Site conditions shaped the effect of silvicultural management on the biodiversity of ectomycorrhizal fungi in mixed Nothofagus forests. Forest Ecology and Management.

FLORIANI FRANCO; EL MUJTAR VERONICA; MATEO CAMILA; SOLA GEORGINA; GONZALEZ PEÑALBA MARCELO; SBRANCIA RENATO; MARCHELLI, PAULA; FERNANDEZ NATALIA

FOREST ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT

ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV

Lugar: Amsterdam; Año: 2024

0378-1127

Ectomycorrhizas (EcM) constitute a crucial component of soil biota in forestecosystems, where they perform functions of great ecological significance. Althoughthere is available information about the individual effects of various factors shapingEcM fungal communities, it is still challenging to understand the intricate interactionamong different environmental factors and forest management on these communities.Our aim was to evaluate the potential modulation of silvicultural management impactsby site conditions on different facets of EcM fungal biodiversity in mixed Nothofagusforests in northern Patagonia. We compared managed and unmanaged plots located inmesic and humid sites, and assessed root colonization by EcM, taxonomic α- and β-EcM fungal diversity, as well as relative abundance of functional EcM groups definedby fungal soil nutrient foraging strategies (exploration types). We found that the effectof silvicultural management on root colonization was not modulated by site conditions,being colonization percentages higher in the mesic site and in unmanaged plots.Conversely, the effect of silvicultural management on taxonomic α- and β-diversity ofEcM fungi, as well as on the relative abundance of exploration types, was modulatedby site conditions. We found that in the mesic site silvicultural management tended toincrease the α-diversity of EcM fungal communities and changed the relativeabundance of different EcM fungal taxa and EcM functional groups. In the humid site,silvicultural management did not generate changes in α-diversity, but a shift in therelative abundance of certain EcM fungal taxa and of different EcM functional groupswas detected. These changes in taxonomic and functional EcM groups could berelated to the intrinsic traits of the EcM fungal species present in each site (e.g., stresstolerance, water and nutrient acquisition strategies) and how they interact withenvironmental disturbances, such as silvicultural management. Overall, thecomposition of EcM fungi in all groups was affected by the interaction of both factors,although the detected changes were mostly explained by modifications in the relativeabundance of EcM fungi within each group rather than species replacement terms. Ourstudy highlights the complexity of ectomycorrhizas dynamics in ecosystems andemphasizes the importance of considering belowground communities when analyzingthe impacts of silvicultural management. Furthermore, our results also reveal thatsilvicultural management assessment and implementation should consider theenvironmental variation of the forest landscape.