As B.C. faces increasingly severe wildfire seasons, new research at UBC is revealing the hidden helpers at work underneath the ash. Assistant professor Dr. Monika Fischer studies pyrophilous fungi—fire-loving organisms that thrive in burned landscapes and may play a crucial role in helping forests recover. Now that fall rains have returned and mushrooms are emerging across the province, these post-fire specialists are appearing too, turning blackened soil into a riot of colour. These are specialized fungi that appear only after fire—unlike the typical cap-and-stem mushrooms we know. Many belong to a group called Ascomycota and produce tiny, cup-shaped fruiting bodies in vivid colours. Pyronema creates a neon orange crust, Geopyxis forms brown cups with white rims, and Peziza adds a splash of purple. They grow among mosses and liverworts, creating a surprising rainbow of life against the blackened ground.