Abstract
ABSTRACT The native Caledonian pinewoods of Scotland, UK contain a unique and unexplored biodiversity of below-ground ectomycorrhizal fungi which may constitute a valuable source of microbial genetics resources for woodland restoration. In this study we test the sampling effort, taxa detection (ectomycorrhiza morpho-anatotyping) and relative abundance measurements (ectomycorrhizal root tip number vs. dry weight) of below-ground ectomycorrhizal fungal communities in a planted Pinus sylvestris Caledonian woodland. A total of 18 replicated sampling points were set up at differential distance along a 125 m transect, in a 50-yr-old, stem exclusion: thicket phase, Pinus sylvestris pinewood stand. A total of 11 ectomycorrhizal morpho-anatotypes were detected from 6689 ectomycorrhizal root tips counted and weighing 992.6 mg dry weight. The major ectomycorrhizal taxa were Meliniomyces bicolor and Cortinarius spp. accounting ~50% of total pine roots. A highly significant relationship (r2 = 0.16, p < 0.000) was found between Sørensen dissimilarity in soil cores and distance apart. In this study, the spatial arrangement of samples indicated that over short distances the dissimilarity was lower in contrast with the longer distances along the transect.
Highlights
Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) is the most widespread European pine and is distributed from southern boreal habitats to Atlantic and central continental Europe (Richardson and Rundel 1998; Tóth et al 2017)
The five most frequent EcM taxa found in soil cores along the transect were: Cortinarius sp. (14/18) followed by M. bicolor (13/18), “Unknown” and Lactarius sp. (7/18) each, and Cenococcum geophilum Fr. (6/18)
We confirm that the divide of EcM types into morphological groups based on gross morphology, and testing the hypothesis by anatomical characterisation when discrepancies were observed is of great importance for the recognition and identification of EcM taxa in ecological studies, in line with Agerer (2002). This was a time-consuming exercise, it proved crucial to the detection of mixed taxa, e.g. Piceirhiza bicolorata-like EcM formed by Meliniomyces bicolor are frequently misidentified with Cenococcum geophilum EcM confirming Vrålstad et al.’s (2002) findings
Summary
Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) is the most widespread European pine and is distributed from southern boreal habitats to Atlantic and central continental Europe (Richardson and Rundel 1998; Tóth et al 2017). The EcM fungi below-ground presence and dynamics is poorly studied in native pine woodlands regardless of its relevance to generate predictive tools to improve management plans to overcome the impact of human activities that restricted their 1.5 million ha original surface to less than 1% (Newton et al 2001) For this reason, restoration of native Caledonian pinewoods represents a priority for the EU Habitats and Species Directive, the UK’s Biodiversity Action Plan and the Scottish Natural Heritage, the statutory conservation agency, in order to maintain their unique biodiversity and sustainable use in the long term (Hampson and Peterken 1998; Forestry Commission 2003; Featherstone 2010)
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