TY - JOUR
T1 - Preliminary assessment of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal diversity and community structure in an urban ecosystem
AU - Cousins, Jamaica R.
AU - Hope, Diane
AU - Gries, Corinna
AU - Stutz, Jean C.
N1 - Funding Information:
Acknowledgements This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. DEB 9714833, Central Arizona–Phoenix Long-Term Ecological Research (CAP LTER). Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. Special thanks are offered to the CAP-LTER Field Team.
PY - 2003/12
Y1 - 2003/12
N2 - Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal (AMF) species richness, composition, spore density and diversity indices were evaluated in the Phoenix metropolitan area, Arizona, USA at 20 sampling sites selected to represent the four predominant land-use types found in the greater urban area: urban-residential, urban non-residential, agriculture and desert. AMF spores were extracted and identified from soil samples and from trap cultures established using soil collected at each site. Data were analyzed according to land use, land-use history, soil chemistry and vegetation characteristics at each site. Current agricultural sites were associated with decreased spore densities and historically agricultural sites with decreased species richness. Overall species composition was similar to that previously reported for the Sonoran desert, but composition at each sampling site was influenced by the vegetation from which samples were collected. Sites with the highest degrees of similarity in AMF species composition were also similar to each other in native plants or land use. Conversely, sites with the lowest similarity in AMF composition were those from which the majority of samples were collected from non-mycorrhizal plants, predominately ectomycorrhizal plants or bare soil. Spores of Glomus microggregatum were most abundant in urban sites, while those of G. eburneum were most abundant in desert and agricultural sites. Further studies are needed to determine the functional implications of shifts in AMF communities in urban ecosystems, including effects on plant primary productivity.
AB - Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal (AMF) species richness, composition, spore density and diversity indices were evaluated in the Phoenix metropolitan area, Arizona, USA at 20 sampling sites selected to represent the four predominant land-use types found in the greater urban area: urban-residential, urban non-residential, agriculture and desert. AMF spores were extracted and identified from soil samples and from trap cultures established using soil collected at each site. Data were analyzed according to land use, land-use history, soil chemistry and vegetation characteristics at each site. Current agricultural sites were associated with decreased spore densities and historically agricultural sites with decreased species richness. Overall species composition was similar to that previously reported for the Sonoran desert, but composition at each sampling site was influenced by the vegetation from which samples were collected. Sites with the highest degrees of similarity in AMF species composition were also similar to each other in native plants or land use. Conversely, sites with the lowest similarity in AMF composition were those from which the majority of samples were collected from non-mycorrhizal plants, predominately ectomycorrhizal plants or bare soil. Spores of Glomus microggregatum were most abundant in urban sites, while those of G. eburneum were most abundant in desert and agricultural sites. Further studies are needed to determine the functional implications of shifts in AMF communities in urban ecosystems, including effects on plant primary productivity.
KW - Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi
KW - Diversity
KW - LTER
KW - Sonoran Desert
KW - Urban ecosystems
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U2 - 10.1007/s00572-003-0239-4
DO - 10.1007/s00572-003-0239-4
M3 - Article
C2 - 12748839
AN - SCOPUS:0346967164
SN - 0940-6360
VL - 13
SP - 319
EP - 326
JO - Mycorrhiza
JF - Mycorrhiza
IS - 6
ER -