Abstract
Mycorrhizal fungi are essential for ecosystem functioning. They are the most important pathway of plant-derived C into the soil and facilitate most of the N and P uptake. In boreal and temperate forest ecosystems, the subgroup of ectomycorrhizas is of special significance, and ectomycorrhizal symbiosis is obligatory for a number of tree species. These fungal assemblages can be highly diverse, which is often contrasting with the relatively low number of tree species. This is also true for small monoculture stands, where several studies showed dozens of different ectomycorrhizal species. The elemental mechanisms that drive ectomycorrhizal community composition and structure, especially on larger scales, are still subject of debate. In particular, the role and function of most of the rare species remain largely unknown. In this chapter, we investigate the structural traits of ectomycorrhizal communities of European beech (Fagus sylvatica), one of the most important tree species in temperate deciduous forest ecosystems. We therefore compiled data from ten different beech dominated sites across a European gradient to seek for ubiquitously valid statements regarding the species composition and community structure of ectomycorrhizae. A total of 205 ectomycorrhizal species were detected, of which 45% and 35% could be identified to the species and genus level, respectively. The majority of them are site-specific and found in very low abundances. A few species with narrow host range such as Lactarius subdulcis, Laccaria amethystina or Lactarius pallidus show low abundances on many sites. Three species, namely Hebeloma sinapizans, Lactarius salmonicolor and Elaphomyces aculeatus, appeared to be very dominant on one respective site. Cenococcum geophilum and Russula ochroleuca, both considered multi-host species, occur at all or rather several sites with relatively high abundances. Species ranking-abundance curves revealed a universal distribution pattern, with few dominant ectomycorrhizal species and a long tail of rare species. This shape is regardless of stand age and management practice, though no statistically significant correlations with species richness and the latter mentioned parameters could be found. By looking at several community structures, we were able to add another dimension of rarity and found most of the species not only being rare at a particular site, but also rare in terms of single appearance across several analysed stands. However, a vast part of ectomycorrhizal fungal species still remains unidentified. This circumstance further impedes our understanding concerning the occurrence of rare species. Yet, understanding their functional behaviour is of particular significance, as they could pose a key factor in ecosystem functioning, especially under changing climatic conditions.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Agerer, R. (2001). Exploration types of ectomycorrhizae. Mycorrhiza, 11, 107–114.
Allen, E. B., Allen, M. F., Helm, D. J., Trappe, J. M., Molina, R., & Rincon, E. (1995). Patterns and regulation of mycorrhizal plant and fungal diversity. Plant and Soil, 170, 47–62.
Baar, J., & Stanton, N. (2000). Ectomycorrhizal fungi challenged by saprotrophic basidiomycetes and soil microfungi under different ammonium regimes in vitro. Mycological research, 104, 691–697.
Buée, M., Vairelles, D., & Garbaye, J. (2005). Year-round monitoring of diversity and potential metabolic activity of the ectomycorrhizal community in a beech (Fagus sylvatica) forest subjected to two thinning regimes. Mycorrhiza, 15, 235–245.
Buée, M., Courty, P., Mignot, D., & Garbaye, J. (2007). Soil niche effect on species diversity and catabolic activities in an ectomycorrhizal fungal community. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 39, 1947–1955.
Buscot, F. (2015). Implication of evolution and diversity in arbuscular and ectomycorrhizal symbioses. Journal of Plant Physiology, 172, 55–61.
Cairney, J. (1999). Intraspecific physiological variation: implications for understanding functional diversity in ectomycorrhizal fungi. Mycorrhiza, 9, 125–135.
Cairney, J. W., & Chambers, S. M. (2013). Ectomycorrhizal fungi: Key genera in profile. Berlin: Springer.
Chagnon, P. L., Bradley, R. L., & Klironomos, J. N. (2012). Using ecological network theory to evaluate the causes and consequences of arbuscular mycorrhizal community structure. New Phytologist, 194, 307–312.
