On ecology of post-fire soil fungi: assessing impact of disturbance using species-abundance models as measure of community organization |
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Authors: | A M Persiani |
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Institution: | 1. Dipartimento di Biologia Ambientale, Sapienza Università di Roma, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185, Roma, Italyannamaria.persiani@uniroma1.it |
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Abstract: | Mediterranean ecosystems are among those most significantly modified by fires. Such fires lead to evident disturbance of the above- and below-ground ecosystem components, at various spatial and temporal scales, including soil microfungi. The ecological parameters used to measure the effects of disturbance on soil fungal communities include species-abundance distribution patterns, which reflect changes in the relationships between species numbers and their relative abundance, and serve as a critical measure of community organization. Species-abundance distribution patterns were used to assess the disturbance impact of experimental fires on soil fungal communities in Mediterranean maquis (southern Italy) in the short- to mid-term. The trend in the distribution patterns of heat-stimulated and xerotolerant soil fungi over time, their varying responses to low- and high-intensity fire, the efficiency of the soil germplasm bank, and the pivotal role of Neosartorya spp. in post-fire community structure in Mediterranean burned soils may all be used as tools to accurately assess the effects of fire on soil mycobiota. |
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Keywords: | Fire impact post-fire soil fungi Neosartorya spp |
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