A survey of the aeromycota of Sydney and its correspondence with environmental conditions: grass as a component of urban forestry could be a major determinant

Abstract

A comprehensive survey of airborne fungi has been lacking for the Sydney region. This study determined the diversity and abundance of outdoor airborne fungal concentrations in urban Sydney. Monthly air samples were taken from 11 sites in central Sydney, and culturable fungi identified and quantified. The genus Cladosporium was the most frequently isolated fungal genus, with a frequency of 78 % and a mean density of 335 CFU m -3 . The next most fre- quently encountered genus wasAlternaria,occurringin 53 % of samples with a mean of 124 CFU m -3 .O ther frequently identified fungi, in decreasing occurrence, were as follows: Penicillium, Fusarium, Epicoccum, Phoma, Acremonium and Aureobasidium .A dditional- ly, seasonal and spatial trends of airborne fungi were assessed, with increases in total culturable fungal concentrations experienced in the summer months. The correspondence between a range of key environ- mental variables and the phenology of airborne fungal propagules was also examined, with temperature, wind speed and proximal greenspace having the largest influenceonfungalpropaguledensity.Ifthegreenspace