Endophytic fungi are widespread in plants and affect the host fitness and population size. We found 12 fungal taxa in C. secalina, a critically endangered species in several European countries, at two study sites in Poland. The most frequently occurring fungal taxa were Colletotrichum destructivum and Acremonium sp. Both taxa were found in half of the examined tussocks. The highest number of fungal taxa was noted in the C. secalina plants growing in the roadside area, where 7 of the 12 identified fungal taxa occurred. These fungi, inhabiting leaf tissues, are known for their pathogenicity but no visible symptoms of any diseases were observed on C. secalina leaves. This suggests that these fungi are latent pathogens.

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Presently, there is an intensive search for fungal endophytes to be used in agriculture for the protection and condition improvement of plants and in medicine. We screened for the presence of endophytes in raspberry, which occurs naturally in the Białowieża Forest. The fungal isolates representative of each morphotype were analysed using the molecular markers ITS1 and ITS2. In total, we found 34 taxa of endophytic fungi. The majority were potential pathogens. As many as 27 taxa were found in the leaves of mature plants. No fungi could be isolated from the surface sterilized seeds obtained from these plants. Seedlings were grown from the seeds deposited in the soil seed bank in the Białowieża Geobotanical Station of the University of Warsaw in Białowieża. 8 taxa of endophytic fungi were found in seedlings. It could be due to a possibility of seed infection with these endophytes in soil conditions.