LABOULBENIALES - Agentschap voor Natuur en Bos

Laboulbeniales only occur on adult hosts. BENJAMIN (1971) reports a fewcontrary studies, in which has been observed that representatives of theLaboulbeniales can grow also on immature stages. Herpomyces stilopygae,for example, grows on nymphs as well as on adults of their host (Blattaorientalis, suborder Blattodea, order Dictyoptera). However, infection is lessintense on nymphs and disappears completely with the molt (RICHARDS & SMITH,1955).1.5.2. ORDER COLEOPTERAThe Coleoptera form the most diverse group of extant Metazoa. Beetles arevirtually everywhere; they show an extreme diversity both ecologically andmorphologically. Their size ranges from tiny animals of nearby 0,3 mm(Ptiliidae) to „giants‟ of almost 18 cm (Titanus giganteus, the giant Amazonianlonghorn beetle) (PONS et al., 2010). The order consists of 370.000 speciesspread over 166 families (BURNIE, 2001), and is the largest of all insect orders. InWest-Europe, 5.000 species have been described.Coleopterans have two pairs of wings, of which the first pair is hard or leathery.The first wings – called elytra – touch each other dorsally. The second pair ofwings is membranous and lies folded up underneath the elytra. Sometimes thesecond pair of wings is not present or reduced (brachypterous); some specieseven have no wings at all (apterous).Mouth parts of coleopterans are always biting. This is a physical constraint;beetles, however, have invaded all available biotopes (including the sea) andopened up all possible food sources. The order comprises herbivores,detritivores, predators and parasites. Many species play a negative role forman: cockshafers and many other species harm our crops. Beetles, on theother hand, can be very useful allies in the battle against other threateninginsects. In particular lady birds, that eat greenflies, are important. All mouthparts, including the biting mandibles, are well developed. However, thisdoesn‟t mean that beetles are restricted to solid food; many species soak theirfood with digestive fluid before taking it up. Other species lick nectar, whilelarvae of even other species suck liquid food with their tube-like mandibles.The order of the Coleoptera consists of three suborders: Adephaga,Polyphaga and Archostemmata. The latter is not represented in Europe. Thesuborder of the Adephaga is the more primitive suborder and consists ofcarnivorous species. The name Adephaga refers to the habit to run after food(Latin ad = [go] to). The suborder of the Polyphaga is the larger one, and – ascan be expected (Polyphaga means „eating lots of things‟) comprises manyincoherent representatives. The phylogeny of this group is far from beingelucidated. Even after 20 years of research, there still are large and ratherheterogeneous superfamilies in the suborder Polyphaga.The family of the Staphylinidae (suborder Polyphaga) is parasitized by thegreatest number of genera of the Laboulbeniales (49 genera; TAVARES, 1979).The family of the Carabidae (suborder Adephaga) is parasitized by 15 genera(TAVARES, 1979). Also the family of the Hydrophilidae is parasitized by 15genera, but by a much smaller number of species (TAVARES, 1979).P a g e | 20