Exploring the relationship between macrofungi diversity, abundance, and vascular plant diversity in semi-natural and managed forests in north-east Hungary

The diversity of easy-to-study organisms (e.g. vascular plants) is often used as a proxy for the diversity of other organisms whose investigation needs more effort, time and specialist knowledge. Some previous studies have found positive relationships between plant and macrofungal diversity and thus support this approach, while others question this practice. Our aim was to explore the possibility of using plant diversity as surrogate for macrofungal diversity in the forests of the Pannonian ecoregion. A total of 19 permanent plots in north-east Hungary were sampled for vascular plants and macrofungi. The effect on macrofungal abundance and diversity, as well as degradation level, of plant evenness and richness was tested using generalized linear models. Species richness of macrofungi assemblages proved to be independent of the diversity and naturalness of vascular plant communities; however, there was congruence in the composition of the two communities. In contrast to diversity, macrofungi abundance was significantly negatively correlated to plant species richness. There was a hump-backed relationship between the abundance of terricolous macrofungi and the degradation level estimated on the basis of the occurrence of vascular plants, although degradation did not influence the abundance of lignicolous macrofungi. Our results question the reliability of decisions on nature conservation actions based on a few groups of easy-to-observe organisms, and underline the necessity of studying as wide a range of taxonomic groups as possible.     

Richness of ancient forest plant species indicates suitable habitats for macrofungi

Macrofungal species richness generally increases with forest continuity as does the richness of so-called ancient forest plant species (AFS). Based on this assumption, we examined the ability of AFS to indicate macrofungal diversity in six study areas covering a range of elevations and environments in the Czech Republic. In total, we used data from 106 sampling plots (2,500 m² each) distributed over six types of forest stands reflecting different intensities and temporal stages of forest management. Species composition of vascular plants and macrofungi was recorded by a single inventory and regular 2-year monitoring, respectively. In total, we found 71 AFS and 1,413 macrofungal species, of which 150 were red-listed macrofungal species. We documented that AFS show potential for being used in the prediction of macrofungi species richness, including endangered species, at the local scale (α-diversity). Additionally, we found significant differences in macrofungal species richness depending on study area and type of forest management, which did not, however, derogate the effect of AFS. Spatial congruence between species composition of AFS and macrofungi communities (β-diversity) increased with forest age and decreased with intensity of forest management. If we consider the simplicity of monitoring AFS in comparison to regular monitoring of macrofungi, we found a widely usable tool for estimating macrofungal diversity in all dominant types of managed forest in central Europe. However, we should be aware of the limited ability of AFS to capture macrofungal diversity across a broader spatial context (γ-diversity), especially in areas with a low diversity of AFS.     

Diversity and ecological distribution of macrofungi in the Laojun Mountain region,southwestern China

Surveys of the macrofungi associated with eight different vegetation types in the Laojun Mountain region of southwestern China yielded approximately 520 species belonging to 175 genera. Species richness and diversity were highest in mixed conifer and broadleaf forests and deciduous broadleaf forests. In typical forests of temperate regions of the world, there are five dominant genera of ectomycorrhizal macrofungi. The distribution patterns of species in these genera for the different vegetation types indicate that they are able to associate with a wide variety of different trees. Analysis of data for common macrofungal species and taxonomic similarity of the communities present in the eight vegetation types suggest that the greater the differences in the plant species that comprise the vegetation, the less similar are the common macrofungal species associated with the most common host plants. These same data also show that some species of macrofungi occur only in one or two vegetation types. There were 156 species of edible fungi recorded from the different vegetation types, and these fungi appear to be abundant in the Laojun Mountain region. At different positions along the elevation gradient, positive correlations existed with respect to the relationship between species richness and diversity, and the general trend was for macrofungal species richness and diversity to decrease with increasing elevation, with the numbers of species recorded being significantly lower at the very highest elevation. The relative dominance of certain taxa in the assemblage of species present was found to increase with increasing elevation, and variation in the evenness component of diversity was slight. As such, the differences in dominance and evenness were also not significant (P > 0.05). Macrofungal species richness was slightly more diverse on shaded slopes than on more exposed (sunny) slopes, and the differences in species diversity, dominance and evenness were relatively minor. This suggests that slope aspect may only weakly influence the distribution of macrofungal species in the Laojun Mountain region.     

