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A mycosis of the blood-sucking snipe fly symphoromyia hirta caused by Erynia ithacensis sp.n. (Entomophthoraceae)

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Abstract

A mycosis was detected in Symphoromyia hirta (Diptera: Rhagionidae) collected near Ithaca, New York. Other dipterous victims of the disease included Rhagio mystaceus and Empis obesa. Afflicted flies, found on the under surfaces of leaves of woody plants, were affixed to the substrate by rhizoids. The pathogen formed both resting spores and conidia on the exterior of the cadavers. It grew rapidly and sporulated abundantly in culture. Attempts to induce infections in Musca domestica and Aedes aegypti were unsuccessful. The pathogen Erynia ithacensis sp. n. forms resting spores that are incised with very irregular ridges. This characteristic serves to separate it from other dipterophilic species of Erynia.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Entomology, Cornell University, 14853, Ithaca, NY, USA

    J. P. Kramer

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  1. J. P. Kramer
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Additional information

This study was supported in part by the UNDP/World Bank/WHO Special Programme for Research in Tropical Diseases.

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Kramer, J.P. A mycosis of the blood-sucking snipe fly symphoromyia hirta caused by Erynia ithacensis sp.n. (Entomophthoraceae). Mycopathologia 75, 159–164 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00482810

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00482810

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