The serpentine syndrome below ground: ectomycorrhizas and hypogeous fungi associated with conifers

2010 ◽  
Vol 40 (8) ◽  
pp. 1671-1679 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra Gladish ◽  
Jonathan Frank ◽  
Darlene Southworth
Keyword(s):  
Ectomycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Mycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Serpentine Soils ◽  
Soil Cores ◽  
Soil Composition ◽  
Spore Dispersal ◽  
Hypogeous Fungi ◽  
Overlapping Communities ◽  
Sparse Vegetation ◽  
Below Ground

Serpentine soils select for unique plant communities, often with sparse vegetation. Mycorrhizal fungi mediate the interaction between plants and soils, yet little is known about the mycorrhizal fungi of serpentine-tolerant plants. Ectomycorrhizas and hypogeous fungal sporocarps were sampled on paired serpentine and nonserpentine soils in southwestern Oregon. We hypothesized that conifers on serpentine soils would have fewer species of mycorrhizal fungi, a distinct assemblage of ectomycorrhizal fungi, and fewer hypogeous sporocarps with less species richness. Sporocarps were sampled and soil cores collected around pines on serpentine and nonserpentine soils. Conifers on serpentine and nonserpentine soils hosted overlapping communities of ectomycorrhizal fungi, as characterized by nonmetric multidimensional scaling. From soil cores, we categorized 27 species by morphotype, of which 18 were identified by DNA. Fewer hypogeous sporocarps with less taxonomic richness were collected on serpentine soils. The lack of indicator species of mycorrhizal fungi and the greater variability among samples on serpentine soils suggest that soil composition does not determine the mycorrhizal community. The sparseness of host vegetation may limit the ability of fungi to grow from tree to tree and may increase the reliance on spore dispersal, thus creating a more varied pattern of mycorrhizal communities.

scholarly journals Effects of Fire on Hypogeous Fungi, Spore Dispersal and Dependent Flora Establishment in Soils

1990 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 15-17
Author(s):  
Steven Miller ◽  
Nancy Stanton ◽  
Stephen Williams
Keyword(s):  
Ectomycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Small Mammals ◽  
Small Mammal ◽  
Mycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Spore Dispersal ◽  
Hypogeous Fungi ◽  
Burned Areas ◽  
Primary Means ◽  
Ectomycorrhizal Colonization ◽  
Initial Survey

In our initial survey of dispersal of spores into areas disturbed by the 1988 Huckleberry burn, in the John D. Rockefeller Memorial Parkway, we focused on small mammal dispersal of hypogeous ectomycorrhizal fungi which had been touted as a primary means of dispersal (Trappe and Maser 1977, Ure and Maser 1982), and the recruitment and physiognomy of conifer seedlings germinating in the burned areas. Interestingly, the small mammals captured at the Huck burn sites were feeding on both epigeous and hypogeous, as well as, mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal fungi. The seedlings that had germinated in the burned areas were non-mycorrhizal until late in the season. These results are somewhat contradictory to hypotheses offered in the literature. For these reasons, additional objectives, such as including both hypogeous and epigeous ectomycorrhizal fungi, were established to examine the process of ectomycorrhizal colonization more closely.

scholarly journals Small mammals feeding on hypogeous fungi

2014 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 89-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Małgorzata Połatyńska
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Mycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Ecosystem Functioning ◽  
Food Source ◽  
Proximal Colon ◽  
Spore Dispersal ◽  
Hypogeous Fungi ◽  
Dominant Component ◽  
Morphological Adaptations

Fungi serve as a food source for a wide variety of animals. Among mammals, most species feed on fungi occasionally or accidentally while foraging for other type of food, but some species are frequent mycophags and fungi can be a dominant component of their diet. Examples of mycophags can be found among marsupials: wallabies and bettongs; and rodents: squirrels, chipmunks, voles and mice. Hypogeous fungi produce closed, underground sporocarps without opening mechanisms, and thus are unable to release their spores into the air. In case of those fungi, animals feeding on sporocarps and spreading spores in their faeces are considered to be the main vector of spore dispersal. Animals that frequently feed on fungi and other heavy digestible food have developed morphological adaptations such as longer gut retention and a spiral construction of the proximal colon, to digest more fungal material which is rich in nitrogen. The spores stay viable after passing through the animal gut, and in some cases their ability to germinate and form mycorrhiza is enhanced after leaving the intestine. Hypogeous fungi are mycorrhizal partners for plants and it is therefore possible that the interactions between mycorrhizal fungi and animals spreading their spores also play an important role in ecosystem functioning.

