Xerophile

Xerophiles are extremophile organisms that can grow and reproduce in conditions with almost no water.

Many moulds and yeasts are xerophilic. Mould growth on bread is an example of food spoilt by a xerophilic fungus.

Examples:

  • Trichosporonoides nigrescens.[1]
  • Cacti are also a type of xerophile.
  • Tardigrades can survive for almost a decade without exposure to water.
  • Soil microbes of the Atacama Desert

References
  1. Hocking, Ailsa D.; Pitt, J. I. (December 1981). "Trichosporonoides nigrescens sp. nov., a new xerophilic yeast-like fungus". Antonie van Leeuwenhoek. 47 (5): 411–21. doi:10.1007/BF00426003. PMID 7198892. S2CID 10634262.


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