Fungal-Scale Insect Associations

Fungal-Scale Insect Associations

Fungal-Scale Insect Associations
This involves the fungal genus Septobasidium. Scale insects are plant parasites that become infected with fungi when they emerge from the parent scale. The fungi develop hyphae that surrounds the maturing scale and traps it but does not kill it. The insects live and reproduce within the hyphal mass. The fungal hyphae retain the adult, while the juvenile scale insect feeds on the plant. Here the fungi provide protection to the insect from predators and parasites and in turn, the scale insect provides the fungi with nutrients.

The movement of the young scale insect from one plant to another results in the dissemination of the spores and thus the fungus.

The fungus derives its nutrients from the scale insect by hyperparasitism (since the scale insect is itself a parasite on higher plants). The sex of the offspring scale insect is determined by the presence of the fungal spores. If the fungal spores are present the offspring is a female and if not, the offspring becomes a male

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