scholarly journals Biological enhancement of mineral weathering by <i>Pinus</i> <i>sylvestris</i> seedlings – effects of plants, ectomycorrhizal fungi, and elevated CO<sub>2</sub>

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (18) ◽  
pp. 3637-3649 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas P. Rosenstock ◽  
Patrick A. W. van Hees ◽  
Petra M. A. Fransson ◽  
Roger D. Finlay ◽  
Anna Rosling
Keyword(s):  
Nutrient Uptake ◽  
Elevated Co2 ◽  
Ectomycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Mycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Abiotic Factors ◽  
Experimental System ◽  
Mineral Weathering ◽  
Low Molecular Weight ◽  
Primary Mechanism ◽  
Seedling Biomass

Abstract. Better understanding and quantifying the relative influence of plants, associated mycorrhizal fungi, and abiotic factors such as elevated CO2 on biotic weathering is essential to constraining weathering estimates. We employed a column microcosm system to examine the effects of elevated CO2 and Pinus sylvestris seedlings, with or without the ectomycorrhizal fungi Piloderma fallax and Suillus variegatus, on rhizosphere soil solution concentrations of low-molecular-weight organic acids (LMWOAs) and on the weathering of primary minerals. Seedlings significantly increased mineral weathering, as estimated from elemental budgets of Ca, K, Mg, and Si. Elevated CO2 increased plant growth and LMWOA concentrations but had no effect on weathering. Colonization by ectomycorrhizal fungi, particularly P. fallax, showed some tendency to increase weathering. LMWOA concentrations correlated with seedling biomass across both CO2 and mycorrhizal treatments but not with total weathering. We conclude that nutrient uptake, which reduces transport limitation to weathering, is the primary mechanism by which plants enhanced weathering in this system. While the experimental system used departs from conditions in forest soils in a number of ways, these results are in line with weathering studies performed at the ecosystem, macrocosm, and microcosm scale, indicating that nutrient uptake by plants and microbes is an important biological mechanism by which mineral weathering is enhanced.

Morpho-anatomical and molecular characterisation of ectomycorrhizae associated with Eucalyptus species growing in different areas of the Punjab Province, Pakistan

2014 ◽  
Vol 62 (8) ◽  
pp. 689 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hira Bashir ◽  
A. N. Khalid
Keyword(s):  
Physicochemical Properties ◽  
Ectomycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Eucalyptus Species ◽  
Molecular Characterisation ◽  
Fungal Flora ◽  
Punjab Province ◽  
Eucalyptus Plantations ◽  
Molecular Investigation ◽  
Low Diversity ◽  
Below Ground

An evaluation of the ectomycorrhizal status of Eucalyptus plantations in different areas of the Punjab Province, Pakistan is presented. Our study reveals a very low diversity of below-ground ectomycorrhizal fungi associated with Eucalyptus. Through molecular investigation, only three taxa were confirmed to be associated with six different species of Eucalyptus at four sampling sites. Among them, Scleroderma bovista was frequently associated with Eucalyptus in soils having different physicochemical properties highlighting wide ecological amplitude of this species. Scleroderma aurantium and Pisolithus tinctorius were infrequent associates with eucalypt roots. This study is the first consolidated approach to determine the ectomycorrhizal potential of exotic Eucalyptus with the innate fungal flora of Pakistan.

The effectiveness of mycelial slurries of mycorrhizal fungi for the inoculation of container-grown jack pine seedlings

1984 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 140-142 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. M. Danielson ◽  
S. Visser ◽  
D. Parkinson
Keyword(s):  
Ectomycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Mycorrhizal Fungi ◽  
Jack Pine ◽  
Considerable Time ◽  
Pine Seedlings ◽  
Inoculum Preparation

Mycelial slurries prepared from agar plates of ectomycorrhizal fungi were used to inoculate 7-week-old container-grown jack pine. Seven of 15 species formed mycorrhizae after 18 weeks and included Thelephoraterrestris Ehrhart ex Fr., Laccariaproximo Boudier, Hebeloma sp., Pisolithustinctoris (Pers.) Coker & Couch, Sphaerosporellabrunnea (Alb. & Schw. ex Fr.) Svrcek & Kubicka, Cenococcwngeophilum Fr., and an E strain (sensu Mikola) isolate. Species of Tricholoma, Suillus, Amphinema, and Hydnum failed to form mycorrhizae. The use of a mycelial slurry has the advantage of saving considerable time in inoculum preparation and should be useful for experimental purposes.

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