The recent demonstrations that widespread mid-Palaeozoic Prototaxites and other nematophytes had fungal affinities indicate that terrestrial fungi were important elements in carbon cycling in the Early Devonian. Here, we provide evidence for their participation in the recycling of nutrients by early terrestrial invertebrates. Evidence is in the form of coprolites, both those associated with nematophytes or containing their fragmentary remains. Cylindrical coprolites consistently associated with fungal mats are placed in a new ichnospecies, Bacillafaex myceliorum. Their contents are granular to amorphous, suggestive of complete digestion of the ingested hyphae, with the inference of possession of chitinases in the digestive tracts of the consumers. A further single example comprises a cluster of cylindrical bodies attached to the lower surface of a Nematothallus fragment. Here, homogenisation was less complete, with traces of hyphae remaining. Terrestrial animal fossils have not been found at the locality, but scorpions, pseudoscorpions, Opiliones, mites, centipedes (carnivores) and millipedes, and Collembola (detritivores) have been recorded from the slightly younger Rhynie cherts. Studies of fungivory in extant arthropods have concentrated on Collembola and, to a lesser extent, mites, but their faecal pellets are much smaller than the fossil examples. Millipedes, based on body size and faeces of extant forms, are considered more realistic producers, but little is known about fungal feeding in these animals. Regardless of the affinities of the producers, the diversity in morphology, sizes, aggregations, and composition of nematophyte-containing examples suggests that fungivory was an important component of carbon cycling in early terrestrial ecosystems.

最近的证据表明，广泛的中古生代原生生物和其他线虫植物具有真菌亲和力，表明陆生真菌是泥盆纪早期碳循环的重要元素。在这里，我们为它们参与早期陆生无脊椎动物的营养循环提供了证据。证据以共prolites的形式出现，即与线虫植物相关或包含其碎片的遗骸。始终与真菌垫相关的圆柱状proprolites被放置在一种新的鱼类物种中，Bacillafaex菌丝体。它们的含量呈颗粒状至无定形，暗示已消化的菌丝被完全消化，并推断消费者消化道中有几丁质酶。另一个单个示例包括连接到线虫下表面的一组圆柱体分段。在这里，均质化不完全，残留有丝状菌丝。在该地区尚未发现陆生动物化石，但从稍年轻的Rhynie cher石上记录了蝎子，假蝎子，Opiliones，螨虫，cent（食肉动物）和千足虫和Collembola（碎屑动物）。现存节肢动物中食虫的研究主要集中在Collembola和较小的螨虫上，但是它们的粪便颗粒比化石实例小得多。基于体形和现存粪便的千足虫被认为是更现实的生产者，但对这些动物的真菌饲养知之甚少。不论生产者的亲和力如何，形态，大小，集合体的多样性，