北京地区大型真菌多样性分析

为明确北京地区大型真菌资源状况,以中国科学院菌物标本馆馆藏的京区标本和本研究组采自该地区的标本为材料,结合已报道的文献资料,经过对定名标本的物种名称进行系统整理,得到北京地区大型真菌记录867种,隶属于2门20目72科281属,其中食用菌294种,药用菌169种（包含食用兼药用菌69种）,毒菌56种。在全部大型真菌中,蘑菇科Agaricaceae、多孔菌科Polyporaceae、口蘑科Tricholomataceae和红菇科Russulaceae等24科拥有的物种占总物种数量的77.28%,这些科在该地区占有主导地位;红菇属Russula、蘑菇属Agaricus和丝盖伞属Inocybe等50个属的物种占总物种数量的60.21%,具有相对优势。大型真菌区系分布分析的结果表明,北京地区已发现的大型真菌主要为世界广泛分布的属。物种丰富度分析表明采自门头沟区的大型真菌的标本数和物种丰度最高,最能代表北京地区大型真菌物种的多样性;其他地区采集的标本数量显著减少,而且物种数和物种丰度均明显降低;特别是城区和近郊地区,由于适宜栖息地的丧失,大型真菌更是少见。     

中国森林大型真菌重要类群多样性和系统学研究

大型真菌主要为担子菌门的真菌和少数为子囊菌门的真菌,该类真菌具有重要的经济价值和生态功能,主要生长在森林生态系统中。30年来作者对我国几乎所有类型森林生态中的大型真菌进行了系统调查和采集,共采集标本11.2万号。基于对这些材料的形态学及分子系统学研究,并结合生态学和生物地理学特征,共鉴定出中国森林大型真菌4 250种,隶属于担子菌门和子囊菌门的21个目,发现和发表2个新科、4个新亚科、69个新属和885个新种。云南省是我国森林大型真菌最丰富的省份,描述于该省的新种有314种,占作者发表的全部中国新种的35%。这些研究为深入认识全球大型真菌物种多样性提供了中国的贡献,更新了我国重要食药用菌名称,揭示了我国毒蘑菇多样性基本特征,系统论述了我国森林病原菌的物种多样性,为资源利用、森林健康和保护提供了科学依据;论述了森林大型真菌代表性类群在种和属级水平的起源和演化,为今后开展重要类群科级、目级甚至纲级的系统进化关系提供了重要数据。     

Relating macrofungal diversity and forest characteristics in boreal forests in China: Conservation effects,inter‐forest‐type variations,and association decoupling

QuestionHow conservation and forest type affect macrofungal compositional diversity is not well understood. Even less is known about macrofungal associations with plants, soils, and geoclimatic conditions.LocationSouthern edge of boreal forest distribution in China, named as Huzhong Nature Reserve.MethodsWe surveyed a total of 72 plots for recording macrofungi, plants, and topography in 2015 and measured soil organic carbon, nitrogen, and bulk density. Effects of conservation and forest types on macrofungi and plants were compared, and their associations were decoupled by structural equation modeling (SEM) and redundancy ordination (RDA).ResultsConservation and forest type largely shaped macrofungal diversity. Most of the macrofungal traits declined with the conservation intensities or peaked at the middle conservation region. Similarly, 91% of macrofungal traits declined or peaked in the middle succession stage of birch‐larch forests. Forest conservation resulted in the observation of sparse, larch‐dominant, larger tree forests. Moreover, the soil outside the Reserve had more water, higher fertility, and lower bulk density, showing miscellaneous wood forest preference. There is a complex association between conservation site characteristics, soils, plants, and macrofungi. Variation partitioning showed that soil N was the top‐one factor explaining the macrofungal variations (10%). As shown in SEM coefficients, conservation effect to macrofungi (1.1–1.2, p < .05) was like those from soils (1.2–1.6, p < .05), but much larger than the effect from plants (0.01–0.14, p > .10). For all tested macrofungal traits, 89%–97% of their variations were from soils, and 5%–21% were from conservation measures, while plants compensated 1%–10% of these effects. Our survey found a total of 207 macrofungal species, and 65 of them are new updates in this Reserve, indicating data shortage for the macrofungi list here.ConclusionOur findings provide new data for the joint conservation of macrofungi and plant communities, highlighting the crucial importance of soil matrix for macrofungal conservation in boreal forests.     

