MASSOSPORA CICADINA PECK 



A Fungous Parasite of the Periodical Cicada 



A. T. Speare 

 (With Plates 5 and 6) 



Among the enemies of the periodical cicada, Tibicina septen- 

 decim (L.), none perhaps is of more interest than the fungus 

 Massospora cicadina. It is of interest because to perpetuate itself 

 upon a host of such extraordinary life habits, and so far as is 

 known it occurs on no other host, it must likewise possess a very 

 unusual mode of life. It is of interest also because its relation- 

 ship to other entomogenous fungi has not been clearly understood 

 up to the present time, and, like many other entomogenous forms, 

 it is worthy of especial consideration because it attacks an insect 

 of some economic importance. 



Although the organism was apparently first observed by Leidy 

 (1850), the first description of it was published by Peck (1879). 

 It seems probable that Peck observed the resting spores of the 

 fungus as well as its conidia, but apparently he did not observe 

 the processes associated with the formation of either of these 

 types of reproductive bodies, and, lacking the information that a 

 study of such stages would have afforded him, the organism was 

 erroneously placed near Protomyccs among the Coniomycetes. 

 Thaxter (1888) almost simultaneously with Forbes (1888), pub- 

 lished a brief note in which the fungus was considered as a mem- 

 ber of the Entomophthorales, but as only a few old dried speci- 

 mens were available for study at the time, none of which showed 

 the resting spores, he apparently did not feel fully justified in 

 assigning it to this family of fungi. 



In addition to the above mentioned papers, several others have 

 appeared such as those of Butler (1886) and Marlatt (1907), in 

 which the gross appearance of the fungus and of the diseased 

 cicadas was briefly described, but with the exception of the above 



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