Prototaxites stellaviatori

P. stellaviatori cultivated on the Discovery

Lieutenant Paul Stamets holding a container with his original Prototaxites stellaviatori sample

Prototaxites stellaviatori was a species of fungus, casually described as a mushroom.

The species was composed of exotic material found not only in normal space but also in a discrete subspace domain known as the mycelial network. Its fungal roots, or mycelium, fanned out into infinity to form the mycelial network, although it was limited to the Milky Way Galaxy alone. (DIS: "Choose Your Pain", "The Galactic Barrier")

In 2256, a strain of P. stellaviatori was grown in the cultivation bay aboard the USS Discovery. Its mycelium spores were harvested for use in the Discovery's experimental spore drive. (DIS: "Context Is for Kings", "The War Without, The War Within")

In 2257, the Class 4 moon Delta 2 was terraformed using the species in order to replenish the Discovery's supply of spores, as the original supply had died due to mycelial network corruption caused by the ISS Charon. (DIS: "The War Without, The War Within")

In the real world, Prototaxites is an extinct genus of fungi that lived 420 to 370 million years ago. The epithet "stellaviatori" comes from the Latin roots stella ("star"), and viator ("traveler"), hinting at the species' properties.

In a segment of AT: "Choose Your Pain", the species name is spelled "Prototaxites stellavioatorium"