物种分布模型在大型真菌红色名录评估及保护中的应用: 以冬虫夏草为例

我国大型真菌资源丰富, 由于受气候变化和人类活动等的影响, 近年来很多物种受到不同程度的威胁, 亟待保护。红色名录评估是物种保护的第一步, 为有效保护我国大型真菌多样性, 2016年生态环境部和中国科学院联合启动中国大型真菌红色名录评估项目。合理的评估依赖于完善的物种地理分布、种群数量规模及其动态变化信息。大型真菌评估信息较少, 需要引入新的方法解决评估信息不足的问题。冬虫夏草(Ophiocordyceps sinensis)是一种重要的食药用菌, 具有较高的经济价值, 受到全世界的广泛关注, 评估信息相对充足, 此次被评为易危物种。利用物种分布模型对冬虫夏草未来分布区变化的预测在评估过程中发挥了重要作用。为了将物种分布模型分析方法引入大型真菌的受威胁等级评估, 本文以此前我们利用物种分布模型预测冬虫夏草的潜在分布区及其对气候变化响应的研究为例, 介绍了应用物种分布模型预测大型真菌的潜在分布区、未来气候变化情景下分布区变化趋势的方法和流程, 以及在应用中可能存在的问题和解决方案。通过本文的分析, 我们认为物种分布模型在大型真菌的红色名录评估和保护中具有重要的应用潜力, 值得推广应用。     

Macrofungal diversity and community ecology in mature and regrowth wet eucalypt forest in Tasmania: A multivariate study

Abstract The biodiversity of macrofungi in mature and young regrowth Tasmanian wet forests is described at the species level and at the community level. The macrofungal communities studied were much more species‐rich than their vascular plant counterparts, with the total number of macrofungal taxa outnumbering vascular plants by four to one. This ratio applied in both mature and young regrowth forest sites. Some 242 taxa of macrofungi were recorded, of which 132 were identified to species level, the remainder to species groups or higher taxa. Distinct communities could be discerned from multivariate analysis (ordination and classification) of vascular plant and macrofungal data from the mature and regrowth sites. The two vascular plant communities had different fire histories, and this difference is also assumed to account for the separation of the macrofungal communities of the two forest types. There was generally a high level of congruence between the vascular plant and the macrofungal communities. However, one young regrowth site, which was relatively close to the mature sites in the ordination space for the analysis of vascular plants, was distant from the mature forest sites for the analysis of macrofungi. Another regrowth site, which had experienced wildfire rather than silvicultural regeneration, clustered with mature sites for some analyses of the macrofungal assemblage. Variation in the macrofungal communities was correlated with a different set of the measured environmental variables than was variation in the vascular plant communities. Mature and young regrowth forests were found to have distinctly different macrofungal floras, with approximately 40% of the taxa in each forest type being restricted to that type of site. Suitable indicator taxa (restricted or preferential to particular forest types) for use in further studies are suggested.     

中国大型真菌红色名录评估研究进展

大型真菌具有重要的生态价值和经济价值, 但由于环境污染、气候变化、生境丧失与破碎化, 以及资源过度利用等因素, 其生物多样性受到严重威胁。为了全面评估中国大型真菌的生存状况, 国家生态环境部(原环境保护部)联合中国科学院于2016年启动了《中国生物多样性红色名录——大型真菌卷》的编制工作。经广泛和全面收集文献资料, 依据IUCN物种红色名录等级与标准, 结合大型真菌特点和国内研究现状, 制定了中国大型真菌红色名录评估方法和流程, 动员和组织了全国相关研究力量, 对9,302种大型真菌的受威胁状况进行了评估。结果显示, 中国大型真菌受威胁物种(包括疑似灭绝、极危、濒危、易危)共97个, 占被评估物种总数的1.04%; 近危101种, 占总数的1.09%; 无危2,764种, 占总数的29.71%; 数据不足6,340种, 占总数的68.16%。此次评估工作汇集了全国140多位专家的智慧, 是国内外迄今为止涉及物种数量最大、类群范围最宽、覆盖地域最广、参与人员最多的一次大型真菌生存状况评估, 对我国大型真菌多样性保护与管理具有重要意义。     

