslocation not on record
1
Gijón, ES
1
KOMlocation not on record
1
Natural History Museum Rotterdamlocation not on record
1
CA
1
California State University, East Baylocation not on record
1
University of Oslo, Natural History Museumlocation not on record
1
DPIlocation not on record
1
Laramie, US
1
Natural History Museum, Tribhuvan Universitylocation not on record
1
QVMAGlocation not on record
1
Uniwersytet Marii Curie-Skłodowskiejlocation not on record
1
Cincinnati, US
1
Canberra, AU
1
UFSClocation not on record
1
72 institutions · 633 of 797 vouchered records shown · 149 without an institution code
Cultivated / Captivenot free-living
A living individual in a botanical garden, zoo or nursery — cultivated or kept, not free-living.
09Environmental DNA154 detections
Where the DNA of Cordyceps militaris was picked up in samples of water, soil or air — nobody saw the organism, only its DNA left behind. A trace is a clue that the species was near, not a confirmed sighting.
Signal
Detections DNA found154
Studies independent surveys1
Countries7
Signal confidence: weakweighed across independent studies, places & mapped detections
Where its DNA was found
0 of 154 detections have coordinates
Open the map7 countries0
On brown cocoon, buired ~2cm deep in alder a…Forest
How strong is each trace?
DNA read depthRead counts were not reported for this species — the map shows presence only, not how strong each trace was.
Modelled climatemodelled
−15°Ctemperature across detection sites+40°C
Temperature median10.5 °C 8.30–17.6
Seasonal swing summer↔winter16.6 °C
Max temp (day)13.6 °C 10.0–20.8
Min temp (night)7.40 °C 4.60–13.4
Precipitation112 mm/mo 61.2–328
Air humidity64.0 % 58.0–66.1
Moisture balance21.7 mm/mo -3.50–246
Vapour deficit487 Pa 384–738
Wind speed2.90 m/s 1.00–5.00
Cloud cover44.0 % 41.1–50.1
CHELSA 1981–2010, ~9 km grid, at location & month of 13 detection points · median with p10–p90 · reflects where sampling happened, not only the true niche
How to read this: each dot is one detection of this species' DNA in an environmental sample. The confidence meter weighs how many independent studies and places back up the signal — one detection in one study is a hint; many across several studies is solid. Records dated before 2008 (when eDNA methods began) are treated as likely mislabeled and left off the map.
WikipediaWikimedia Foundation9 languages↗
BioWikiNetmultilingual Wikipediamultilingual↗
GBIFGlobal Biodiversity Information Facility9 844 records↗
OBISOcean Biodiversity Information System6 records↗
ENAEuropean Nucleotide Archive · EMBL-EBI154 eDNA detections↗
BOLD SystemsCentre for Biodiversity Genomics180 specimens↗
NCBIUS National Library of Medicinesequences↗
LOTUSNatural Products (Wikidata)compounds↗
NPASSNat. Product Activity & Species Sourcecompounds↗
Open Tree of LifeOpenTreephylogeny backbone↗
GoaTGenomes on a Tree · Sangergenome & karyotype↗
Catalogue of LifeCOLtaxonomy↗
GLoBIGlobal Biotic Interactionsbiotic interactions↗