Associations between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and grasses in the successional context of a two-phase mosaic in the Chihuahuan Desert

The hypothesis that plant species are more responsive to mycorrhiza in late than in early successional stages was assessed in grasses from a successional process occurring in two-phase mosaics from the Mexican Chihuahuan Desert. We estimated the density of spores of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and the AM colonization of pioneer and late-successional grasses in the field. In growth chamber experiments, we tested the effect of the native AM fungal community on grasses growing in soils from different successional stages. Spore density was higher in late than in early successional stages. Late-successional species were more responsive to AM (positive AM responsiveness) whereas pioneer species were nondependent on mycorrhiza or if associated to AM fungi, the interaction showed a negative AM responsiveness for the seedling stage. Our findings showed that late successional species fitted the proposed models of mycorrhizal performance, but the two pioneer species differed in their AM condition and responsiveness. This further supports the idea that AM interactions are more complex along the successional processes than the predictions of the more widely cited hypotheses.