Macrofungal diversity and ecology in two Mediterranean forest ecosystems

The macrofungal species richness and community assemblages in Italian native woodlands of oaks and Carpinus betulus and non-native woodlands of Pinus spp., Cupressus sempervirens and Eucalyptus camaldulensis were examined through the collection of basidiomata and ascomata over 1 year. The sampling in Collestrada (Umbria) and Pizzo Manolfo (Sicily) forests revealed 216 species of macrofungi. The results indicate differences in macromycete richness and diversity patterns between the two sites. The dominant tree species of the two sites were different; thus, the Collestrada forests had higher mycorrhizal species richness, while the Pizzo Manolfo forest had a higher relative number of saprotroph macrofungi. The macrofungal community of Quercus frainetto woodland from Collestrada forest was richer and more diverse than the other site's woodland types. This study highlighted that both Collestrada and Pizzo Manolfo forests provide a habitat for diverse macrofungal species, not in the least ectomycorrhizal species.     

安徽琅琊山大型真菌区系多样性

对安徽省琅琊山自然保护区大型真菌区系多样性进行了分析.结果表明该地区共有大型真菌107种,分属于25科56属,其中优势科为多孔菌科Polyporaceae(20种,占18.69％)、口蘑科Tricholomataceae(14种,占13.08％)、丝膜菌科Cortinariaceae(11种,占10.28％)、红菇科Russulaceae(10种,占9.35％),以上4科仅占琅琊山大型真菌总科数的16％,而种数占全部种数的51.4％;优势属有鹅膏属Amanita(8种,占7.48％)、栓菌属Trametes(7种,占6.54％)、乳菇属Lactarius(5种,占4.67％)、小皮伞属Marasmius(5种,占4.67％)、红菇属Russula(5种,占4.67％),共包括30种,占全部种数的28.04％.从属的区系地理成分上可分为:世界性分布成分(66.07％)、泛热带分布成分(19.64％)、北温带分布成分(10.71％)、东亚分布成分(1.79％).琅琊山大型真菌主要是以世界广布成分为主,其次是泛热带成分和北温带成分,这种分布状况可能与该地区的气候、地理和植被等自然条件的特征有着密切的关系.从种的组成上可划分为世界性分布种(70.09％)、温带分布种(14.95％)、热带-亚热带分布种(14.02％)及中国-日本共有种(0.93％)等4个分布类型,表现出一定的热带向温带过渡的区系特征.     

雾灵山国家级自然保护区大型真菌物种多样性

大型真菌在维持生态系统稳定和为人类提供经济价值方面都具有重要作用, 本文对雾灵山国家级自然保护区中的大型真菌资源进行了详细调查, 为该保护区大型真菌资源开发和利用提供基础资料。作者于2019‒2020年采用样线法和随机踏查法对该保护区大型真菌物种资源多样性进行了初步调查和评估, 共采集大型真菌标本1,132份。结合形态学和ITS序列证据进行了鉴定, 并通过查阅相关文献资料对该保护区大型真菌物种资源价值进行了评价。结果表明: 雾灵山国家级自然保护区共有236种大型真菌, 隶属于2门6纲18目56科107属, 其中15种属于子囊菌门, 221种属于担子菌门。为方便统计, 将大于等于10个种的科定为优势科, 大于等于5个种的属定为优势属。其中优势科有红菇科、蘑菇科、多孔菌科和丝膜菌科, 每个科所包含的种数分别占总种数的8.90%、7.20%、5.93%和4.24%, 共计62种。优势属有红菇属(Russula)、蘑菇属(Agaricus)、鹅膏菌属(Amanita)、丝膜菌属(Cortinarius)、马勃属(Lycoperdon)、小皮伞属(Marasmius)等11个属, 共包含79个种, 占总种数的33.48%。对大型真菌的资源价值评价的结果显示, 保护区内共有食用菌66种、药用菌35种、有毒菌36种和食药兼用菌26种。研究结果表明, 雾灵山国家级自然保护区大型真菌资源丰富, 优势科和优势属中最为丰富的分别是红菇科和红菇属(Russula), 具有经济价值的菌达127种, 为食用菌的引种驯化、药用菌开发利用亦或有毒菌鉴别提供了丰富资源。     

