Macrofungal communities of lowland Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karsten.) plantations in England: relationships with site factors and stand structure

Abstract The species composition of macrofungal communities in 12 stands of planted Scots pine ( Pinus sylvestris L.) and Norway spruce ( Picea abies (L.) Karsten.) across lowland England was assessed over three consecutive years, and related to stand structure and site characteristics. Results indicate that these plantations provide a habitat for diverse communities of macrofungi: a total of 343 species were recorded, of which 171 were found to be unique to pine, and 90 unique to spruce. The composition of these communities was found to differ markedly between forest areas and between plots within individual forests, with only three species common to all assessment plots. Calculation of Jaccard similarity coefficients indicated a 22–24% association between chronosequence stages in the two pine sites, and 20% in the two spruce sites. Fungi were classified into four functional groups based on their mode of nutrition: wood saprotrophs, litter saprotrophs, mycorrhizal and parasitic species. This enabled patterns of diversity to be related to stand structure and a range of site factors (based on soil chemical analyses). Positive relationships were recorded between increased volume of deadwood and the number of species of wood saprotrophs, and also between the species richness of ectomycorrhizal fungi and the number of tree species present in each plot. Significant correlations were also recorded between the number of parasitic fungal species and soil pH (a positive response to increasing alkalinity), and between the number of litter colonizing saprotrophs and tree species richness. These results suggest that indicators of macrofungal diversity, based on relatively simple habitat assessments, could be developed for incorporation into forest management plans. These data also highlight the importance of maintaining adequate volumes of deadwood, and variety of tree species, permitting the development of diverse communities of macrofungi in forest stands.