Dispersal of fungi spores by non‐specialized flower‐visiting birds

Silva, Luís P. da; Coutinho, António Pereira; Heleno, Rúben; Tenreiro, Paulo; Ramos, Jaime A.

doi:10.1111/jav.00806

Cited by 9 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…The northward movement of crown rust inoculum also occurs in Europe (Klenov a-Jir akov a et al, 2010; Simons, 1985). Moreover, migrating birds have been shown to play a role in both the northward and southward dispersal of spores during spring and autumn, respectively, and even across continents (da Silva et al, 2016;Warner and French, 1970).…”

Section: Life Cycle and Infection Processmentioning

confidence: 99%

Puccinia coronata f. sp. avenae: a threat to global oat production

Nazareno

Smith

et al. 2017

Molecular Plant Pathology

101

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Most crown rust management strategies involve the use of rust-resistant crop varieties and the application of fungicides. The attainment of the durability of resistance against Pca is difficult as it is a highly variable pathogen with a great propensity to overcome the genetic resistance of varieties. Thus, adult plant resistance is often exploited in oat breeding programmes to develop new crown rust-resistant varieties. Useful website: https://www.ars.usda.gov/midwest-area/st-paul-mn/cereal-disease-lab/docs/cereal-rusts/race-surveys/.

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Section: Life Cycle and Infection Processmentioning

confidence: 99%

Puccinia coronata f. sp. avenae: a threat to global oat production

Nazareno

Smith

et al. 2017

Molecular Plant Pathology

101

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“…Birds can move spores of different fungi in their beaks, mouth parts, attached to body feathers or internally (da Silva et al ., , and references therein). However, spores of AM fungi have only been found anecdotally in droppings of cassowaries ( Casuarius casuarius L.), Australian brush turkeys ( Alectura lathami Gray) (Reddel et al ., ) and unspecified species of goose (Nielsen et al ., ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The study was carried out in Larc ßã, central Portugal (40°19 0 N, 8°24 0 W), in a maritime pine Pinus pinaster L. plantation where old decaying trees have been mostly replaced by Mediterranean scrubland dominated by strawberry tree Arbutus unedo L., Portuguese oak Quercus faginea Lam, and an understorey rich in fleshy-fruited native species (Supporting Information Table S1; da Silva et al, 2016).…”

Section: Study Site and Samplingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…By virtue of their worldwide distribution, abundance and high mobility, birds are important frugivores and well-known dispersers of seeds from a large variety of fleshy-and dry-fruited plants (Whelan et al, 1998;Heleno et al, 2011). Moreover, birds are important dispersers of a vast array of bacteria (Comstedt et al, 2006;Elfving et al, 2010), viruses (Reed et al, 2003) and fungi (Cafarchia et al, 2006;Belisle et al, 2012;da Silva et al, 2016;Suthers, 2016). Thus, birds could also be important dispersal vectors for AM fungi due to their exceptional long-distance dispersal potential (McIlveen & Cole, 1976).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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First evidence for the joint dispersal of mycorrhizal fungi and plant diaspores by birds

et al. 2019

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Summary Seed dispersal allows plants to colonise new sites and escape from pathogens and intraspecific competition, maintaining plant genetic diversity and regulating plant distribution. Conversely, most plant species form mutualistic associations with arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi in a symbiosis established immediately after seed germination. Because AM fungi are obligate symbionts, using the same dispersal vector as their host should be highly advantageous for their survival, but the co‐dispersal of seeds and AM fungal spores has never been confirmed. We aim to clarify the potential role of European birds, essential dispersers for many plant species, as co‐dispersers of seeds and AM fungal spores. In total, 63 bird droppings with intact seeds were placed in sterilised soil and maintained for 4 months in a protected environment to avoid contamination. Additionally, 173 bird droppings and 729 gauze swabs used to clean birds’ feet were inspected for AM fungal spores. Although no spores were detected by direct observation of these samples, seven Rubus ulmifolius seedlings obtained from four independent droppings of Erithacus rubecula and Sylvia melanocephala were colonised by AM fungi. Our results show that birds can effectively co‐disperse viable seeds and AM fungal spores, potentially over long distances, providing a pivotal mechanism to understand the cosmopolitan distribution of AM fungi.

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“…Due to the high viscosity of the mounting solution, c . 20% of the solution was lost by adherence to walls of the tubes during preparation of the samples (da Silva et al ., ). All slides were scanned under a light microscope at 1000 × magnifications to identify and quantify all pollen grains.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

Flower visitation by European birds offers the first evidence of interaction release in continents

Silva

Ramos

Coutinho

et al. 2016

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim All species are imbedded in a network of interactions with other species, which define an important component of their ecological niche. These interactions are dynamic and can change the emergence of vacant niches in the environment. Niche adjustments have been predicted to be particularly common on insular communities as a response to the poor and disharmonic biota of oceanic island -the interaction release hypothesis, however, the phenomena has not yet been reported on continents. Taxonomic groups of specialized nectarivorous birds are present on all continents except in Europe where they became extinct in the Oligocene, likely leaving behind underexplored flower resources. We performed the first community-level assessment of flower visitation by European birds to evaluate if insectivorous and granivorous birds show an interaction release towards consuming flower resources in Europe.Location Larc ßã -Coimbra, Portugal, Europe.Methods During one year, we collected pollen loads from the forehead of 634 birds. Pollen loads were prepared by acetolysis and all pollen grains were identified under a microscope. All interactions were compiled into a quantitative interaction matrix describing the first pollen-transport network by European birds.Results One-fifth of the bird individuals, corresponding to two thirds of the bird species sampled carried pollen from 45 different types. The vast majority of the plant species found were native but the alien Eucalyptus globulus was by far the species most commonly found in the birds' pollen loads. Overall, the structure of the pollen-transport network from Europe shared many attributes of other networks that include taxonomic groups of specialized nectarivorous birds.Main conclusions We show that the interaction release hypothesis is not exclusive to insular communities but can also be observed in continents, greatly increasing the potential geographical distribution of this phenomenon. However, it seems considerably less pronounced in Europe than in the Gal apagos, where it was first described, probably due to the much stronger selective pressures on the simplified ecosystems of oceanic islands.

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Dispersal of fungi spores by non‐specialized flower‐visiting birds

Cited by 9 publications

References 32 publications

Puccinia coronata f. sp. avenae: a threat to global oat production

Puccinia coronata f. sp. avenae: a threat to global oat production

First evidence for the joint dispersal of mycorrhizal fungi and plant diaspores by birds

Flower visitation by European birds offers the first evidence of interaction release in continents

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