Host effects on ectomycorrhizal fungal communities: insight from eight host species in mixed conifer–broadleaf forests

Abstract

Summary• To advance our understanding of host effects on the community structure of ectomycorrhizal fungi (EMF), EMF communities were compared among different host species, genera and families in two mixed conifer-broadleaf forests in Japan.• Using molecular identification methods we examined EMF root tips of eight coexisting species belonging to six genera (three families): Abies and Tsuga (Pinaceae), Betula and Carpinus (Betulaceae) and Fagus and Quercus (Fagaceae).• In total, 205 EMF species were detected, and the total richness was estimated to exceed 300 species using major estimators. Of the 55 EMF species occurring three or more times, eight showed significantly biased host preference. A Mantel test showed a significantly negative correlation between EMF community similarity and host taxonomic distance. Detrended correspondence analysis separated EMF communities mainly by host taxonomic and successional status.• Thus, EMF communities are similar on hosts with similar taxonomic and successional status. A significant proportion of EMF exhibited host specificity, which may contribute to the extremely diverse EMF community in conifer-broadleaf forests.

High richness of ectomycorrhizal fungi and low host specificity in a coastal sand dune ecosystem revealed by network analysis

“…We recorded a total of 200 EM OTUs and the richness levels we observed in samples ranged from 4 to 46 and estimated total richness from 4 to 63, which is high but within the same range as other EM studies conducted in different ecosystems (e.g., Ishida et al. 2007; Aponte et al. 2010; Murata et al.…”

“…Multihost studies in temperate mixed forests also revealed positive correlations between host taxonomic distance and the distinctiveness of the EM communities they support (Ishida et al. 2007; Morris et al. 2009; Murata et al.…”

“…However, recent work relying on high‐throughput sequencing was able to detect different degrees of association preferences (e.g., Ishida et al. 2007; Morris et al. 2008; Aponte et al.…”

From Galactic archeology to soil metagenomics – surfing on massive data streams

“…Therefore, the co-existence of different hosts enhances habitat diversity. With certain exceptions (Morris et al, 2008), host preference is rarely evident at the host species level, but is probably more important at higher taxonomic levels, that is, from genus to phylum (Ishida et al, 2007). While tropical forests are often dominated by a single ectomycorrhizal host lineage, such as the Dipterocarpaceae or certain groups of Fabaceae, temperate habitats are often composed of multiple codominant host lineages, for example, Fagales, Pinaceae and Salicaceae.…”

“…Plant taxa harbor different endophyte communities and therefore fungal diversity increases with host diversity (reviewed in Arnold, 2008). Similar patterns may enhance the diversity of ectomycorrhizal fungi (EcMF) in the temperate zone (Bruns et al, 2002;Ishida et al, 2007;Tedersoo et al, 2008), but the relevance of this and other potential factors remain unknown in tropical ecosystems because of a lack of published studies. In this issue of New Phytologist, address the biotic and abiotic factors driving the composition of an EcMF community in a Bornean rainforest that comprises one of the highest plant diversities in the world.…”