Thelephoraceae of the Andean forests in Patagonia.

FRANCISCO KUHAR; MATTHEW SMITH; CAMILLE TRUONG; ALIJA MUJIC; EDUARDO NOUHRA

Athens

Congreso; Mycological Society of America 2017; 2017

Mycological Society of America

Representatives of the family Thelephoraceae have not been studied in depth in Andean forests due to their inconspicuous fruiting bodies of relatively low abundance. Nothofagaceae-dominated ecosystems constitute one of the most extensive ectomycorrhizal forest types in the southern hemisphere. Growing evidence suggests that many Thelephoraceae species are important components of the soil biota and are common ectomycorrhizal symbionts over wide areas of Nothofagaceae forests. As a result of an extensive sampling effort in the Nothofagaceae forests of Patagonia in South America we have documented several morphologically unique species with ITS sequences that do not match previously described taxa or environmental sequences from ectomycorrhizal roots. Here we provide an overview of Thelephoraceae diversity in the Nothofagaceae forests of Patagonia based both on morphological studies of basidiomata and phylogenetic analysis of ITS sequences from basidiomata and ectomycorrhizal root tips. Our preliminary results based on field observations and herbarium specimens indicate that species diversity and abundance are higher at lower latitudes in Patagonia. Molecular and morphological analyses will allow the description of new taxa in the Thelephoraceae, allowing future studies about life cycles and spore dispersal systems of this group of fungi.