P. pinaster under extreme ecological conditions provides high fungal production and diversity

The goal of this project was to study how fungal communities in Mediterranean forests dominated by Pinus pinaster are influenced by different edaphoclimatic conditions, characterized by three different edaphoclimatic sites composed of siliceous, calcareous, and sandy soils. Sporocarps were collected and identified from nine 100 m(2) permanent plots, three in each site, during the autumn seasons from 2006 to 2012. The data collected were used to assess fungal productivity and diversity. Fungal community composition was mainly correlated with climatic variables, such as precipitation and temperature. Additionally, soil nitrogen and potassium significantly influenced the distribution of species for both saprotrophic and mycorrhizal functional groups. Some fungi such as Lycoperdon perlatum, Russula torulosa, and species within the genera Galerina and Mycena were adapted to a broad range of ecological conditions. Others were found only in very specific environmental conditions. All species within Macrolepiota were collected in the calcareous soils, whereas Laccaria laccata and L. bicolor were exclusively associated with higher amounts precipitation and nitrogen in the siliceous plots. These findings have ecological implications that are important for managers seeking new options for adding economic value and for sustaining biological diversity in these Mediterranean forests. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.