The class trichomycetes are cosmopolitan, endosymbiotic fungi of arthropods; however, very little is known about their ecology. Therefore, investigations were conducted into the spatial and temporal distribution of trichomycete fungi, within the Order Harpellales, that inhabit the gut of larval black flies (Diptera: Simuliidae). Twenty lotic habitats throughout southern Alabama were sampled over a one-year period. Host black flies were collected, mid/ hindguts dissected and their symbiotic fungi identified under phase-contrast microscopy. Trichomycete presence in a particular stream varied significantly according to site, time of year and host species. Although trichomycete host specificity is only discernable at the family level of recognition, these results suggest certain trichomycetes have variable host preferences among species of Simulium.
Species 1: Diptera Simuliidae Simulium decorum
Keywords: endosymbiont
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