Abstract
AbstractHerein, the results of studies conducted in the Łagiewnicki Forest in the city of Łódź (central Poland) in 2010–2012 are presented. These were the first long-term observations into myxomycetes in the Łagiewnicki Forest and in central Poland. Investigations were conducted using the route method for the entire forest complex (2010–2012). Additionally, twelve logs were selected in the “Las Łagiewnicki” forest reserve for detailed observations in 2011–2012; these logs belonged to four tree species:Betula pendulaRoth,Carpinus betulusL.,Quercussp., andPicea abies(L.) H. Karst. In total, 1,561 specimens were collected and were classified into 96 taxa (91 species and five varieties). Three species (Diderma saundersii,Oligonema flavidum, andDidymium eximium) are new to the biota of Poland, while five (Arcyria stipata,Hemitrichia calyculata,Oligonema schweinitzii,Physarum flavicomum, andPhysarum robustum) are included on the red list of rare myxomycetes in Poland.Stemonitopsis amoenais also classified as a rare species; to date, this species has been reported in one locality in Poland. The scale by Stephenson et al. was used to determine the frequency of occurrence of individual taxa; 55 taxa were classified as rare, nine as sporadic, 26 as common, and six as abundant taxa. Three ecological groups of slime molds were identified based on the type of substrate they colonized: lignicolous (54 taxa), foliicolous (seven taxa), and corticolous (two taxa). No preference for the substrate was noticed in a group of 33 taxa that occurred on different substrate types. The phenology of myxomycete occurrence was also analyzed; 49 taxa occurred throughout the entire vegetative season, while only single records of species that were found in specific months were noted. The biota collected in the “Las Łagiewnicki” forest reserve and that in a Łagiewnicki Forest segment outside it (of the same size and the same occurrence of plant communities as in the reserve) in 2011–2012 were also compared.
Highlights
Myxomycetes are eukaryotic, heterotrophic, and cosmopolitan organisms that are classified in the kingdom Amoebozoa (Adl et al, 2012). ey occur in all terrestrial ecosystems worldwide
Hemitrichia calyculata, Oligonema schweinitzii, Physarum flavicomum, and Physarum robustum are on the red list of myxomycetes rare in Poland (Drozdowicz et al, 2006)
Myxomycetes were noted on the dead wood of Fagus sylvatica and Picea abies. irteen taxa noted on the dead wood of Fagus sylvatica were found on the dead wood of other tree species, such as Betula pendula, Quercus sp., and Carpinus betulus. e taxa were assigned to two groups based on their ecology: taxa with a broad range of occurrence (10 taxa) and lignicolous taxa
Summary
Myxomycetes are eukaryotic, heterotrophic, and cosmopolitan organisms that are classified in the kingdom Amoebozoa (Adl et al, 2012). ey occur in all terrestrial ecosystems worldwide. Studies on myxomycetes have been conducted in different plant formations worldwide (Lado & Wrigley de Basanta, 2008; Mitchell, 1995; Ndiritu et al, 2009; Stephenson et al, 1993), including in urbanized areas. City forests are not diverse or rich in species; these ecosystems are poor in microhabitats, which affects the species richness of myxomycetes and other organisms (Hosokawa et al, 2019). Pursuant to the resolution on forests of 1991 ( e Forests Act, 1991), urban forests are considered to be protected areas, and the Łagiewnicki Forest is one such protected urban forest It is one of the largest forest complexes within administrative city borders in Europe, and its most valuable part is protected as the “Las Łagiewnicki” forest reserve (Siciński, 2001). Urban forests provide vital services by having important biocoenotic functions while contributing to leisure and educational activities (Siciński, 2001)
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