Fungal endophytes associated with Sonneratia (Sonneratiaceae) mangrove plants on the south coast of China

The aim of this study was to describe endophytic fungal communities residing in five mangrove species (Sonneratia caseolaris, Sonneratia hainanensis, Sonneratia ovata, Sonneratia Paracaseolaris, Sonneratia apetala) collected at the south coast of China. The colonization frequency (CF) of endophytes in roots, stems and leaves was measured and the structures of endophytic communities were investigated, using endophytic fungal diversity indices and similarity coefficients. We found high biodiversity and tissue specificity of endophytic fungi. A total of 391 fungal isolates were identified using morphological and molecular methods. We recovered a total of 39 distinct endophytic species, of which Cytospora, Diaporthe, Fusarium, Glomerella, Mycosphaerella, Phoma, Phomopsis and Stemphylium were the dominant fungal taxa. Most recovered species were found on more than one host species but the dominant species differed according to host and tissue type.