Speleomycology of Air in Stopića Cave (Serbia)

Abstract

Fungi can colonize organic matter present in subterranean sites and have a significant role as dwellers in different microniches of cave habitats. In order to analyze the content of airborne fungal propagules in different parts of "Stopića Cave," a touristic site in Serbia, air sampling was carried out in three seasons during 2020, prior to and during the onset of COVID-19 pandemic. Culturable mycobiota was identified using both microscopic techniques and ITS region/BenA gene barcoding, while multivariate analyses were employed to establish the link between fungal taxa and different environmental factors. The maximal measured fungal propagule concentrations were recorded during spring sampling which were based on fungal propagule concentration categories; the cave environment matches the category V. A total of 29 fungal isolates were identified, while Aspergillus, Cladosporium, Fusarium, Lecanicillium, Mucor, and Penicillium were the most diverse genera. According to the trophic mode, most of the isolated fungal species were pathotrophs (75.86%), but when regarding ecological guilds, the most dominant were undefined saprobes and animal pathogens (41.38% for each). Show caves are especially vulnerable to human impacts, and the fungal propagules' concentration within the caves could be good indices for the level of ecological disturbance.

Cultivable fungal diversity in two karstic caves in Italy: under-investigated habitats as source of putative novel taxa

“…Indeed, the mycobiomes described through the distribution of unique Amplicon Sequence Variants (ASVs) were more complex in Bossea and in three other show-caves than in the natural wild cave of Costacalda 20 . This difference is likely due to the flow of visitors occurring in the show-cave: while Costacalda is an undisturbed natural cave, Bossea cave receives almost 16,000 tourists per year 21 who possibly serve as a vehicle of fungal propagules and organic material 26 , 37 . Moreover, considering the temperature, we can hypothesise that only psychrophile/psychrotolerant fungi detected exclusively at 10 °C are cave dwellers.…”

The Heritage Climate Index (HERCI): Development, Assessment and Application for Tourism Purposes in Geoheritage and Cultural Heritage Sites

“…Tourist visits to the cave has been arranged since 2009 and is known mainly for its accumulative forms-Tufa tubs (rimstone dams). Stopića Cave consists of five morphological units: Light Hall, Dark Hall, Hall with Tubs, Channel with Tubs and River Channel [42]. Excluding its youngest system, Stopića Cave is 1692 m long.…”