The Laboulbeniales is an order of ascomycete fungi, sharing that phylum with its more famous cousins -- yeast, morels, and cup fungi. There are over 2000 species in the order, and they are all ectoparasites of insects, spiders, and crustaceans (2, 3, 4). Commonly called "labdouls," these tiny fungi gather nutrients by digesting chitin from their hosts' shells, and beetles are a favorite (1, 2). An individual labdoul thallus looks like a short, flattened, yellowish hair sticking up off the surface of the insect's shell. Though infested insects often display many such structures, the fungs doesn't seem to do them much harm. Mating can transfer spores of the fungus from one insect to another. Ladybugs (or ladybirds) are commnly infected, and this is often where amateur naturalists first notice this interesting (if a little icky) fungus (3).
