Evidence for fungivory in Proctotydaeus furnarius, a brood mite of the Australian stingless bee Tetragonula carbonaria

Proctotydaeus furnarius, a brood mite in Tetragonula carbonaria brood cells, is linked to fungivory, consuming a yeast isolate (Zygosaccharomyces sp.) from brood cells.

• Why it matters: Stingless bee nest mites are common but poorly understood, and it was unclear whether this brood mite feeds on fungi within host nests.
• What they did: The hypothesis was tested with electron microscopy, ITS amplicon sequencing, dye-based feeding trials, and brood-cell culturing, including yeast (Zygosaccharomyces sp.) and crushed bee pupae in trials.
• The result: Mite stylets resembled those of fungivorous mites, and mite presence did not detectably alter the culturable brood-cell microbial community, suggesting fungal feeding with possible diet shifts.