Macrofungal diversity and ecology in four Irish forest types

Untangling the effect that replacing Ethiopia's natural forests with exotic tree plantations has on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) have a broad distribution and establish symbiotic relationships with vascular plants in tropical regions. They play a crucial role in enhancing plant nutrient absorption, mitigating pathogenic infections, and boosting the resilience of host plants to abiotic stresses, including drought under specific conditions. Many natural forests in Ethiopia are being replaced by monospecific plantations. However, the impact of these actions on AMF is unknown and, despite their ecological functions, AMF communities in various forest systems have not been thoroughly investigated. In this study, we assessed soil AMF communities in natural and plantation forests by DNA metabarcoding of the ITS2 rDNA region and assessed the influence of climate and environmental variables on the AMF community. In total, 193 AMF operational taxonomic units (OTUs), comprising nine families and 15 genera, were recorded. Glomerales was the dominant order (67.9 % of AMF OTUs) and Septoglomus fuscum, Diversispora insculpta, and Funneliformis mosseae were the dominant species. AMF were more abundant in natural forests than in plantation forests and the composition of AMF communities differed significantly from those of plantation forest. In plantation forests, soil pH, organic carbon, total nitrogen, and available phosphorus significantly influenced the composition of AMF communities, whereas in natural forest, electrical conductivity, annual rainfall, and cumulative rainfall before sample collection were significantly correlated with AMF. SIMPER analysis identified the AMF responsible for composition variances among different forest types, with the Glomeraceae family being the most significant contributor, accounting for nearly 60 % of the dissimilarity. Our findings further our understanding of the ecological niche function and the role of AMF in Ethiopia's natural forest systems and highlight the importance of prioritizing the sustainable development of degraded natural forests rather than plantations to ensure the preservation of habitats conducive to maintaining various AMF communities when devising conservation and management strategies.

Macrofungal Diversity and Distribution Patterns in the Primary Forests of the Shaluli Mountains

The Shaluli Mountains are located in the southeastern part of the Tibetan Plateau at an elevation of 2500-5000 m. They are characterized by a typical vertical distribution of climate and vegetation and are considered a global biodiversity hotspot. We selected ten vegetation types at different elevation gradients representing distinct forests in the Shaluli Mountains to assess the macrofungal diversity, including subalpine shrub, Pinus spp., Populus spp., Pinus spp. and Quercus spp., Quercus spp., Abies spp., Picea spp. and Abies spp., Picea spp., Juniperus spp., and alpine meadow. In total, 1654 macrofungal specimens were collected. All specimens were distinguished by morphology and DNA barcoding, resulting in the identification of 766 species belonging to 177 genera in two phyla, eight classes, 22 orders, and 72 families. Macrofungal species composition varied widely among vegetation types, but ectomycorrhizal fungi were predominant. In this study, the analysis of observed species richness, the Chao1 diversity index, the invsimpson diversity index, and the Shannon diversity index revealed that the vegetation types with higher macrofungal alpha diversity in the Shaluli Mountains were composed of Abies, Picea, and Quercus. The vegetation types with lower macrofungal alpha diversity were subalpine shrub, Pinus spp., Juniperus spp., and alpine meadow. The results of curve-fitting regression analysis showed that macrofungal diversity in the Shaluli Mountains was closely related to elevation, with a trend of increasing and then decreasing with rising elevation. This distribution of diversity is consistent with the hump-shaped pattern. Constrained principal coordinate analysis based on Bray-Curtis distances indicated that macrofungal community composition was similar among vegetation types at similar elevations, while vegetation types with large differences in elevation differed significantly in macrofungal community composition. This suggests that large changes in elevation increase macrofungal community turnover. This study is the first investigation of the distribution pattern of macrofungal diversity under different vegetation types in high-altitude areas, providing a scientific basis for the conservation of macrofungal resources.

