Changes in community structure of wood-inhabiting aphyllophoraceous fungi after clear-cutting in a cool temperate zone of Japan: Planted conifer forest versus broad-leaved secondary forest

Abstract

Both planted and natural forests provide numerous different habitats for various types of organism. After clear-cutting, differences in the restoration process of forest ecosystems, in terms of vegetation structure and woody debris, will affect the community structure of wood-inhabiting aphyllophoraceous fungi. In this study, we conducted field surveys in broad-leaved secondary forests and in planted conifer forests to examine the chronosequential pattern of fungal community development after clear-cutting and the relationships between environmental conditions and the fungal community structure in central Japan. In 2002, we collected 1476 records from 95 fungal species. Sixty-five species were recorded only in secondary forests, 17 were recorded only in planted conifer forests, and 13 were recorded in both forest types. Fungal species composition was different between the two forest types. Redundancy analysis showed that the amount of coarse woody debris in the broad-leaved secondary forests and basal area of coniferous trees in the planted forests correlated with the fungal species composition of the forests. In the broad-leaved secondary forests, species density showed significant positive correlations with stand age, and number of records and species composition changed with stand age. In the planted conifer forests, the number of records of brown rot fungi, which has a preference for conifers, was positively correlated with stand age. Our study suggested that differences in fungal community structure between the two forest types strongly reflect the preference of fungal species for different host substrates and vegetation structure, and that each forest type maintains specialists for the dominant trees. A mosaic of different forest types will promote the maintenance of high species diversity at the landscape level, as long as secondary or primary forests cover a large enough area to maintain high species diversity.