Fungal Diversity in Forests

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Ecology and Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2024) | Viewed by 3159

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Instituto de Micología y Botánica, Universidad de Buenos Aires-CONICET, DBBE, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Interests: mycology; agaricales; fungi; fungal ecology; conservation; physiology; cultivation; fungal taxonomy; fungal diversity; fungal biology

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Guest Editor
Department of Algology and Mycology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Lodz, Banacha 12/16, 90-237 Lodz, Poland
Interests: trees; fungi plant interactions; mycorrhiza; fungal diversity; fungal ecology; fungal conservation

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Guest Editor
Department of Botany, Institute of Agronomy, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Ménesi Street 44, H-1118 Budapest, Hungary
Interests: polypores; wood-inhabiting fungi; old-growth forest fungi; systematics and taxonomy; molecular phylogeny

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The study of fungal diversity in forests has significantly evolved, with such changes being driven by a growing recognition of fungi's crucial ecological roles and impacts on forest ecosystems. Fungi, once overshadowed by plants and animals, have now gained prominence in ecological research. They play essential roles in nutrient cycling, decomposition, and mycorrhizal associations with trees and are highly sensitive to environmental changes.

Historically, research into fungal diversity in forests focused on taxonomic classification, with early taxonomists identifying and categorizing species based on their morphological characteristics. Later advancements, such as molecular techniques, DNA sequencing, and environmental DNA analysis, enabled us to unveil the hidden diversity within fungal communities.

This Special Issue will provide a comprehensive overview of current research into fungal diversity in forests and its broader ecological implications. It highlights various aspects of this field, including taxonomy, community ecology, functional roles, conservation, and responses to environmental changes.

The scope of this Special Issue includes exploring novel fungal species, investigating fungal communities’ composition and dynamics, understanding their roles in nutrient cycling and symbiotic interactions, assessing the impacts of environmental stressors, and exploring biotechnological applications. By compiling diverse research into these topics, this Special Issue seeks to deepen our understanding of fungi's vital roles in maintaining forest ecosystem health and sustainability. Researchers worldwide are invited to contribute their insights in this evolving field.

Dr. Bernardo Ernesto Lechner
Dr. Izabela Kałucka
Dr. Viktor Papp
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • fungal diversity
  • fugal taxonomy
  • fungal biology
  • forests
  • biodiversity

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 5359 KiB  
Article
Soil Fungal Function Centralization Enhances the Decomposition of Fine Roots at Canopy Gap Borders
by Haijun Liao, Chaonan Li, Zhoulin Han, Guorong Luo, Yulian Yang, Qinggui Wu, Aluo An, Xianwei Li and Dehui Li
Forests 2024, 15(8), 1293; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15081293 - 24 Jul 2024
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Abstract
Canopy gaps can result in abiotic heterogeneities and diverse niches from gap borders to centers, potentially affecting fine root decompositions mediated by soil fungal communities. Despite extensive discussions on the relationship between soil fungi and fine root decomposition, the mechanism by which gap [...] Read more.
Canopy gaps can result in abiotic heterogeneities and diverse niches from gap borders to centers, potentially affecting fine root decompositions mediated by soil fungal communities. Despite extensive discussions on the relationship between soil fungi and fine root decomposition, the mechanism by which gap locations regulate fine root decomposition through the soil fungal community remains elusive. Here, we conducted an in situ field decomposition experiment of Chinese Toon (Toona sinensis) fine roots in a low-efficiency weeping cypress (Cupressus funebris) plantation forest across three microhabitats: gap centers, gap borders, and closed canopy areas. Soil fungal communities were determined using internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequencing after two years of field incubation. Results showed that soil properties and nutrient content in residual roots varied across the three microhabitats, with the gap borders exhibiting the highest decomposition rates. While fungal α-diversity remained relatively consistent, taxonomic compositions differed significantly. Decomposition rates did not show significant correlations with soil properties, observed fungal ASVs, or overall community composition. However, they positively correlated with the relative abundance of saprotrophic Sordariomycetes, which in turn positively correlated with soil total nitrogen (with a highest correlation), peaking at the gap borders. Overall community variations were primarily driven by soil temperature and magnesium content in residual roots. Further analysis revealed high fungal community similarities and low dispersal limitations between the gap borders and closed canopy areas, with more phylogenetically clustered communities at the borders. These results demonstrate that the gap borders possess a high decomposition rate, likely due to the centralization of functions driven by soil fungi such as saprotrophs existing in the “microbial seed bank” or migrating from closed canopy areas. These findings highlight the key role of soil fungi, especially saprotrophic fungi, in fine root decomposition at the gap borders, stressing the importance of soil fungi-driven mechanisms in nutrient cycling, and also informing sustainable forest management practices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fungal Diversity in Forests)
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16 pages, 3146 KiB  
Article
The Fungal Functional Guilds at the Early-Stage Restoration of Subalpine Forest Soils Disrupted by Highway Construction in Southwest China
by Chaonan Li, Haijun Liao, Dehui Li and Yanli Jing
Forests 2024, 15(4), 636; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15040636 - 30 Mar 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1313
Abstract
Soil fungi often operate through diverse functional guilds, and play critical roles in driving soil nutrient cycling, organic matter decomposition and the health of above-ground vegetation. However, fungal functional guilds at the early-stage restoration of disrupted subalpine forest soils remain elusive. In the [...] Read more.
Soil fungi often operate through diverse functional guilds, and play critical roles in driving soil nutrient cycling, organic matter decomposition and the health of above-ground vegetation. However, fungal functional guilds at the early-stage restoration of disrupted subalpine forest soils remain elusive. In the present study, we collected 36 soil samples along an altitudinal gradient (2900 m a.s.l., 3102 m a.s.l., and 3194 m a.s.l.) from cut slopes (CS) (from Wenma highway) and natural soils (NS) at the Miyaluo of Lixian County, Southwest China. By applying nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequencing, this study revealed the ecological characteristics of fungal functional guild in the early-stage restoration of cut slope soils. The results showed that the predicted prevalence of ectomycorrhizal fungi decreased, while plant pathogens and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi increased in CS. In the high-altitude regions (3102 m a.s.l. and 3194 m a.s.l.), the differences in communities between natural and cut slope soils were more pronounced for total soil fungi, soil saprotroph, litter saprotroph, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and ectomycorrhizal fungi, in contrast to the low altitude communities (2900 m a.s.l.). An opposite pattern was evident for plant pathogens. Variations in the differences of both soil properties (mainly soil pH) and community assembling processes (e.g., heterogeneous selection, dispersal limitation and drift) between natural and cut slope soils across the altitudinal gradient likely shaped the shifting patterns of community difference. This study provides valuable insights for devising restoration approaches for cut slopes in subalpine forest ecosystems, emphasizing the importance of taking soil fungal functional guilds into account in evaluating the restoration of cut slopes, and underscoring the necessity for increased attention to the restoration of soil fungi in cut slopes at the high-altitude ecosystems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Fungal Diversity in Forests)
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