Forest Type and Site Conditions Influence the Diversity and Biomass of Edible Macrofungal Species in Ethiopia

Ethiopian forests are rich in valuable types of non-wood forest products, including mushrooms. However, despite their nutritional, economic, and ecological importance, wild edible mushrooms have been given little attention and are rarely documented in Ethiopia. In this study, we assessed mushroom production levels in natural and plantation forests and the influence of climate and environmental variables on mushroom production. Sporocarps were sampled weekly from July to August 2019 at a set of permanent plots (100 m²) in both forest systems. We analyzed 63 plots to quantify sporocarp species’ richness and fresh weight as well as to elucidate the degree of influence of forest types and site conditions, including soil and climate. Morphological analyses were used to identify fungi. In total, we recorded 64 wild edible fungal species belonging to 31 genera and 21 families from the plots established in the natural and plantation forests. A significantly greater total number of edible fungi were collected from natural forests (n = 40 species) than from plantations. Saprotrophs (92.19%) were the dominant guild whereas ectomycorrhizal fungi represented only 6.25% of species. Ecologically and economically important fungal species such as Agaricus campestroides, Tylopilus niger, Suillus luteus, Tricholoma portentosum, and Morchella americana were collected. The sporocarp yield obtained from plantation forests (2097.57 kg ha⁻¹ yr^–1) was significantly greater than that obtained from natural forests (731.18 kg ha⁻¹ yr^–1). The fungal community composition based on sporocarp production was mainly correlated with the organic matter, available phosphorus, and total nitrogen content of the soil, and with the daily minimum temperature during collection. Accordingly, improving edible species’ richness and sporocarp production by maintaining ecosystem integrity represents a way of adding economic value to forests and maintaining biological diversity, while providing wood and non-wood forest products; we propose that this approach is imperative for managing Ethiopian forests.

Russula (Russulales, Agaricomycetes) associated with Pinus spp. plantations from northeastern Argentina

Abstract Russula comprises more than 3,000 species worldwide and is a characteristic genus of the coniferous forests of the northern hemisphere. The forest plantations with non-native species in the northeastern Argentina, such as pine or eucalyptus, provide the biotic and environmental conditions for the establishment of ectomycorrhizal fungi associated with these forest plantations. Due to the complexity of identifying Russula at specific level, morpho-anatomical, scanning electron microscopy, and phylogenetic (ITS) analysis were used to identify the specimens. As result, three Russula species, R. recondita, R. sardonia, and R. sororia, are described in detail and illustrated, none previously known to Argentina. Also, two of them, R. recondita and R. sororia, represent new records for South America.

Variability of decomposing ability among fungi associated with the bleaching of subtropical leaf litter

A diverse array of fungi take part in decomposition, but the variability of their decomposing ability is not fully understood. A total of 49 isolates of Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were obtained from bleached areas of leaf litter in a subtropical forest in southern Japan, and their ability to decompose leaves and recalcitrant compounds was quantified in pure culture. Mass loss of leaves of Castanopsis sieboldii (Fagaceae) and Schima wallichii (Theaceae) was evaluated at 20 C for 12 wk in vitro. Fungi caused a loss of -0.4% to 34.3% of the original leaf mass. The greatest mass loss was caused by four isolates of Mycena (Tricholomataceae). Isolates of Lachnocladiaceae caused greater mass loss of recalcitrant compounds, registered as acid-unhydrolyzable residue (AUR), which includes lignin, relative to Xylariaceae. Isolates of Rhytismataceae, Lachnocladiaceae, Marasmiaceae, and Omphalotaceae exhibited selective decomposition of AUR, Mycena exhibited simultaneous decomposition of AUR and components other than AUR, and Xylariaceae exhibited selective decomposition of components other than AUR. Mass losses of leaves and AUR caused by each fungal isolate were similar for C. sieboldii and S. wallichii. The Mycena isolates obtained from C. sieboldii caused greater mass losses of leaves and AUR than those obtained from the other tree species, suggesting a "home-field advantage" of decomposing potentialities, with implications for natural interactions beyond the in vitro system evaluated here.

Investigating Wood Decaying Fungi Diversity in Central Siberia, Russia Using ITS Sequence Analysis and Interaction with Host Trees

Wood-decay fungi (WDF) play a significant role in recycling nutrients, using enzymatic and mechanical processes to degrade wood. Designated as a biodiversity hot spot, Central Siberia is a geographically important region for understanding the spatial distribution and the evolutionary processes shaping biodiversity. There have been several studies of WDF diversity in Central Siberia, but identification of species was based on morphological characteristics, lacking detailed descriptions and molecular data. Thus, the aim of this study was to identify WDF in Central Siberia, regarding the degradation of host trees based on both morphological and molecular analyses. We collected 106 WDF samples from Krasnoyarsk and the Republic of Khakassia in 2014 and 2017, and identified a total of 52 fungal species from six main host tree genera. In order to assess the host preference of the WDF, we examined previous literature, and data from this study. We confirmed a division in host preference of WDF between gymnosperms and angiosperms. DNA-based identification and host preference assessment of the WDF provide preliminary data on WDF diversity and their role in nutrient cycles in the ecosystem of Central Siberia. To fully understand WDF diversity in Central Siberia, continuous long-term surveys, including DNA sequence data, are needed.

