Fungal C translocation restricts N-mineralization in heterogeneous environments

P>1. In forest soils, fungi generally dominate the decomposer community, but their specific, filamentous physiology is often not recognized in nitrogen (N) cycling models. Many litter degrading fungi form large mycelia and have a well-developed capacity to translocate resources within their mycelia. Fungi may thus connect substrates that differ with respect to carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) availability and, thereby, overcome local resource limitation through translocation. 2. Here we test whether the ability of fungi to translocate carbohydrates within their mycelia prevents local C limitation in a low C:N ratio substrate, thereby reducing N mineralization. The capacity of fungi to translocate N to a high C:N ratio substrate in order to increase the decomposition, was also assessed. Two litter decomposing fungi, Marasmius androsaceus and Mycena epipterygia were grown in axenic laboratory microcosms containing spatially separated substrates: pine needles (C:N = 135) and glycine (C:N = 2). 3. In the absence of needles both fungi mineralized the glycine N. When connecting the two substrates, both fungi were able to overcome local C-deficiency on the glycine medium by translocating carbohydrates from the needles. In the presence of needles, N mineralization from glycine was negligible, although the glycine was utilized. Only trace amounts of N were translocated from glycine to the needles. 4. A basic assumption of N cycling models is that substrates of different qualities decompose in an independent manner. Our observations imply that this assumption may be violated in heterogenic environments dominated by fungi.