Small‐scale spatial variability in the distribution of ectomycorrhizal fungi affects plant performance and fungal diversity |
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Authors: | Stav Livne‐Luzon Ofer Ovadia Gil Weber Yael Avidan Hen Migael Sydney I Glassman Thomas D Bruns Hagai Shemesh |
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Institution: | 1. Department of Life Sciences, Ben‐Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel;2. Department of Environmental Sciences, Tel‐Hai College, Kiryat Shmona, Israel;3. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, UC Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA;4. Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA |
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Abstract: | The effects of spatial heterogeneity in negative biological interactions on individual performance and species diversity have been studied extensively. However, little is known about the respective effects involving positive biological interactions, including the symbiosis between plants and ectomycorrhizal (EM) fungi. Using a greenhouse bioassay, we explored how spatial heterogeneity of natural soil inoculum influences the performance of pine seedlings and composition of their root‐associated EM fungi. When the inoculum was homogenously distributed, a single EM fungal taxon dominated the roots of most pine seedlings, reducing the diversity of EM fungi at the treatment level, while substantially improving pine seedling performance. In contrast, clumped inoculum allowed the proliferation of several different EM fungi, increasing the overall EM fungal diversity. The most dominant EM fungal taxon detected in the homogeneous treatment was also a highly beneficial mutualist, implying that the trade‐off between competitive ability and mutualistic capacity does not always exist. |
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Keywords: | Ectomycorrhizal fungi mutualism priority effects spatial heterogeneity Pinus halepensis |
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