Carnivorous fungus

Carnivorous fungi or predaceous fungi are

collembola

.

Fungi that grow on the

epidermis, hair, skin, nails, scales or feathers of living or dead animals are considered to be dermatophytes rather than carnivores. Similarly, fungi in orifices and the digestive tract of animals are not carnivorous, and neither are internal pathogens. Neither are insect pathogens that stun and colonize insects normally labelled carnivorous if the fungal thallus is mainly in the insect as does Cordyceps, or if it clings to the insect like the Laboulbeniales. All of these are examples of parasitism

or scavenging.

Two basic trapping mechanisms have been observed in carnivorous fungi that are predatory on nematodes:

constricting rings (active traps)
adhesive structures (passive traps)

Sequencing of ribosomal DNA has shown that these trap types occur in separate fungus lineages,^[2] an example of convergent evolution.

References

^ Pramer, D. 1964. Nematode-trapping fungi. Science 144: 382–388.
^ Ahrén, D., M.U. Bjõrn & A. Tunlind 1998. Phylogeny of nematode-trapping fungi based on 18S rDNA sequences. FEMS Microbiology Letters 158: 179–184.

Hauser, J.T. 1985. "Nematode-Trapping Fungi" (PDF). (815
KiB) Carnivorous Plant Newsletter 14(1): 8-11. [reprinted from Carolina Tips, Carolina Biological Supply Company
]

External links

Nematode Destroying Fungi

[1] Pramer, D. 1964. Nematode-trapping fungi. Science 144: 382–388.

[2] Ahrén, D., M.U. Bjõrn & A. Tunlind 1998. Phylogeny of nematode-trapping fungi based on 18S rDNA sequences. FEMS Microbiology Letters 158: 179–184.

[2]

See also

References

External links