Ethnomycological study of edible and medicinal mushrooms in Menge District, Asossa Zone, Benshangul Gumuz Region, Ethiopia

BACKGROUND

Menge District has long been inhabited by people who have a long tradition of using wild mushrooms mainly as food, source of income, and medicine. Extensive utilization of wild edible mushrooms (WEM) coupled with an ever-increasing population growth, deforestation, and agricultural land expansion threatens fungal diversity and WEM in the area. Hence, this study is aimed at documenting and analyzing the ethnomycological knowledge of the people in order to preserve the dwindling WEM wealth and associated indigenous knowledge.

METHODS

Ethnomycological data were collected using semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, participant observations, and walk-in-the-woods methods. Statistical tests were used to compare the indigenous knowledge and practice of wild mushroom among different informant categories using One-way ANOVA and t tests.

RESULTS

A total of 20 ethnomycologically important wild mushroom species belonging to ten genera and six families were identified, of which 15 were reported to be edible in the District. The family Lyophyllaceae was represented by the highest number of species (nine species, 45%) followed by Agaricaceae (seven species, 35%) and each of the remaining four families had single species representation. Significant difference (P < 0.05) was observed on the mean number of WEM reported among different group of respondents. Wild edible mushroom collection habit and practice was significantly (P < 0.05) influenced by gender, age, and literacy level. The output of preference ranking exercise indicated Termitomyces schimperi was ranked first followed by Termitomyces letestui, Termitomyces microcarpus, and Termitomyces eurhizusas as the most preferred edible mushrooms respectively.

CONCLUSION

The present study shows that Menge District is rich in wild mushroom diversity and associated indigenous knowledge. However, anthropogenic factors together with loss of indigenous knowledge and very poor conservation efforts threaten the survival of economically and ecologically important mushrooms in the area. Thus, complementary in situ and ex situ mushroom conservation strategy is highly recommended.

The importance of plot size and the number of sampling seasons on capturing macrofungal species richness

The species-area relationship is an important factor in the study of species diversity, conservation biology, and landscape ecology. A deeper understanding of this relationship is necessary, in order to provide recommendations on how to improve the quality of data collection on macrofungal diversity in different land use systems in future studies, a systematic assessment of methodological parameters, in particular optimal plot sizes. The species-area relationship of macrofungi in tropical and temperate climatic zones and four different land use systems were investigated by determining the macrofungal species richness in plot sizes ranging from 100 m² to 10 000 m² over two sampling seasons. We found that the effect of plot size on recorded species richness significantly differed between land use systems with the exception of monoculture systems. For both climate zones, land use system needs to be considered when determining optimal plot size. Using an optimal plot size was more important than temporal replication (over two sampling seasons) in accurately recording species richness.

Drivers of Macrofungi Community Structure Differ between Soil and Rotten-Wood Substrates in a Temperate Mountain Forest in China

The effects of environmental and dispersal processes on macrofungi community assembly remain unclear. Further, it is not well understood if community assembly differs for different functional guilds of macrofungi, e.g., soil and rotten-wood macrofungi. In this study, using 2433 macrofungi sporocarps belonging to 217 species located within a forest dynamics plot in temperate mountain forest (China), we examined the explanatory power of topography, spatial eigenvectors (representing unknown spatial processes, e.g., dispersal), plant community, and light availability for local spatial variation in the macrofungi community through variance partitioning and partial least squares path modeling. We found spatial eigenvectors and light as the most important factors for explaining species richness and composition of macrofungi. Light was negatively correlated with species richness of macrofungi. Furthermore, species richness and composition of soil macrofungi were best explained by light, and species richness and composition of rotten-wood macrofungi were best explained by spatial eigenvectors. Woody plant community structure was not an important factor for species richness and composition of macrofungi. Our findings suggest that spatial processes, perhaps dispersal limitation, and light availability were the most important factors affecting macrofungi community in temperate deciduous broad-leaved forest. Major differences in influencing factors between soil and rotten-wood macrofungi were observed, with light as the major driver for soil macrofungi and unknown spatial processes as the major driver for rotten-wood macrofungi. These findings shed new light to the processes shaping community assembly in macrofungi in temperate deciduous broad-leaved forest and point to the potential importance of both intrinsic dynamics, such as dispersal, and external forcing, such as forest dynamics, via its effect on light availability.

