Favoritos de mrostrowski

Entomopathogen on an ant. Such an amazing find in an urban park.

This ant was found inside of a woody gall on a bud oak stem, produced by the wasp Disholcaspis quercusmamma. The ant must have climbed into the empty gall and then succumbed to the fungus.

I’m wondering if this fungus is also somehow involved in the gall/wasp relationship?

The dark base of the peridium seems to be a feature that separates this species from Lamproderma 'mossy', a similar but smaller species that occurs on the same bryophyte-covered logs and stumps.
Photo 2 rounded columella and the 2&3 membranous expansions on the capillitium.
4 tips of capillitium attached to peridium.
5 17 micron diameter echinulate spores.

The cicada has just emerged from its shell. There is a strange black mark that a small larvae exits and crawls down its leg.

Edit: I say the larvae emerged because the larvae seemed to appear right next to a hole with black fluid, then start making its way down the cicada's leg to the tree. It is possible that the larvae just crawled onto the cicada and started eating it, but I thought that was less likely than the larvae exiting the cicada and leaving a hole. The latter might be more likely.

hyphal system either monomitic or dimitic (generative and binding?) but all thin-walled, clamp connections abundant, somethingorother-hyphidia/-physes maybe also present? i don’t know, crusts are hard; basidia with four-sterigmata; cystidia abundant but not projecting far beyond hymenium (cystidioles? pseudocystidia?), flexuous and of varying lengths, apparently with faint yellow contents/lumen (gleocystidia?); spores hyaline, smooth, weakly amyloid, (best viewed at lower magnifications, refraction/chromatic aberration?) with prominent apiculus, broadly ellipsoid to subglobose.

Spores:

(9.6) 10.6 – 10.8 (11.1) × (6.1) 7 – 7.2 (7.5) µm

Q = (1.4) 1.5 – 1.55 (1.6) ; N = 6

Me = 10.6 × 7 µm ; Qe = 1.5

9.56 6.05

10.76 7.22

10.57 7.07

11.05 7.11

10.65 7.51

10.78 6.99

Substrate: on bark of unk. hardwood (beech?)

Habitat: old growth oak forest in urban area, mixed with maple, birch and beech

Ecoregion: border of Southern Great Lakes Forest (NA0414) and Eastern Great Lakes Lowland Forest (NA0407)

Collectors: D. Newman