Courty, P. E., Pritsch, K., Schloter, M., Hartmann, A., & Garbaye, J. (2005). Activity profiling of ectomycorrhiza communities in two forest soils using multiple enzymatic tests. New Phytologist, 167, 309–319.
Cox, F., Barsoum, N., Lilleskov, E. A., & Bidartondo, M. I. (2010). Nitrogen availability is a primary determinant of conifer mycorrhizas across complex environmental gradients. Ecology Letters, 13, 1103–1113.
Dahlberg, A. (2001). Community ecology of ectomycorrhizal fungi: An advancing interdisciplinary field. New Phytologist, 150, 555–562.
Di Marino, E., Montecchio, L., Scattolin, L., Abs, C., & Agerer, R. (2009). The ectomycorrhizal community structure in European beech forests differing in coppice shoot age and stand features. Journal of Forestry, 107, 250–259.
Druebert, C., Lang, C., Valtanen, K., & Polle, A. (2009). Beech carbon productivity as driver of ectomycorrhizal abundance and diversity. Plant, Cell & Environment, 32, 992–1003.
Ellenberg, H., & Leuschner, C. (1996). Vegetation mitteleuropas mit den Alpen. Stuttgart: Ulmer.
Erland, S., & Taylor, A. F. (2002). Diversity of ecto-mycorrhizal fungal communities in relation to the abiotic environment. In Mycorrhizal ecology (pp. 163–200). Dordrecht: Springer.
Gardes, M., & Bruns, T. (1996). Community structure of ectomycorrhizal fungi in a Pinus muricata forest: Above-and below-ground views. Canadian Journal of Botany, 74, 1572–1583.
Godbold, D. L., Hoosbeek, M. R., Lukac, M., Cotrufo, M. F., Janssens, I. A., et al. (2006). Mycorrhizal hyphal turnover as a dominant process for carbon input into soil organic matter. Plant and Soil, 281, 15–24.
Grebenc, T., & Kraigher, H. (2007). Types of ectomycorrhiza of mature beech and spruce at ozone-fumigated and control forest plots. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 128, 47–59.
Grebenc, T., Christensen, M., Vilhar, U., Cǎter, M., Martín, M. P., et al. (2009). Response of ectomycorrhizal community structure to gap opening in natural and managed temperate beech-dominated forests. Canadian Journal of Forest Research, 39, 1375–1386.
Grogan, P., Baar, J., & Bruns, T. (2000). Below-ground ectomycorrhizal community structure in a recently burned bishop pine forest. Journal of Ecology, 88, 1051–1062.
Haselwandter, K., & Read, D. (1980). Fungal associations of roots of dominant and sub-dominant plants in high-alpine vegetation systems with special reference to mycorrhiza. Oecologia, 45, 57–62.
Hobbie, J. E., & Hobbie, E. A. (2006). 15N in symbiotic fungi and plants estimates nitrogen and carbon flux rates in Arctic tundra. Ecology, 87, 816–822.
Horton, T. R., & Bruns, T. D. (2001). The molecular revolution in ectomycorrhizal ecology, peeking into the black box. Molecular Ecology, 10, 1855–1871.
Hubbell, S. P. (2001). The unified neutral theory of biodiversity and biogeography (MPB-32). Princeton University Press.
Jansa, J., Bukovská, P., & Gryndler, M. (2013). Mycorrhizal hyphae as ecological niche for highly specialized hypersymbionts–or just soil free-riders. Frontiers in Plant Science, 4, 134.
Jansen, A. E. (1990). Conservation of fungi in Europe. Mycologist, 4, 83–85.
Johnson, D., & Gilbert, L. (2015). Interplant signalling through hyphal networks. New Phytologist, 205, 1448–1453.
Johnson, D., Ijdo, M., Genney, D. R., Anderson, I. C., & Alexander, I. J. (2005). How do plants regulate the function, community structure, and diversity of mycorrhizal fungi? Journal of Experimental Botany, 56, 1751–1760.
