The Ophiostomatales are an
order
Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to:
* Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood
* Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...
of
fungi in the class
Sordariomycetes.
They are commonly symbionts to insect species, which can be found in numerous cases, including some
termites and many
bark beetles. In the cases of most beetle symbioses, the Ophiostomatales fungi is carried in
mycangia
The term mycangium (pl., mycangia) is used in biology for special structures on the body of an animal that are adapted for the transport of symbiotic fungi (usually in spore form). This is seen in many xylophagous insects (e.g. horntails and bark b ...
, which help keep fungal inoculants close to the beetle at all times. In some cases, the fungi are the main source of food for the beetles. In others, the relationship is not as clear.
References
Ascomycota orders
{{Sordariomycetes-stub