The fungal air-spora of Kuwait was investigated using the Petri-dish trapping technique. During the period from 1st April, 1974 to 30th June, 1975, a total of 3685 colonies were recorded from 2% malt agar plates. Fifty-five genera and 116 species were identifed. Alternaria occupied the first place in the order of percentage incidence. being represented by 18.3% of the entire catch, followed by Aspergillus (17.1%), Penicillium (14%), Cladosporium (13.6%), Drechslera (13.3%), and Ulocladium (7.1%). The widest spectrum of species was displaced by Aspergillus (possessed 19 species) followed by Penicillium (17 species), Alternaria (6 species), Drechslera (5 species), and Ulocladium (4 species). The monthly total number of fungi showed marked seasonal periodicity with the greatest number of colonies occurring in March-April and November. The lowest counts were recorded in mid-summer (July) and mid-winter (January). Only 220 colonies and 17 species of thermophilous fungi were reported from plates incubated at 45 degrees C. The most common species were Aspergillus fumigatus and A. terreus.
During an investigation of the mycoflora inhabiting saline soils in Kuwait, special attention was focused on osmophilous fungi. A total of 101 species belonging to 46 genera were encountered from 40 soil samples collected from salt marshes using Czapek's agar supplemented with 40% sucrose. Soil samples were collected from different habitats at different distances from the water edge. Soils near to the water edge were poor in their fungal content, while those taken from areas covered by Juncus arabicus contained highest fungal populations. The recorded genera were classified as follows: 7 were of high frequency of occurrence, 8 moderate, 17 low, and 13 were rare. The order of dominance was Aspergillus, Alternaria, Penicillium, Cephalosporium, Fusarium, Stachybotrys, and Drechslera. Comparison between our results and those in other studies showed that there is no fungal flora characteristic of saline soils.
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