Abstract Detail

Mycological Section

Corrales, Adriana [1], Ovrebo, Clark L. [2].

Some Fleshy Fungi from the Pre-Montane Forests of Western Panama with Notes on Phenology.

Neotropical montane forests are often dominated by ectomycorrhizal (EM) tree species, yet the diversity of their EM fungal communities remains poorly explored. In lower montane forests in western Panama, the EM tree species Oreomunnea mexicana (Juglandaceae) forms locally dense populations in forests otherwise characterized by trees that form arbuscular associations. Other common ectomycorrhizal trees in the area are Quercus and Coccoloba spp. It is important to document the fleshy fungi associated with these trees in order to provide a reference collection for DNA sequences that are isolated from root tips. Here we report on some of the fungi collected during the 2014 field season. EM genera commonly found were Russula, Lactarius, Cortinarius, Boletus, Tylopilus, Amanita, Hydnum and Cantharellus. Many species of these genera resemble temperate species but may be different due to subtle differences in morphology or their DNA sequences. A few examples include Lactarius indigo, Cortinarius violaceus, C. bolaris, Hydnum repandum and Leccinum albellum. Species with known tropical distributions include Austroboletus subvirens, Veloporphyrellus pantoleucus and Amanita flavoconia var. inquinata. Saprotrophic fungi were also common. To understand mushroom phenology in the study area, regular surveys of fruiting bodies were done every two weeks from January 2012 to July 2012 along four 50 m x 4 m transects in fragments dominated by Oreomunnea mexicana. Transects were located in stational (typically have 1­2 months per year with <100 mm of precipitation) and non-stational forest (no months with <100 mm of rainfall). A Total of 161 specimens were collected. The most frequently collected families were Russulaceae (60 specimens), Boletaceae (24), Hydnangiaceae (15), Cantharellaceae (14), and Cortinariaceae (14). A total of 91 species of ectomycorrhizal fungi were identified from fruiting bodies using molecular methods (ITS). Twenty-nine out of the 91 identified species matched OTUs found in root tips collected from O. mexicana. This low match percentage could imply that these fruiting bodies belong to ectomycorrhizal species associated with other tree species that co-occur in Oreomunnea dominated forests such as Quercus or Coccoloba. The phenology patterns of fungal fruiting bodies differed between sites with contrasting rainfall patterns with very low production of fruiting bodies during the dry months in the stational forest and constant production in the non-stational forest. Further exploration efforts are needed to improve our understanding of the ectomycorrhizal community associated with tropical tree species in montane and pre-montane forests.

1 - University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Plant Biology, 505 S. Goodwin Ave., Urbana, IL, 61801, USA
2 - University of Central Oklahoma, Biology, 100 N. University Dr., Edmond, OK, 73034, USA

Keywords:
Tropical Agaricomycetes
Tropical forest
ectomycorrhizal fungi
taxonomy
forest ecology.

Presentation Type: Poster:Posters for Sections
Session: P
Location: Hall D/The Shaw Conference Centre
Date: Monday, July 27th, 2015
Time: 5:30 PM
Number: PMY013
Abstract ID:918
Candidate for Awards:None