Entomogenous fungi and the conservation of the cultural heritage: A review

Arthropods are vectors of entomogenous fungi and play an important role in caves, catacombs and mural paintings. It is suggested that when investigating fungal invasion of cultural properties, a careful study on the arthropods is needed in order to know fungal dispersion patterns and propose countermeasures for the protection of the cultural sites. In sites where arthropods are abundant it would be necessary to reduce their population as a way to decrease fungal contamination and colonization frequency. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.