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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 #418945
Research Project: Management and Biology of Arthropod Pests and Arthropod-borne Plant Pathogens

Location: Emerging Pests and Pathogens Research

Title: Annotated Checklist of Arthropod-Pathogenic Species in the Entomophthoromycotina (Fungi: Zoopagomycota) in North America

Author
item HAJEK, ANN - Cornell University
item SCOTT, KELSEY - Oak Ridge Institute For Science And Education (ORISE)
item SANCHEZ-PENA, SERGIO - Universidad Autonoma Agraria Antonio Narro
item TKACZUK, CEZARY - University Of Silesia
item Lovett, Brian
item Bushley, Kathryn

Submitted to: MycoKeys
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/12/2024
Publication Date: 3/5/2025
Citation: Hajek, A.E., Scott, K.L., Sanchez-Pena, S., Tkaczuk, C., Lovett, B.R., Bushley, K.E. 2025. Annotated Checklist of Arthropod-Pathogenic Species in the Entomophthoromycotina (Fungi: Zoopagomycota) in North America. MycoKeys. 114: 329–366. https://doi.org/10.3897/mycokeys.114.139257.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/mycokeys.114.139257

Interpretive Summary: Fungi in the subphylum Entomophthoromycotina include many arthropod pathogens that can control host populations through epizootics and also manipulate the behaviour of their hosts. Despite their promise as potential biocontrol agents, these fungi are understudied and very little is known about their host associations, and distributions. The last checklist of these fungi in North America was conducted in 1963 and taxonomy of these fungi has changed dramatically since then. To fill this gap in knowledge, we conducted a thorough literature search of species of Entomophthoromycotina occurring in North America (including Mexico, the USA, and Canada) and found in the ARS entomopathogenic fungal (ARSEF) culture collection. This checklist will serve as a valuable resource for biologists studying these fungi and highlights some areas where future collecting efforts should focus on fungi in Entomophthoromycotina.

Technical Abstract: The subphylum Entomophthoromycotina (Phylum Zoopagomycota) includes many arthropod pathogens, some of which are renowned for their abilities to alter host behavior prior to death and cause epizootics that impact host populations. The last checklist of arthropod-pathogenic species in this group was published in 1963 and consisted of 39 species in a single genus (Hutchison 1963). Since then, more species have been named and their taxonomy has changed extensively. We constructed an updated checklist for Entomophthoromycotina in North America, which includes the continental United States, Canada, and Mexico. Data were compiled based on available published literature and metadata available from the ARSEF culture collection, adjusting names based on current taxonomy. In North America, the arthropod-pathogenic Entomophthoromycotina now includes 80 species belonging to 15 genera, within two classes. This checklist provides a current framework for future studies of biodiversity of this group of fungi.