# Cordyceps
**Cordyceps** is a genus of ascomycete fungi in the order [Hypocreales](https://www.edgepedia.org/hypocreales) that parasitize arthropods, killing insect and spider hosts and producing a fruiting body (stroma) from the host's body. In its broad historical sense, *Cordyceps* sensu lato (Latin: 'in the broad sense' — old wide genus definition) comprised approximately 1,300 known species, but molecular phylogenetics showed the old genus was not a natural group, and most of its species are now distributed among three families: Cordycipitaceae, Ophiocordycipitaceae, and part of Clavicipitaceae.[1](https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2022.846909/full) In the strict modern sense, *Cordyceps* sensu stricto is a smaller genus in Cordycipitaceae defined by its type species, *Cordyceps militaris*.[2](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6059107/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type species | *Cordyceps militaris*, which anchors the name *Cordyceps* and the family Cordycipitaceae[2](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6059107/) |
| Species diversity | About 1,300 known species in *Cordyceps* sensu lato across three families of Hypocreales[1](https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2022.846909/full) |
| Host range | Seven orders of Arthropoda, including Araneae, Coleoptera, Hemiptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera, and Orthoptera[1](https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2022.846909/full) |
| Famous relative | The caterpillar fungus, formerly *Cordyceps sinensis*, is now *Ophiocordyceps sinensis*, outside *Cordyceps* sensu stricto[2](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6059107/) |
| Medicinal chemistry | Cordycepin (3'-deoxyadenosine) occurs in higher concentrations in *C. militaris* than in *O. sinensis*[3](https://www.ijisrt.com/assets/upload/files/IJISRT25DEC820.pdf) |
| Cultivation | *C. militaris* is readily cultivated and commercially available; *O. sinensis* remains rare and difficult to cultivate[4](https://sdiopr.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/2024/Mar/28-Mar-24/2024_JABB_114869/Revised-ms_JABB_114869_v1.pdf) |
## Taxonomic history
The type species, *C. militaris*, was recorded in pre-Linnaean literature of the 17th and early 18th centuries under the obsolete generic names *Fungus* and *Fungoides*, based on its cylindrical stroma. Linnaeus transferred it to *Clavaria* in 1753, and it was later placed in the ascomycete genus *Sphaeria* until the early 19th century. The genus *Cordyceps* was established by Fries (1818) and Link (1833), and over the following decades was expanded to include pathogens of more than 12 insect orders and of the fungal genera *Elaphomyces* and *Claviceps*. This broad concept, shaped by the monumental work of Yosio Kobayasi (1941, 1982) and by Mains (1958), stood for roughly 200 years.[5](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5729716/) • [6](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6059065/)
**Molecular reclassification.** A multi-gene phylogenetic study by Gi-Ho Sung, Nigel Hywel-Jones, Joseph W. Spatafora and colleagues published in 2007 showed that neither *Cordyceps* nor the family Clavicipitaceae was monophyletic, meaning that the traditional genera did not correspond to true evolutionary lineages. The study recognized three clavicipitaceous clades and revised the taxonomy accordingly: the family Cordycipitaceae was validated around the type species *C. militaris* and includes most species with brightly colored, fleshy stromata; the new family Ophiocordycipitaceae was proposed for species producing darkly pigmented, tough to pliant stromata; and the new genus *Elaphocordyceps* was proposed for a subclade parasitizing the fungal genus *Elaphomyces* plus related arthropod pathogens.[7](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166061614601305) Most diagnostic characters used in older classifications, such as the arrangement of perithecia and ascospore fragmentation, proved not to be phylogenetically informative; texture, pigmentation, and stroma morphology were the characters most consistent with the phylogeny.[7](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166061614601305)
Under the amended International Code of Nomenclature principle of one fungus one name, many generic names have been protected for monophyletic clades, producing large-scale transfers of *Cordyceps* species to both sexual and asexual genera, including *Ophiocordyceps*, *Tolypocladium*, *Metarhizium*, *Perennicordyceps*, *Polycephalomyces*, and *Purpureocillium*. About 170 former *Cordyceps* species remain incertae sedis, of uncertain placement, within Hypocreales because molecular data are lacking.[2](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6059107/) Within the core *Cordyceps* clade, internal relationships correspond roughly to stromatal color, red to orange versus white to yellow, and the genus is the oldest accepted generic name in Cordycipitaceae, typified by a sexual morph.[5](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5729716/)
## Biology and hosts
*Cordyceps* species are entomopathogenic, meaning they infect and kill insects and other arthropods. The host range of the genus embraces seven orders of Arthropoda, including spiders (Araneae), beetles ([Coleoptera](https://www.edgepedia.org/coleoptera)), earwigs ([Dermaptera](https://www.edgepedia.org/dermaptera)), true bugs ([Hemiptera](https://www.edgepedia.org/hemiptera)), wasps and ants (Hymenoptera), moths and butterflies (Lepidoptera), and grasshoppers (Orthoptera); beetles and moths are the two most significant host orders, together hosting an estimated 200 or more *Cordyceps* species.[1](https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2022.846909/full) Species reproduce through sexual ascospores, asexual conidia, or both.[1](https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2022.846909/full)
