Abstract
The African forest, which was and still is the heart of biodiversity, is fast losing its bio-components due to natural disasters and human encroachment. A catalogue of the bio-components of the African forest is imminent so that conservation programs can be established to safeguard rare germplasm(s) from extinction. The population density of wild Auricularia (Mushroom) of Southwestern Nigeria was the focus of this research. DNA primers were obtained from Operon Technology, Alameda, California, USA. Characterization was done using phenotype, PCR and electrophoresis gel (RAPD). OPB-11 to OPB-21, OPH-3 to OPH-15, and OPT-1 to OPT-19 primers formed polymorphic bands with DNA samples of the specimens. Three (3) distinct species of Auricularia were identified in the forest of Southwest Nigeria based on PCR and RAPD analyses. Geospatial analysis showed that Auricularia auricula was present in the forests of Ekiti, Osun, Ogun, Oyo and Lagos states, but none was identified in Ondo State. On the contrary, Auricularia polytricha was only identified in the tropical rainforest and grassland vegetation of Ondo, Lagos and Oyo states. Key words: Auricularia, mushrooms, population density, Southwestern Nigeria, phenotypic description, genome similarity index.
Highlights
The oldest documentary of mushroom scavenging by humans was discovered in Tassili (Southern Algeria), Acacus (Libya) and Ennedi (Chad), etc., where the historical data was well preserved in magnificent rock drawings, paintings and other artifacts of the earliest inhabitants of Africa
Auricularia spp. were identified in forty-eight (48) out of the fifty-four (54) locations initially earmarked for this research (Figure 3)
It was noted that Auricularia spp. were abundantly present in the forest and grassland region of Abeokuta, Itori, Ifo, Ijebu Ode, Ikenne, Shagamu, Odeda, and Odogbolu in Ogun State (Table 4), Agege, Ojo, Apapa, Badagry, Epe, Shomolu, Ikorodu, and Mushin in Lagos State (Table 5), Moniya, Egbeda, Ido, Iseyin, Ogbomosho, Idi Ayunre, Oyo, and Igbeti in Oyo State (Table 6), Ado Ekiti, Iye, Ikole, Oye, Igede, Ikere, Ijero Ekiti, and Emure Ekiti in Ekiti State (Table 7), Idanre, Igbokoda, Ile Oluji, Ore, Okitipupa, Ifon, Owo, and Igbara Oke in Ondo State (Table 8), and it was sighted in places like Bolunduro, Ejigbo, Ifedayo, Ifelodu, Ila, Irepodun, Iwo, and Obokun in Osun State (Table 9)
Summary
The oldest documentary of mushroom scavenging by humans was discovered in Tassili (Southern Algeria), Acacus (Libya) and Ennedi (Chad), etc., where the historical data was well preserved in magnificent rock drawings, paintings and other artifacts of the earliest inhabitants of Africa ( known as the cradle of humanity). The African woodland terrain was teeming with different variety of micro- and macroflora capable of biodegradation, such that the problem of waste management never arose since these “natural recyclers” efficiently and effortlessly transformed the huge amount of wastes deposited indiscriminately, on daily basis, in the environment (Degreef et al, 2016; Etaware, 2021) There are only less than 10 identifiable Auricularia spp. in China and a little below 25 species existing around the world (Wu et al, 2015)
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