Logged peat swamp forest supports greater macrofungal biodiversity than large‐scale oil palm plantations and smallholdings

Intensive land expansion of commercial oil palm agricultural lands results in reducing the size of peat swamp forests, particularly in Southeast Asia. The effect of this land conversion on macrofungal biodiversity is, however, understudied. We quantified macrofungal biodiversity by identifying mushroom sporocarps throughout four different habitats; logged peat swamp forest, large‐scale oil palm plantation, monoculture, and polyculture smallholdings. We recorded a total of 757 clusters of macrofungi belonging to 127 morphospecies and found that substrates for growing macrofungi were abundant in peat swamp forest; hence, morphospecies richness and macrofungal clusters were significantly greater in logged peat swamp forest than converted oil palm agriculture lands. Environmental factors that influence macrofungi in logged peat swamp forests such as air temperature, humidity, wind speed, soil pH, and soil moisture were different from those in oil palm plantations and smallholdings. We conclude that peat swamp forests are irreplaceable with respect to macrofungal biodiversity. They host much greater macrofungal biodiversity than any of the oil palm agricultural lands. It is imperative that further expansion of oil palm plantation into remaining peat swamp forests should be prohibited in palm oil producing countries. These results imply that macrofungal distribution reflects changes in microclimate between habitats and reduced macrofungal biodiversity may adversely affect decomposition in human‐modified landscapes.     

The Erwin equation of biodiversity: From little steps to quantum leaps in the discovery of tropical insect diversity

Almost 40 years ago, Terry L. Erwin published a seemingly audacious proposition: There may be as many as 30 million species of insects in the world. Here, we translate Erwin's verbal argument into a diversity-ratio model—the Erwin Equation of Biodiversity—and discuss how it has inspired other biodiversity estimates. We categorize, describe the assumptions for, and summarize the most commonly used methods for calculating estimates of global biodiversity. Subsequent diversity-ratio extrapolations have incorporated parameters representing empirical insect specialization ratios, and how insect specialization changes at different spatial scales. Other approaches include macroecological diversity models and diversity curves. For many insect groups with poorly known taxonomies, diversity estimates are based on the opinions of taxonomic experts. We illustrate our current understanding of insect diversity by focusing on the six most speciose insect orders worldwide. For each order, we compiled estimates of the (a) maximum estimated number of species, (b) minimum estimated number of species, and (c) number of currently described species. By integrating these approaches and considering new information, we believe an estimate of 5.5 million species of insects in the world is much too low. New molecular methodologies (e.g., metabarcoding and NGS studies) are revealing daunting numbers of cryptic and previously undescribed species, at the same time increasing our precision but also uncertainty about present estimates. Not until technologies advance and sampling become more comprehensive, especially of tropical biotas, will we be able to make robust estimates of the total number of insect species on Earth.     

中国大型真菌红色名录评估中存在的问题及今后的对策

2018年5月22日国际生物多样性日, 生态环境部和中国科学院联合发布了“中国生物多样性红色名录——大型真菌卷”, 对9,302种大型真菌的受威胁现状进行了评估。根据大型真菌的生物学特性, 此次评估还对IUCN红色名录评估等级标准体系进行了适当调整。本文总结了评估过程中发现的问题: (1)部分物种的分类学地位存在争议, 缺少汉语学名; (2)大量物种的地理分布、种群数量及动态变化等信息缺乏; (3) IUCN的部分评估标准在大型真菌中难以使用; (4)物种的受威胁因素不明确, 缺乏科学定量的分析。针对以上问题, 我们建议: (1)加强真菌分类学研究, 按命名规范拟定物种的汉语学名; (2)加强大型真菌的资源调查, 对重要物种和多样性热点区域进行长期定点监测; (3)引入物种分布建模等定量分析方法, 完善IUCN的评估标准, 使之更适用于大型真菌的评估; (4)鼓励公众参与, 建立交流互动平台, 扩大红色名录工作的影响, 加强大型真菌多样性保护。     

