Editing Basidium (section)

===Evolutionary loss of expulsion by force===
Some basidiomycetes do not have a means to forcibly expel their basidiospores, although they still form them. In each of these groups, spore dispersal occurs through other means of expulsion.{{cn|date=February 2025}}

For example:
* Members of the order Phallales ([[stinkhorns]]) rely on insect [[dispersal vector|vectors for dispersal]].{{cn|date=February 2025}}
* The dry spores of the [[Lycoperdales]] ([[puffball]]s) and [[Sclerodermataceae]] (earth balls and kin) are dispersed when the basidiocarps are disturbed.{{cn|date=February 2025}}
* Species of the [[Nidulariales]] (bird's nest fungi) use a splash cup mechanism.{{cn|date=February 2025}}

In these cases the basidiospore typically lacks a hilar appendage, and expulsion by force does not occur. Each example is thought to represent an independent evolutionary loss of the forcible discharge that comes before all basidiomycetes.{{cn|date=February 2025}}