ABSTRACT
Dromph (2001) has shown that collembola of the genera Folsomia, Hypogastura and Proisotoma are able to carry spores of the entomopathogenic fungi Bauveria and Metathizium on their cuticles and in their gut. Between 8%–78% of the spores carried on the cuticle and between 53-100% of the spores in feces gave rise to cultures of all three fungal species, suggesting that this type of transport of entomopathogenic fungi could be important. This work only showed the ability of these fungi to form colonies on agar, however, not in terms of infecting insect hosts. Similarly, Price (1976) and Shew and Beute (1979) showed that astigmatid mites had the ability to spread the root pathogenic fungi Verticillium and Pythium myriotylum by conidia and microsclerotia carried in the gut.
