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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Ithaca, New York » Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture & Health » Emerging Pests and Pathogens Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #317924

Title: First report on the entomopathogenic genus Neozygites (Entomophthoromycota) and Neozygites osornensis on aphids in Brazil

Author
item MONTALVA, C. - Federal University Of Big Dourados (UFGD)
item LUZ, CHRISTIAN - Federal University Of Big Dourados (UFGD)
item Humber, Richard

Submitted to: Neotropical Entomology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/19/2016
Publication Date: 2/11/2016
Citation: Montalva, C., Luz, C., Humber, R.A. 2016. First report on the entomopathogenic genus Neozygites (Entomophthoromycota) and Neozygites osornensis on aphids in Brazil. Neotropical Entomology. 45:227-230.

Interpretive Summary: The knowledge of the biodiversity of fungal pathogens affecting insect hosts in Brazil remains surprisingly incomplete and little addressed. In this instance, in conjunction with a Brazilian-funded Science Without Borders project on the fungal pathogens affecting dipteran insect carriers of major human and animal diseases, a little known fungus affecting cypress aphids was found for the first time in Brazil. This fungus, Neozygites osornensis, was originally discovered and described in Chile by this paper’s first author, and this paper reports only the second find of this fungal species, but it is significant that this second collection is separated by a great distance from the original southern Chilean site (deep in the south temperate zone) and comes from a latitude (and climate) in the midst of the southern tropics. Such information is important for building an understanding of what factors might actually be important for determining the actual occurrences and distribution of such host-specific pathogens.

Technical Abstract: The genus Neozygites has been known in Brazil until now only on mites, and this is its first report on aphids in Brazil. Tree-dwelling aphids (Cinara sp.) on a cypress tree were regularly monitored for entomopathogenic fungi in the city of Terezópolis de Goiás in Central Brazil between July 2014 and April 2015. During the rainy season mycosed aphids were found attached to twigs. The fungus was identified morphologically as Neozygites osornensis. No in vitro cultures were established from infected aphids. Findings contribute to a better knowledge on the natural fungal enemies of aphids in Brazil and the world.