Changes in Fungal Communities across a Forest Disturbance Gradient

Area of Science:

• Ecology
• Soil Science
• Mycology

Background:

• Forest degradation and deforestation profoundly impact aboveground biodiversity, yet belowground soil fungal responses remain understudied.
• Soil fungi play critical roles in nutrient cycling and ecosystem function, making their response to disturbance crucial for understanding ecosystem resilience.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effects of forest degradation and deforestation on belowground fungal diversity and community composition in a tropical montane rainforest.
• To assess changes in soil fungal functional groups, specifically saprotrophic and pathogenic fungi, along a forest disturbance gradient.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a metabarcoding approach to analyze soil fungal communities.
• Established plots across a gradient from mature forests to regenerated forests and open land to capture varying levels of disturbance.

Main Results:

• Soil saprotrophic fungal richness and abundance, including key phosphorus-solubilizing species like *Penicillium* spp., declined with increasing forest disturbance.
• The relative abundance of facultative pathogenic fungi increased along the disturbance gradient.
• Observed a shift from potential soil phosphorus limitation in mature forests to carbon limitation in deforested sites, indicated by changes in fungal functional groups.

Conclusions:

• Soil fungal community composition is a sensitive indicator of forest disturbance and soil health.
• The decline in saprotrophic fungi and increase in pathogenic fungi may inhibit plant regeneration and alter ecosystem nutrient dynamics.
• Forest disturbance leads to significant changes in belowground fungal communities, with implications for soil carbon and nutrient cycling.