Dominant Tree Species and Soil Type Affect the Fungal Community Structure in a Boreal Peatland Forest

Boreal peatlands play a crucial role in global carbon cycling, acting as an important carbon reservoir. However, little information is available on how peatland microbial communities are influenced by natural variability or human-induced disturbances. In this study, we have investigated the fungal diversity and community structure of both the organic soil layer and buried wood in boreal forest soils using high-throughput sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region. We have also compared the fungal communities during the primary colonization of wood with those of the surrounding soils. A permutational multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA) confirmed that the community composition significantly differed between soil types (P< 0.001) and tree species (P< 0.001). The distance-based linear models analysis showed that environmental variables were significantly correlated with community structure (P< 0.04). The availability of soil nutrients (Ca [P= 0.002], Fe [P= 0.003], and P [P= 0.003]) within the site was an important factor in the fungal community composition. The species richness in wood was significantly lower than in the corresponding soil (P< 0.004). The results of the molecular identification were supplemented by fruiting body surveys. Seven of the genera of Agaricomycotina identified in our surveys were among the top 20 genera observed in pyrosequencing data. Our study is the first, to our knowledge, fungal high-throughput next-generation sequencing study performed on peatlands; it further provides a baseline for the investigation of the dynamics of the fungal community in the boreal peatlands.

Macrofungal diversity in community-managed sal (Shorea robusta) forests in central Nepal

Macrofungi constitute a group of the high-value forest resources worldwide. In this paper, we report species richness and composition of the macrofungi in sal (Shorea robusta) forests of mid-hill central Nepal, which were managed for 4-29 years by the local communities. The sal forests were rich in macrofungi (115 species) with Polyporaceae being the largest family followed by Clavariaceae. Saprotrophic fungi were more common than mycorrhizal species. The proportion of mycorrhiza was <40% of the total macrofungi species which might have indicated the deteriorated condition of the forests before the initiation of conservation management. However, the proportion of mycorrhizal species was slightly higher in the forests managed for >10 years than in the forests managed for short period. The species richness increased with increasing canopy and litter cover. Since silvicultural activities and resource utilization often have negative impacts to macrofungal diversity, these activities need to be optimized to keep balance between forest management and biodiversity conservation.

Correlating Mushroom Habitats and Geology in Grevena Prefecture (Greece) with the Use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

The aim of this study is to assess the relationship between geological background and habitats of mushrooms. The study area is Grevena, a Prefecture of Greece well known for the great variety of the fungal flora and its distinctive geology. Thematic maps of the study area were produced with the use of GIS, taking under consideration geological formations, elevation, ecosystems and land use. Findings provide evidence that certain mushrooms are more likely to be found in specific ecosystems. The connection between forest ecosystems and the geology of the study area is more apparent, as certain forest types are related with specific geological formations; due to the insignificant presence of grasslands and riverine settings in the study area, it is not possible to assess the role of the geological formation for these mushroom habitats.

Ectomycorrhizal fungi of exotic pine plantations in relation to native host trees in Iran: evidence of host range expansion by local symbionts to distantly related host taxa

Introduction of exotic plants change soil microbial communities which may have detrimental ecological consequences for ecosystems. In this study, we examined the community structure and species richness of ectomycorrhizal (EcM) fungi associated with exotic pine plantations in relation to adjacent native ectomycorrhizal trees in Iran to elucidate the symbiont exchange between distantly related hosts, i.e. Fagales (Fagaceae and Betulaceae) and Pinaceae. The combination of morphological and molecular identification approaches revealed that 84.6 % of species with more than one occurrence (at least once on pines) were shared with native trees and only 5.9 % were found exclusively on pine root tips. The community diversity of ectomycorrhizal fungi in the pine plantations adjacent to native EcM trees was comparable to their adjacent native trees, but the isolated plantations hosted relatively a species-poor community. Specific mycobionts of conifers were dominant in the isolated plantation while rarely found in the plantations adjacent to native EcM trees. These data demonstrate the importance of habitat isolation and dispersal limitation of EcM fungi in their potential of host range expansion. The great number of shared and possibly compatible symbiotic species between exotic Pinaceae and local Fagales (Fagaceae and Betulaceae) may reflect their evolutionary adaptations and/or ancestral compatibility with one another.