Fungivore

Fungivores are animals that regularly consume fungi or fungal matter as a significant part of their diet. This behavior is known as fungivory or mycophagy, and it occurs across both vertebrate and invertebrate lineages. Some fungivorous animals depend heavily on fungi, while others are more opportunistic, eating fungi only when they are sufficiently available.¹

However, not every animal that lives near fungi is a fungivore. Some animals use mushrooms (fruiting bodies of fungi) or other fungal growth as shelter, breeding sites, or hunting grounds without eating the fungus itself. Others may accidentally swallow small amounts of fungal matter while feeding on soil, leaf litter, or decaying material. Thus, the term ‘fungivore’ applies to animals that only actively consume fungi as a significant part of their diet.

Types

These animals can be grouped by the part of the fungus they consume or the way they access the fungus. They may eat mushrooms, hidden mycelium, spores, or even cultivate fungal networks as a food source.

Feeding Strategy	What it Means	Examples
Fruiting-body Feeders	Eat visible mushrooms or other fungal fruiting bodies	Slugs, fungus gnat larvae, beetles, and some mammals, such as squirrels
Fungal Grazers	Scrape or browse for fungal growth from surfaces, soil, leaf litter, or decaying matter	Slugs, springtails, mites, and some soil animals
Mycelium Feeders	Feed on fungal threads (mycelium) growing through wood, soil, dung, or leaf litter	Ambrosia beetles, some soil-dwelling nematodes, millipedes, and deadwood-associated insects
Spore Eaters	Eat fungal spores	Flying squirrels, potoroos, and cassowaries, among others
Fungal Cultivators (Commonly called ‘fungal farmers’)	Grow and tend a fungal network (fungus garden) as their food source2	Leaf-cutter ants, fungus-growing termites, ambrosia beetles, marsh periwinkle snails

Similarly, fungivores are also grouped by how dependent they are on fungi for their diet.

Dependence Level	What it Means	Examples
Near-obligate or Obligate Fungivores	Rely on fungi for most or all of their nutrition.	Fungus-growing termites, leaf-cutter ants, long-footed potoroos
Specialist Fungivores	Depend strongly on fungi, a fungal habitat, or a particular fungal food source.	Fungus gnat larvae, ambrosia beetles, and mycetophilidae fly larvae, among others
Regular Fungivores	Include fungi as a meaningful, recurrent part of the diet.	Some rodents, squirrels, slugs, and slugs
Opportunistic Fungivores	Eat fungi when available, but they have other food sources.	Primates like chimpanzees, jays, and some mammals, such as wild boars

Although fungi are a nutritious food source, they are not always easy to access or even safe to eat. While many of them bloom seasonally, remain hidden underground, or are concentrated in specific habitats, others may possess defensive chemical compounds that are toxic to animals.³

Ecological Role

As consumers, fungivores directly influence fungal communities in the ecosystem. When a fungivore consumes fungi, it may carry its spores to new places through its droppings, thereby dispersing the fungal progeny.⁴ Moreover, those that graze on fungal parts, such as mycelium, can decide how much fungal material builds up in a particular area.