Below the fold is a video about fungi that selectively infect specific species of insects, with devastating effects.
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Insects scuttle, chew and fly through the world around us. Humans rely on them to pollinate plants, prey on insects that we don’t get along with, and to be movers and shakers for Earth’s ecosystems. It’s hard to imagine a world without insects.
Mark this on your calendar: February 27 is the
Here's a chart I made this morning.
I remember seeing many years ago a segment on the PBS series Nature about this fungus in ants. The episode was about the ants that have a symbiotic relationship with certain trees in the tropics.
I did not know that this type of fungus infects many different types of insects.
well, this fungus has evolved into specialized forms so each species of insect that can be infected has its own fungus species that does the infecting.
Why was the mushroom so popular?
Because he's a fungi.
I just saw this a few days ago on the CBC. My wife and I were sitting there with our jaws on the floor watching the ant sprout new antennae made of fungus. Totally amazing!
This post about entomopathogenic fungi and other manipulative parasites is by far the most viewed item on my blog. It also contains film clips of parasitic gordian worms, which infect terrestrial insects and secrete neuropeptides that alter the geotactic sense of the host, causing it to jump into water so that the mature worm can emerge.