Macrofungi diversity in cork-oak and holm-oak forests in Andalusia (southern Spain); an efficient parameter for establishing priorities for its evaluation and conservation

In this work, the fungal diversity of holm-oak and cork-oak woodlands in southern Spain is studied in order to analyse the macrofungi component and its ecological characteristics, as well as to establish priorities for its conservation. For this, we have compiled published as well as unpublished data, and applied compositional analysis and statistical methods (basic statistics, non-parametric and multivariate analyses). Priority areas were selected based on complementarity analysis. As a result, 838 taxa were recorded, 78.6% in cork-oak and 76.4% in holm-oak forests, with 55.1% in common. The ratio of mycorrhizal to saprophitic species indicated that cork-oak woodlands present a higher diversity and conservation degree of its macrofungal community than holm-oak woodlands, since the mycorrhizal component is more important for the conservation of these forests (due to nutritional relations). Both forests types appear well differentiated in the multivariate analysis. In the complementarity analysis, with only one site, we recorded 40% of the total species encountered. The percentage increased to 80% with four sites. This type of approach, by highlighting the important areas for conservation of fungal diversity, constitutes a powerful tool to optimise conservation efforts.     

Fungal biodiversity: what do we know? What can we predict?

Although fungi are among the most important organisms in the world, only limited and incomplete information is currently available for most species and current estimates of species numbers for fungi differ significantly. This lack of basic information on taxonomic diversity has significant implications for many aspects of evolutionary biology. While the figure of 1.5 million estimated fungal species is commonly used, critics have questioned the validity of this estimate. Data on biogeographic distributions, levels of endemism, and host specificity must be taken into account when developing estimates of global fungal diversity. This paper introduces a set of papers that attempt to develop a rigorous, minimum estimate of global fungal diversity based on a critical assessment of current species lists and informed predictions of missing data and levels of endemism. As such, these papers represent both a meta-analysis of current data and a gap assessment to indicate where future research efforts should be concentrated.     

An updated checklist of the ants of India with their specific distributions in Indian states (Hymenoptera,Formicidae)

As one of the 17 megadiverse countries of the world and with four biodiversity hotspots represented in its borders, India is home to an impressive diversity of life forms. However, much work remains to document and catalogue the species of India and their geographic distributions, especially for diverse invertebrate groups. In the present study, a comprehensive and critical list of Indian ant species is provided with up-to-date state-wise distribution. A total of 828 valid species and subspecies names belonging to 100 genera are listed from India. Potential erroneous data, misidentifications and dubious distributional records that may exist in the literature are also identified. The present exhaustive listing of Indian ants will provide a holistic view about diversity and distribution and will also help to identify major undersampled areas where future sampling and taxonomic efforts should be directed.     

Epigeous macrofungal succession in the first five years following a wildfire in karri (Eucalyptus diversicolor) regrowth forest in Western Australia

Abstract Following a wildfire in 17–25‐year‐old regrowth karri (Eucalyptus diversicolor) forest in the southwest of Western Australia, plots were established in burnt and similarly aged unburnt forest to monitor the fruiting of macrofungi. Thirty‐six plots on 10 sites (five burnt, five unburnt) were surveyed over a 5‐year period. Plots were surveyed every 2 weeks in the macrofungal fruiting season (April to October) and monthly for the remainder of each year. A total of 332 species were recorded. Fire did not impact significantly on mean species richness. However, a distinct mycoflora was recorded on burnt sites, and species composition on burnt sites changed substantially for each year following the fire and after 5 years was still different from that on unburnt sites. Nineteen percent of species recorded were regarded as being present as a direct result of the fire. The study also demonstrated the variable nature of macrofungal sporophore production in the absence of disturbance and the importance of regular sampling. Five distinct succession groups of post‐fire fungi were recognized. The adaptive traits of post‐fire fungi in relation to fire and the management of fire for macrofungal diversity are discussed.