Abstract
Halimium is a genus of Cistaceae, containing a small group of shrub species found in open vegetation types and in degraded forest patches throughout the western and central Mediterranean region. We recently described the morpho-anatomical features of the ectomycorrhizae formed by Scleroderma meridionale on Halimium halimifolium, but the mycorrhizal biology of this host plant genus is still largely unexplored. Here, we report new data on the ectomycorrhizal fungal symbionts of Halimium, based on the collection of sporocarps and ectomycorrhizal root tips in pure stands occurring in Sardinia, Italy. To obtain a broader view of Halimium mycorrhizal and ecological potential, we compiled a comprehensive and up-to-date checklist of fungal species reported to establish ectomycorrhizae on Halimium spp. on the basis of field observations, molecular approaches, and mycorrhiza synthesis. Our list comprises 154 records, corresponding to 102 fungal species and 35 genera, revealing a significant diversity of the Halimium ectomycorrhizal mycobiota. Key ectomycorrhizal genera like Russula, Lactarius/Lactifluus, Amanita, Inocybe, and Cortinarius account for more than half of all mycobionts. A large proportion of Halimium fungal species are shared with other host plants in various ecological settings, suggesting a critical role of common mycorrhizal networks in the function played by this shrub in various Mediterranean ecosystems.
Highlights
Shrublands occupy a specific niche in the Mediterranean biome, with an increasingly appreciated ecological function
We provide a comprehensive and up-to-date checklist of fungal species reported to establish ectomycorrhizae on Halimium spp. on the basis of field observations, molecular approaches, and mycorrhiza synthesis, a type of information that is widely dispersed in the mycological literature, with no specific account existing on the topic
Our effort to gauge the diversity of ectomycorrhizal fungi linked to Halimium, through both direct field sampling and the compendium of literature records, resulted in 154 listed entries, corresponding to 102 species belonging to 35 genera from Ascomycota, Basidiomycota, and Zygomycota (Table 1)
Summary
Shrublands occupy a specific niche in the Mediterranean biome, with an increasingly appreciated ecological function. The genus Halimium (Dunal) Spach belongs to the Cistaceae (Page 2017), with 13 accepted species of evergreen. These include H. brasiliense (Lam.) Grosser that is considered by other sources a synonym of Crocanthemum brasiliensis Spach and that has a disjunct distribution (in the New World) with respect to all other known species of Halimium (https://www.gbif.org/species/3596090), and Halimium × pauanum Font Quer, a naturally occurring hybrid between H. lasiocalycinum Halimium is closely related to Cistus; some botanists in the past have considered Halimium species as belonging to Cistus (e.g., Demoly 2006), but the most recent molecular phylogenetic analyses have clearly shown the two genera as distinct (Guzmán and Vargas 2005, 2009; Civeyrel et al 2011). Halimium species occur usually in open vegetation types, like matorral shrublands and garrigues, but they can been found in degraded forest patches, at the verges of woods, abandoned fields, pasturelands, and on coastal sandy areas and dry dunes (Zunzunegui et al 2002, 2009)
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