Wood-inhabiting macrofungi in Danish beech-forests - conflicting diversity patterns and their implications in a conservation perspective

Macrofungal diversity was investigated on 281 decaying beech trees distributed across 14 forests in Denmark, based on sporocarp inventories. Two aspects of diversity were considered, i.e., species richness per fallen tree and the incidence of red-listed species occurrence per tree. For both diversity measures the effects of both tree and site variables were tested. In total, 319 fungal species were identified, including 28 red-listed. Decay stage and wood volume were identified as key variables influencing species richness as well as red-listed species incidence. Red-listed species, however, showed a preference for more decayed trees than non red-listed species. Further, red-listed species incidence was found to be significantly higher on broken trees, compared to fallen trees with a distinct root-plate, indicating tree death cause to be important for some red-listed species. The relations between diversity measures and site variables were conflicting. Species richness per tree decreased with increasing maximum tree age and dead wood continuity, possibly a consequence of competitive exclusion of unspecialised opportunistic species in old-grown stands. For red-listed species the opposite trend was evident, and it is concluded that forest history may have fundamental effects on the community structure of wood-inhabiting fungi. Accordingly, simple species richness may be a misleading conservation measure if the aim is to conserve the most threatened aspects of forest biodiversity. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.