Mycorrhizal Assessment of Vascular Plants from Subantarctic Macquarie Island

Abstract

Roots of 40 taxa of vascular plants from subantarctic Macquarie Island were examined to determine their mycorrhizal status. Samples comprised 36 flowering plant taxa (Spermatophyta) from 16 families, and 4 nonflowering plant taxa (Pteridophyta) from 4 families. No arbutoid, ericoid, or ectomycorrhizae were observed, nor did we collect the fruiting bodies of any fungi whose presence would indicate or suggest the presence of ectomycorrhizal associations. Fifteen of the plants examined showed vesicles, but vesicles and arbuscles were observed in only three plants: Hydrocotyle novae-zeelandiae (Apiaceae), Pleurophyllum hookeri (Asteraceae), and Acaena magellanica (Rosaceae). Dark septate fungi were observed in the roots of 21 plant species. The one species of orchid found on the island, Corybas dienemus, showed typical orchid mycorrhizae.