Jonsson, T., Kokalj, S., Finlay, R., & Erland, S. (1999). Ectomycorrhizal community structure in a limed spruce forest. Mycological Research, 103, 501–508.
Jonsson, L. M., Nilsson, M. C., Wardle, D. A., & Zackrisson, O. (2001). Context dependent effects of ectomycorrhizal species richness on tree seedling productivity. Oikos, 93, 353–364.
Kernaghan, G. (2005). Mycorrhizal diversity, cause and effect? Pedobiologia, 49, 511–520.
Kjøller, R. (2006). Disproportionate abundance between ectomycorrhizal root tips and their associated mycelia. FEMS Microbiology Ecology, 58, 214–224.
Koide, R. T., Xu, B., Sharda, J., Lekberg, Y., & Ostiguy, N. (2005). Evidence of species interactions within an ectomycorrhizal fungal community. New Phytologist, 165, 305–316.
Koide, R. T., Courty, P. E., & Garbaye, J. (2007). Research perspectives on functional diversity in ectomycorrhizal fungi. New Phytologist, 174, 240–243.
Kraigher, H., Petkovšek, S. A. S., Grebenc, T., & Simončič, P. (2007). Types of ectomycorrhiza as pollution stress indicators: Case studies in Slovenia. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 128, 31–45.
Lang, C., Seven, J., & Polle, A. (2011). Host preferences and differential contributions of deciduous tree species shape mycorrhizal species richness in a mixed Central European forest. Mycorrhiza, 21, 297–308.
Lilleskov, E. A., & Parrent, J. L. (2007). Can we develop general predictive models of mycorrhizal fungal community–environment relationships? New Phytologist, 174, 250–256.
Loreau, M., Naeem, S., Inchausti, P., Bengtsson, J., Grime, J., et al. (2001). Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning: current knowledge and future challenges. Science, 294, 804–808.
Magurran, A. (2004). Measuring biological diversity. Oxford: Blackwells.
Molina, R., Massicotte, H., & Trappe, J. M. (1992). Specificity phenomena in mycorrhizal symbioses, community-ecological consequences and practical implications. In M. F. Allen (Ed.), Mycorrhizal functioning: An integrative plant-fungal process (pp. 357–423). London: Chapman and Hall.
Nara, K. (2008). Community developmental patterns and ecological functions of ectomycorrhizal fungi, implications from primary succession. In Mycorrhiza (pp. 581–599). Dordrecht: Springer.
Pena, R., Offermann, C., Simon, J., Naumann, P. S., Geßler, A., et al. (2010). Girdling affects ectomycorrhizal fungal (EMF) diversity and reveals functional differences in EMF community composition in a beech forest. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 76, 1831–1841.
Pickles, B. J., Genney, D. R., Potts, J. M., Lennon, J. J., Anderson, I. C., & Alexander, I. J. (2010). Spatial and temporal ecology of Scots pine ectomycorrhizas. New Phytologist, 186, 755–768.
Pickles, B. J., Genney, D. R., Anderson, I. C., & Alexander, I. J. (2012). Spatial analysis of ectomycorrhizal fungi reveals that root tip communities are structured by competitive interactions. Molecular Ecology, 21, 5110–5123.
Plett, J. M., Daguerre, Y., Wittulsky, S., Vayssières, A., Deveau, A., Melton, S. J., et al. (2014). Effector MiSSP7 of the mutualistic fungus Laccaria bicolor stabilizes the Populus JAZ6 protein and represses jasmonic acid (JA) responsive genes. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111, 8299–8304.
Pozo, M. J., López-Ráez, J. A., Azcón-Aguilar, C., & García-Garrido, J. M. (2015). Phytohormones as integrators of environmental signals in the regulation of mycorrhizal symbioses. New Phytologist, 205, 1431–1436.
