Ectomycorrhizal species associated with Pinus radiata in New Zealand including novel associations determined by molecular analysis

Abstract

Ectomycorrhizal (ECM) associates of the exotic plantation species Pinus radiata were investigated above and below ground over two years in the North Island of New Zealand. ECM species were identified using morphological and molecular (restriction fragment length polymorphism and DNA sequencing) analysis. Eighteen ECM species were observed fruiting above ground; 19 ECM species were identified below ground. In the above ground study, Wilcoxina mikolae, Rhizopogon pseudoroseolus and Inocybe sindonia were noted for the first time as ECM associates of P. radiata in New Zealand. Below ground, the species W. mikolae, R. pseudoroseolus, Rhizopogon luteorubescens, Pseudotomentella sp., Pseudotomentella tristis and Tomentella sp. were found as new associates of P. radiata in New Zealand. Additionally, six ECM types were found that could not be identified with molecular analysis. The putative ECM taxa Tricholoma pessundatum, Laccaria laccata and Hebeloma crustuliniforme were examined by molecular analysis, and species identifications were proposed to be changed to Tricholoma sp., L. laccata and Hebeloma sp. for specimens associated with P. radiata in New Zealand. The species identity of I. sindonia, previously unidentified to species level, was determined with direct sequencing.

Loss of functional diversity and network modularity in introduced plant-fungal symbioses

“…Most UK alien species were from elsewhere in the Northern hemisphere and therefore may be more phylogenetically ‘familiar’ to native fungi. This is supported by Bahram et al (2013) who found many native fungi on alien Pinus in Iran, compared with the prevalence of alien fungi on Pinus in the Southern Hemisphere (Nuñez et al 2009; Dickie et al 2010; Walbert et al 2010). …”

A single ectomycorrhizal fungal species can enable a Pinus invasion

“…ECM fungi lacking some of the physiological and ecological adaptations necessary to facilitate invasion may yield slower invasions, or may coinvade only when other, complementary fungi are also present. However, Suillus species are found virtually wherever Pinus species occur, including almost all sampled regions outside the native range where pines have been introduced (, , , , Walbert et al 2010, Hynson et al 2013). commented that “99 percent of all practicing foresters will not have to lose any sleep over the problem of mycorrhizal infection.” Unfortunately, it seems likely that many invasive pines, too, will not have to lose too much sleep over absence of co invasive mycorrhizal fungi, since the presence of a few species with high dispersal ability may secure the inoculum needed for invasion.…”

Suillus indicussp. nov. (Boletales, Basidiomycota), a new boletoid fungus from northwestern Himalayas, India

“…Sequence analysis by BLAST revealed 93% similarity (query coverage of 99%) with unidentified Suillus sp. K91S8 (GQ267488) from New Zealand (Walbert et al 2010) and 92% similarity (99% query coverage) with S. flavidus isolate FFP962 (JQ711908) from Canada (Jones et al 2012). The alignment of ITS sequences of selected Suillus species resulted in a data matrix comprising 28 taxa and 713 characters including gaps.…”