Scientists have identified a new species of fungus on Twitter. They spotted an image of a millipede while scrolling through the site and noticed a few tiny dots near the creature’s head. The newly discovered parasitic fungus has now been given its official Latin name, Troglomyces twitteri.
- The unknown species, called Laboulbeniales, is a tiny, bizarre and largely unknown fungal parasite that attack insects and millipedes.
- The fungus sucks nutrition from its host animal by piercing the host’s outer shell using a special suction structure, while the other half of the fungus protrudes.
- The discovery was made by biologist Ana Sofia Reboleira of the National Natural History Museum who stumbled upon the image shared by her US colleague Derek Hennen of Virgina Tech.
Source: Daily Mail
