We used high‐throughput DNA sequencing methods combined with bio‐geochemical profiles to characterize the internal environment and community structure of the microbiome of the basidiomycete fungus
Pisolithus arhizus
(Scop.) Rauschert from soils within a geothermal feature of Yellowstone National Park.
Pisolithus arhizus
is unique in that it forms closed fruiting bodies that sequester visible sulfur within. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis demonstrates that the
P. arhizus
fruiting body also concentrates copper, manganese, nickel, and zinc and contains pure granular silica. Gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry (GC‐MS) analysis indicates an environment rich in hydrocarbons. Oxygen probe analysis reveals that zones of up to 4× atmospheric oxygen exist within nanometers of zones of near anoxia. Analysis of microbial community structure using high‐throughput DNA sequencing methods shows that the fruiting body supports a microbiome that reflects the physiochemical environment of the fruiting body. Diversity and richness measures indicate a microbiome that is significantly richer and more diverse than that of the soils in which
P. arhizus
grows. Further,
P. arhizus
sporocarps are enriched significantly in Proteobacteria (primarily
Burkholderia
) Gemmatimonadetes, Bacteroidetes, Verrucomicrobia, Nitrospirae, Elusimicrobia, and Latescibacteria (WS3) while soils are enriched in Actinobacteria (primarily
Mycobacterium
), Dormibacteraeota (AD3), and Eremiobacteraeota (WPS‐2). Finally, pairwise % similarity comparisons indicate that
P. arhizus
harbors two lineages that may represent new groups in the candidate phylum radiation (CPR). Together, these results demonstrate that
P. arhizus
provides a novel environment for microbiome studies and provides for interesting hypotheses regarding the evolution, origins, and functions of symbioses and novel microbes.