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The aim of this study was to investigate the species composition of insects inhabiting the fruit- ing bodies of Burgundy truffle Tuber aestivum in Polish forests. Field work was carried out in 2016-2017 at four natural truffle sites in southern Poland. The fruiting bodies were searched with the help of a trained truffle dog or collected randomly. Adult insects were captured direct- ly from the fruiting bodies using an exhaustor. Fruit bodies that were possibly inhabited by insect larvae were collected, brought to the laboratory and placed in special containers to devel- op them. Insects were reared in a biological chamber with constant parameters. Adult insects collected from the field and reared in the laboratory were identified using morphological meth- ods. During the study, 584 Burgundy truffle sporocarps were found and examined (364 in 2016 and 220 in 2017). In 2016, 90 truffles were infested by insects (about 24.7%), while in 2017, 93 fruiting bodies were damaged, representing 42.2% of the harvest. A total of 330 insect speci- mens belonging to 21 species were identified. Some of them can cause significant losses in truf- fle plantations. Others can be considered as indicators of the presence of truffles in the forest environment. During the study, 236 specimens of Diptera were obtained from breeding, and a total of 86 imagines of Coleoptera and 8 imagines of Hymenoptera were collected directly from the fruiting bodies. Ant larvae were also observed in the truffles but were not collected for breeding. The assemblage of insects inhabiting truffles was identified, with two visibly dominant species: Cheilosia soror fly from the Syrphidae family and truffle beetle Colenis immunda from Leiodidae family. Among other common insect species, the flies Suillia affinis and Suillia pallida and the beetles Leiodes cinnamomea and Leiodes oblonga were observed. For the first time, a case of colonization of truffle fruiting bodies by ants Myrmica rubra has been described. The pio- neering research carried out in Polish forests has helped to significantly increase knowledge about truffle-inhabiting insects, their occurrence and biology, which is necessary to reduce the damage they cause to truffle production.

来源平台：SYLWAN