First record of the termite ectoparasite Laboulbeniopsis termitarius thaxter in Japan

Laboulbeniopsis termitarius, an ectoparasitic fungus of termites, was harvested from the body surface of Reticulitermes speratus (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae), collected in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. This is the first record of this fungus from Japan. Three to eighteen termite workers from 500 individuals were infected among the eight colonies investigated. From our results, several hundred termite are required for the survey of this ectoparasitic fungi in Japan. The temperature effect on the relationship between the infection rate and the host activity was discussed.