Pritsch, K., Esperschuetz, J., Haesler, F., Raidl, S., Winkler, B., & Schloter, M. (2009). Structure and activities of ectomycorrhizal and microbial communities in the rhizosphere of Fagus sylvatica under ozone and pathogen stress in a lysimeter study. Plant and Soil, 323, 97–109.
Reich, M., Kohler, A., Martin, F., & Buee, M. (2009). Development and validation of an oligonucleotide microarray to characterise ectomycorrhizal fungal communities. BMC Microbiology, 9, 1.
Rineau, F., & Garbaye, J. (2010). Effects of liming on potential oxalate secretion and iron chelation of beech ectomycorrhizal root tips. Microbial Ecology, 60, 331–339.
Rosenzweig, M. L. (1995). Species diversity in space and time. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Rumberger, M. D., Münzenberger, B., Bens, O., Ehrig, F., Lentzsch, P., & Hüttl, R. F. (2004). Changes in diversity and storage function of ectomycorrhiza and soil organoprofile dynamics after introduction of beech into Scots pine forests. Plant and Soil, 264, 111–126.
Simard, S.W., Jones, M.D., Durall, D.M. (2003). Carbon and nutrient fluxes within and between mycorrhizal plants. In Mycorrhizal ecology (pp. 33–74). Dordrecht: Springer.
Smith, S., & Read, D. (2008). Mycorrhizal symbiosis, 3rd. San Diego: Academic.
Smith, B., & Wilson, J. B. (1996). A consumer’s guide to evenness indices. Oikos, 70–82.
Smith, M. E., Douhan, G. W., & Rizzo, D. M. (2007). Ectomycorrhizal community structure in a xeric Quercus woodland based on rDNA sequence analysis of sporocarps and pooled roots. New Phytologist, 174, 847–863.
Southworth, D., He, X. H., Swenson, W., Bledsoe, C., & Horwath, W. (2005). Application of network theory to potential mycorrhizal networks. Mycorrhiza, 15, 589–595.
Taylor, A. F. (2002). Fungal diversity in ectomycorrhizal communities: sampling effort and species detection. In Diversity and integration in Mycorrhizas (pp. 19–28). Dordrecht: Springer.
Taylor, A., Martin, F., & Read, D. (2000). Fungal diversity in ectomycorrhizal communities of Norway spruce [Picea abies (L.) Karst.] and beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) along north-south transects in Europe. In Carbon and nitrogen cycling in European forest ecosystems (pp. 343–365). Dordrecht: Springer.
Tedersoo, L., Suvi, T., Larsson, E., & Kõljalg, U. (2006). Diversity and community structure of ectomycorrhizal fungi in a wooded meadow. Mycological research, 110, 734–748.
Tilman, D. (2004). Niche tradeoffs, neutrality, and community structure: A stochastic theory of resource competition, invasion, and community assembly. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, 101, 10854–10861.
Trappe, J. M. (1962). Cenococcum graniforme – Its distribution, ecology, mycorrhiza formation, and inherent variation. PhD dissertation, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Vandermeer, J. H. (1972). Niche theory. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics, 107–132.
Wardle, D. A. (1999). Is “sampling effect” a problem for experiments investigating biodiversity-ecosystem function relationships? Oikos, 403–407.
Yachi, S., & Loreau, M. (1999). Biodiversity and ecosystem productivity in a fluctuating environment: the insurance hypothesis. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, 96, 1463–1468.
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by a Marie Curie grant GPF333996 LINKTOFUN to DG, and by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of CR within the National Sustainability Program NPU I, grant No. LO1415.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG
About this paper
Cite this paper
Rosinger, C., Sandén, H., Godbold, D.L. (2017). Ectomycorrhizal Diversity in Beech Dominated Stands in Central Europe. In: Lukac, M., Grenni, P., Gamboni, M. (eds) Soil Biological Communities and Ecosystem Resilience. Sustainability in Plant and Crop Protection. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-63336-7_9
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-63336-7_9
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-63335-0
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-63336-7
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)