On the surface, HBO’s “The Last of Us” may seem like pure science fiction — yet another zombie apocalypse scenario with mind-controlling fungi as the culprit this time. But as the second season premieres, the show is inching closer to a haunting scenario: the world of fungi is changing, and climate change may be an influence.
The series imagines a future where a mutated fungus, cordyceps, jumps from insects to humans, spreading through airborne spores. It’s a dramatic turn of events, but it touches on a deeper fear now shared by scientists — that as the planet warms, fungi once confined to forests and soil could pose a new kind of threat.
“Fungi love to make spores,” said Dr. Jim Kronstad, a microbiologist at the University of British Columbia. And some of those spores are already finding new, unwelcome homes.
From Ants to Apocalypses
Cordyceps, the “zombie-ant fungus,” is very real — and deeply bizarre. Found in tropical forests, it infects ants, takes over their nervous system, and compels them to climb to a high branch. There, it kills the host and bursts through the body, releasing spores to the forest floor below.
That’s where “The Last of Us” borrows its grotesque concept. The show’s creators depict the fungus evolving into a human pathogen, helped along by climate change. Season one imagined infection through tendrils. Season two, airing April 13, switches to airborne spores — a chilling but scientifically plausible route.
“That’s more realistic about the way humans do acquire fungal infections,” Dr. Kronstad told CBS News.
In real life, spores of fungi like Cryptococcus neoformans — a yeast that can cause deadly meningitis — are inhaled into the lungs. And while cordyceps can’t infect people, the principle behind the show’s premise isn’t entirely fictional.
Climate: The Hidden Catalyst
Our body heat is one of the reasons we’re typically safe from fungi. Most can’t survive at 37 degrees Celsius (98.6 Fahrenheit). But the climate is warming, and fungi are adapting.
Kronstad and his colleagues, in a recent review published in Nature, warned that this evolution could lead to more human infections. Rising temperatures allow fungi to thrive in new environments — and in new hosts. Some, like Coccidioides, which causes valley fever, are already shifting their range.
“There have been some really thoughtful and careful studies looking at how different levels of temperature change would influence drying and more arid conditions moving from the desert Southwest upwards through North America,” said Kronstad.
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In California’s Central Valley, long known for valley fever outbreaks, cases are now increasing farther north, in places like Sacramento. Droughts and dust storms kick spores into the air, where they’re inhaled — sometimes with serious consequences.
Even more concerning is Candida auris, a deadly fungus that has emerged in hospitals worldwide and resists most antifungal drugs. It wasn’t on anyone’s radar a decade ago. Now, it’s a global public health concern.
Not Necessarily Monster Material
Yet we must acknowledge the true importance of fungi. They are among the planet’s great recyclers — breaking down dead material, enriching soil, and sequestering carbon.
Mycelium, the root-like network of fungi, is being used to make biodegradable packaging and even lightweight materials for aerospace applications.
They ferment beer and wine. They flavor cheese. They’re the secret behind vegan burgers.
But the same adaptability that makes fungi useful can also make them dangerous — especially in a warming world.
“Over the past billion years, the fungal kingdom has diversified to more than two million species, with over 95 percent still undescribed,” Kronstad and his co-authors noted.
That includes Rhodosporidiobolus fluvialis, a fungus once found only in the environment but now detected in human infections. It’s a sign that the fungal frontier is expanding and entering unknown territories.
The Bigger Picture
Beyond the human body, fungi are attacking what feeds us. As climates shift, crop-infecting fungi are moving into regions where they were once rare. That puts global food security at risk.
Scientists are calling for more research, more surveillance, and better diagnostics. The world’s understanding of fungal threats is still young — a frontier as deep and mysterious as the forest floor.
So, while the zombies in “The Last of Us” may be just a fantasy threat, their spores serve as a metaphor — and a warning. As Earth heats up, the fungal world is waking up.
And it might not stay in the woods.