Species diversity and drivers of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal communities in a semi-arid mountain in China

Abstract

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) play an essential role in complex ecosystems. However, the species diversity and composition of AMF communities remain unclear in semi-arid mountains. Further, it is not well understood if the characteristics of AMF community assemblies differ for different habitat types, e.g., agricultural arable land, artificial forest land, natural grassland, and bush/wood land. Here, using the high-throughput technology by Illumina sequencing on the MiSeq platform, we explored the species diversity and composition of soil AMF communities among different habitat types in a semi-arid mountain (Taihang Mountain, Mid-western region of China). Then, we analyzed the effect of nutrient composition and soil texture on AMF community assembly. Our results showed that members of the Glomus genera were predominated in all soil types. The distance-based redundancy analysis indicated that the content of water, available phosphorus, and available potassium were the most crucial geochemical factors that significantly affected AMF communities (p < 0.05). The analysis of the soil texture confirmed that AMF diversity was negatively correlated with soil clay content. The comparison of AMF diversity among the various habitat types revealed that the artificial forest land had the lowest AMF diversity in comparison with other land types. Our findings suggest that there were differences in species diversity and composition of soil AMF communities among different habitat types. These findings shed new light on the characteristics of community structure and drivers of community assembly in AMF in semi-arid mountains, and point to the potential importance of different habitat types on AMF communities.

Effects of natural vegetative restoration on soil fungal and bacterial communities in bare patches of the southern Taihang Mountains

“…The composition of microbial communities is usually influenced by the habitat type and the chemical properties of the soil (Zhao, Li, et al, ; Zhao, Wang, et al, ). The environmental driving factors on soil microbes have been widely recognized (Lennon, Aanderud, Lehmkuhl, & Schoolmaster, ).…”

“…The study of different restoration strategies can contribute to the improvement of local ecological environments (Cortina et al, ; Mcglone et al, ; Wang, Fu, Lu, & Chen, ). For instance, vegetative coverage can control soil erosion and reduce the diffusion of bare patches (Zhang, Xi, & Li, ; Zhao, Li, et al, ; Zhao, Wang, et al, ). Although soil microbes are sensitive to the adverse ecological conditions (Zhao, Li, et al, ; Zhao, Wang, et al, ), the different vegetative restoration types in bare patches are often ignored.…”

“…For instance, vegetative coverage can control soil erosion and reduce the diffusion of bare patches (Zhang, Xi, & Li, ; Zhao, Li, et al, ; Zhao, Wang, et al, ). Although soil microbes are sensitive to the adverse ecological conditions (Zhao, Li, et al, ; Zhao, Wang, et al, ), the different vegetative restoration types in bare patches are often ignored.…”

“…Diversified vegetative restoration models, such as plantations, shrubs, forests, and grass, are different in terms of the heterogeneity of the soil spatial environment that can cause differences in soil microbial communities (Behera & Sahani, 2003;Docherty et al, 2015). Although a previous study has addressed this (Fierer, Bradford, & Jackson, 2007;Fierer, Breitbart, et al, 2007;Zhao, Li, et al, 2017;Zhao, Wang, Fan, & Song, 2017), the drivers of soil fungi and bacteria in bare patches during extremely harsh ecological conditions remain unclear.…”

“…The study of different restoration strategies can contribute to the improvement of local ecological environments (Cortina et al, 2011;Mcglone et al, 2012;Wang, Fu, Lu, & Chen, 2011). For instance, vegetative coverage can control soil erosion and reduce the diffusion of bare patches (Zhang, Xi, & Li, 2006;Zhao, Li, et al, 2017;Zhao, Wang, et al, 2017).…”