310 Marine Microbiology 



Cribbles 



In preliminaty publications Schafer and Lane (53) and 

 Becker, Kampf and Kohlmeyer (5) had stated that Limnoria 

 species depend on marine fungi in their nutrition. Experiments 

 by Ray (47) as well as by Kohlmeyer, Becker, and Kampf (34) 

 showed that Limnoria species may live in wood free from fungi. 

 Thus, the gribble is able to digest uninfested wood. The tests made 

 by the latter authors have demonstrated, however, that lifetime 

 of the gribble Limnorio triptincfata Menzies was longer when 

 fed with infested soft wood than on the same substrate without 

 any fungi. In hard wood, duration of life was equal in infested or 

 uninfested material. Reproduction occurred only when fed witli 

 wood attacked by marine fungi. Further experiments with other 

 species of Limnoria should elucidate whether the positive influ- 

 ence on the gribble exists everywhere. 



Finally we will mention that dispersal of wood-inhabiting 

 marine fungi may be favored by wood-eating animals, as conidia 

 and ascospores of some species pass the digestive tract of Lim- 

 noria without being damaged (29, 34). Animals coming from 

 fungus-inhabited wood migrating to another substrate may carry 

 spores that germinate in the faecal pellets and infest the newly 

 attacked wood. It has not yet been determined whether the via- 

 bility of spores is influenced in any way by passing the digestive 

 tract of the gribble. 



Our knowledge of influence of marine fungi on other sea 

 inhabiting organisms is still fragmentary, but the topics dealt vdth 

 above show what problems have to be solved and what import- 

 ance fungi may have for oceanography. 



REFERENCES 



1. Armstrong, F. H. and Savory, J. G.: The influence of fungal decay on 



the properties of timber. Holzforsch., 13:84-89, 1959. 



2. Barghoorn, E. S.: In Barghoorn, E. S. and Linder, D. H.: Marine 



fungi: their taxonomy and biology. Farlowia, i:395-467, 1944. 

 3. and Lixder, D. H.: Marine Fungi: their taxonomy 



and biology. Farlowia, 1:395-467, 1944. 

 4. Bauch, R.: Ophiobolus kniepii, ein neuer parasitischer Pyrenomycet 



auf Kalkalgen. Pubbl. Staz. Zool. Napoli., i5:377-391, 1936. 



