EntomoFun 1.0: A global database of entomopathogenic fungi and associations with their hosts
Data files
Aug 08, 2024 version files 513.22 KB
Abstract
Pathogens significantly influence natural and agricultural ecosystems, playing a crucial role in regulating species populations and maintaining biodiversity. Entomopathogenic fungi (EF), particularly within the Hypocreales order, exemplify understudied pathogens that infect insects and other arthropods globally. Despite their ecological importance, comprehensive data on EF host specificity and geographical distribution have been lacking. To address this, we present EntomoFun 1.0, an open-access database centralizing global records of EF-insect associations in Hypocreales. This database includes 1,791 records detailing EF species, insect host taxa, country of occurrence, life stages of hosts, and information sources. EntomoFun 1.0 is constructed from over 600 literature sources, as well as herbarium specimens of the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew. This database is intended for testing hypotheses, identifying knowledge gaps, and stimulating future research. Contents of the EntomoFun 1.0 database are partly visualized with a global map, taxonomic chart, graphs, and a bipartite community network.
README: EntomoFun 1.0: A global database of entomopathogenic fungi and associations with their hosts
https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.1zcrjdg17
Description of the data and file structure
The EntomoFun 1.0 database consists of six different files.
- File one concerns the full database and presents all validated records.
- File two presents summaries of hosts infected per EF species.
- Similarly, a third file shows summaries of EF species affecting per host species. Note that the information presented in files 2 and 3 is also available from file 1; we present the data in these alternative formats for user convenience.
- File four presents records that are deemed doubtful, providing details for each to support this classification.
- File five presents a raw version of the database before removal of duplicate records, but is identical in all other respects to the first file.
- File six presents a list of all EF species currently described, listing the basionym and synonyms (based on sexual morphs only and expanded from the supplementary data by Araújo and Hughes).
All files are in .xlsx format. During the process of data collation, 1100+ literate sources were examined, from which 600+ present observations are included in the database. EntomoFun 1.0 currently has 1,791 records in file one, and an additional 139 unverified records (in file_four). Cells for which no information is available are indicated with an "NA" value.
Usage Notes
All files included in EntomoFun 1.0 are publicly available in Dryad under a Creative Commons Zero (CC0) license. This database adheres to the FAIR principles, allowing researchers to find, access, understand, and reuse data related to EF.
Standardized data collation was employed from the literature. EntomoFun 1.0 contains virtually every known association between teleomorph EF species in Hypocreales (excluding Polycephalomycetaceae) and their respective host taxa, as well as the host life stage and geographical distribution. Having this information centralized provides a significant advantage when studying EF ecology, host range, and biogeography (as explained in the Summary and Background section). Our database can help identify knowledge gaps to direct future studies. For example, the distributional gaps identified by our data (i.e., Wallacean shortfall; Fig. 1) highlight regions where additional samples are needed for future EF studies. When using EntomoFun 1.0 for ecological analyses, take into consideration these knowledge gaps.
Because of cryptic diversity, some EF species have been – or might be in the future – split into multiple species. Depending on the use of this database, “older” species reports might be considered as sensu lato. Notable examples are: ‘Cordyceps gunnii’, Ophiocordyceps australis, O. dipterigena, O. myrmecophila, O. sphecocephala, and O. unilateralis. This is a consideration that should also be made for host taxa, e.g., for ants (Formicidae) of the genera Camponotus *and *Pachycondyla.
Methods
Data was collected from literature, with additions from herbarium specimens, through methods described according to the manuscript submitted to Scientific Data.