Subject: Re: fly-killing fungi

From: [email-masked]
Date: 2 Mar 1996 11:19:08 -0800

>        I just fielded a phone call from a representative of the Timber Wolf
>Preservation Foundation.  Apparently the wolves at this facility are greatly
>bothered by flies during summertime, and as a consequence they scratch their
>ears until they are in a very bad shape.  Someone there heard or thought
>they heard of a fungus that can kill flies, and did I know anything about
this?

Here's an article re-printed in the January, 1996 issue of the Mycena News,
the newsletter of the Mycological Society of San Francisco.

Rose Flaherty
Editor, Mycena News

SCIENTISTS DEVELOP FLY-KILLING FUNGUS

The following article appeared in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel 5/19/95, the
Colorado Mycological Society’s  Spores Illustrated, Summer, 1995, and the
Connecticut Valley Mycological Society’s Spore Print, Fall, 1995.

Scientists at Cornell University in New York say they have developed a strain
of fungus that is effective at killing common flies that torment dairy and
poultry producers, yet is safe to humans.

The fungus, Beauveria bassiana, is common and found in soil. It first was
observed attacking silk worms in the 1860’s and once was a cause of major
losses in the silk industry. Cornell entomologists, however, began studying
the fungus more closely in the late 1980’s after federal legislation was
adopted that tightened restrictions on pesticides used to control flies.

The researchers screened several strains of fungus until in 1993, they
settled on what they considered the most virulent one against flies. They
then tested various media that would contain the fungus and lure flies to
feed on the fly bait.

Flies can pick up the fungus spore simply by walking on treated material.
They spread it over their bodies inadvertently by grooming. Tests showed the
fungus killed every fly that picked up the spores within five to seven days.

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From: [email-masked] (Stephen R. Berlant)
Date: 18 Mar 1996 17:29:56 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>,
   [email-masked] wrote:
SNIP
>fungus killed every fly that picked up the spores within five to seven days.

Having noticed this post, I couldn't help but recall RG Wasson's 
extensive analysis (in Russia, Mushrooms and History) of tales that the A. 
muscaria was originally called the fly-agaric, presumably because it was used 
in Medieval Europe to attract and kill flies. 

To the contrary, it always seemed to me that "fly-agaric" must have been 
derived from our word "agar" for a growth medium"; because, the mushrooms 
odor, resembling that of rotting flesh, caused flies to lay their eggs on it, 
as evidenced by popular reports that maggots appear on the mushroom soon after 
it starts to decay.

I was wondering if anybody had any recent info that supported or refute either 
of these positions.

My thanks in advance.

Stephen R. Berlant 

I was, thus, wondering wh

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From: [email-masked] (Aruncus)
Date: 21 Mar 1996 17:59:03 -0500

The order Entomophthorales contains some insect pathogens, as well as one
undefined taxon that  produces mycoses in snakes. Entomopthora muscae, the
fly fungus, is found on dead bodies of house flies often clinging to long
unwashed windowpanes.  If you look at the glass you can see a white halo
on the glass surrounding hte dead fly.  The white zone consists of
innumerble conidia that have been shot off the conidiogenous cells growing
out of the body of the dead fly.  These cells are sticky and are picked up
by  other flies infecting them by penetrating the cuticle of the fly. Just
took mycology class so this is fresh in my mind .  I suppose Candida could
be viewed as parasitic in immune compromised individuals.