''Crivellia'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...

in the family

Pleosporaceae Pleosporaceae is a family of sac fungi. The taxonomic relationship of this family to associated genera is still not determined. Genera As accepted by GBIF; * '' Acrothecium'' (13) * ''Alternaria'' Nees ex Wallroth, 1816 (841) * '' Alternariast ...

. It is a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

genus, containing the single species ''Crivellia papaveracea'', which causes

leaf blight Blight refers to a specific symptom affecting plants in response to infection by a pathogenic organism. Description Blight is a rapid and complete chlorosis, browning, then death of plant tissues such as leaves, branches, twigs, or floral org ...

opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum'', commonly known as the opium poppy or breadseed poppy, is a species of flowering plant in the family Papaveraceae. It is the species of plant from which both opium and poppy seeds are derived and is also a valuable ornamen ...

. The fungus is found in Europe, Australia, India, Japan, Nepal, Pakistan, South Africa, Turkey, USA and Zambia.

"Agent Green" in Colombia

In 2000, the government of

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

proposed dispersing strains of ''Crivellia'' and ''

Fusarium oxysporum ''Fusarium oxysporum'' (Schlecht as emended by Snyder and Hansen), an ascomycete fungus, comprises all the species, varieties and forms recognized by Wollenweber and Reinking within an infrageneric grouping called section Elegans. It is part of ...

'', also known as Agent Green, as a

biological weapon A biological agent (also called bio-agent, biological threat agent, biological warfare agent, biological weapon, or bioweapon) is a bacterium, virus, protozoan, parasite, fungus, or toxin that can be used purposefully as a weapon in bioterroris ...

to forcibly eradicate coca and other illegal crops. The weaponized strains were developed by the US government, who had conditioned their approval of

Plan Colombia Plan Colombia was a United States foreign aid, military aid, and diplomatic initiative aimed at combating Colombian drug cartels and left-wing insurgent groups in Colombia. The plan was originally conceived in 1999 by the administrations of Col ...

on the use of this weapon, but ultimately withdraw that condition. In February 2001, the EU Parliament also issued a declaration specifically against the use of these biological agents in warfare.

References

External links

* Pleosporaceae Monotypic Dothideomycetes genera Fungi of Africa Fungi of Asia Fungi of Australia Fungi of Europe Fungi of North America Taxa described in 1863 {{Pleosporales stub