The sexual stages of many entomopathogenic Hypocreales, including well-known biocontrol fungi such as *Beauveria bassiana* and *Metarhizium robertsii*, belong to *Cordyceps* sensu lato.[8](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4527712/) Some relatives are noted for host manipulation: the ant pathogen *[Ophiocordyceps unilateralis](https://www.edgepedia.org/ophiocordyceps-unilateralis)* sensu lato can control insect behavior, driving the host to a death location optimal for spore dispersal, a phenomenon described as the fungal extended phenotype. The mechanisms behind this behavioral manipulation remain poorly understood, and research has more often ruled out candidate mechanisms than proved them.[8](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4527712/)
## The caterpillar fungus
The most economically prominent member of the broader group is the Chinese caterpillar fungus, *Ophiocordyceps sinensis*, long known as *Cordyceps sinensis*. It parasitizes hepialid moth larvae in the [Tibetan Plateau](https://www.edgepedia.org/tibetan-plateau) and the alpine grasslands of the [Himalayas](https://www.edgepedia.org/himalayas) and has been a highly esteemed medicinal herb in traditional Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine.[2](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6059107/) Because phylogenetic analysis placed it outside the *Cordyceps* sensu stricto clade, Sung and colleagues made the new combination *Ophiocordyceps sinensis* (Berk.) G.H. Sung et al. in 2007, with *Cordyceps sinensis* as its synonym, a name now widely accepted by the mycological community.[2](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6059107/) Its common names include Chinese Caterpillar Fungus in English, Dōng chóng xià cǎo in Chinese, and Yartsa Gunbu in Tibetan.[9](https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T58514773A179197748.en)
The species complex around *O. sinensis* continues to be clarified. A 2024 phylogenetic study of the genus, which lists 324 accepted species names in *Ophiocordyceps*, defined an *O. sinensis*-species complex lineage containing 10 confirmed species and described a new relative, *O. megala*, from the Hengduan Mountains of China, parasitizing larvae of *Endoclita* ([Hepialidae](https://www.edgepedia.org/hepialidae)).[10](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s43008-023-00131-8)
## Medicinal use and cultivation
Two species dominate traditional Asian medicinal use: *Ophiocordyceps sinensis* and *Cordyceps militaris*.[4](https://sdiopr.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/2024/Mar/28-Mar-24/2024_JABB_114869/Revised-ms_JABB_114869_v1.pdf) The best-studied bioactive compound is cordycepin (3'-deoxyadenosine), which occurs in higher concentrations in *C. militaris* than in *O. sinensis*.[3](https://www.ijisrt.com/assets/upload/files/IJISRT25DEC820.pdf) Species complexes such as *C. militaris* have drawn attention in the traditional medicine industry for bioactive compounds reported to have anti-aging, anti-tumor, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immuno-modulatory effects.[1](https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2022.846909/full)
The two species differ sharply in production. *C. militaris* is a widespread fungus that can be cultivated easily, including on rice grain substrate, and is commercially available; *O. sinensis* is rare, costly, and difficult to cultivate in culture, so wild harvesting remains the source of the natural product.[4](https://sdiopr.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/2024/Mar/28-Mar-24/2024_JABB_114869/Revised-ms_JABB_114869_v1.pdf) Demand for cultivable medicinal species has been increasing worldwide as natural fungal populations decline and large-scale cultivation of wild species has not been achieved.[1](https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2022.846909/full)
## References
1. [Dong, Q.-Y. et al. (2022). Morphology and Phylogeny Reveal Five Novel Species in the Genus Cordyceps (Cordycipitaceae, Hypocreales) From Yunnan, China. Frontiers in Microbiology.](https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2022.846909/full)
2. [Shrestha, B. et al. (2018). Current nomenclatural changes in Cordyceps sensu lato and its multidisciplinary impacts. Mycology.](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6059107/)
3. [IJISRT (2025). Review of Cordyceps species: taxonomy, biological aspects, chemical composition, medicinal uses, and cultivation.](https://www.ijisrt.com/assets/upload/files/IJISRT25DEC820.pdf)
4. [Journal of Applied Biology and Biotechnology (2024). Cordyceps mushrooms.](https://sdiopr.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/2024/Mar/28-Mar-24/2024_JABB_114869/Revised-ms_JABB_114869_v1.pdf)
5. [Kepler, R. et al. (2017). A phylogenetically-based nomenclature for Cordycipitaceae (Hypocreales). IMA Fungus.](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5729716/)
6. [Hywel-Jones, N. et al. (2018). Back to the future: cordycipitoid fungi in a postgenomic world. Mycology.](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6059065/)
7. [Sung, G.-H. et al. (2007). Phylogenetic classification of Cordyceps and the clavicipitaceous fungi. Studies in Mycology.](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166061614601305)
8. [Araújo, J.P.M. & Hughes, D.P. (2016). Fungi That Infect Insects: Altering Host Behavior and Beyond. PLoS Pathogens.](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4527712/)
9. [IUCN Red List (2020). Ophiocordyceps sinensis (Chinese Caterpillar Fungus).](https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T58514773A179197748.en)
10. [Dai, Y. et al. (2024). Molecular phylogenetics of the Ophiocordyceps sinensis-species complex lineage, with the discovery of new species and predictions of species distribution. IMA Fungus 15:2.](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s43008-023-00131-8)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Life and health › Microorganisms and fungi › Fungi and mycology › Ascomycete taxa › Other sac fungus lineages › Plant-pathogenic and entomopathogenic sac fungi › Cordyceps and allied entomopathogenic fungi*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license