Similar biodiversity of ectomycorrhizal fungi in set-aside plantations and ancient old-growth broadleaved forests.

ABSTRACT: Setting aside overmature planted forests is currently seen as an option for preserving species associated with old-growth forests, such as those with dispersal limitation. Few data exist, however, on the utility of set-aside plantations for this purpose, or the value of this habitat type for biodiversity relative to old-growth semi-natural ecosystems. Here, we evaluate the contribution of forest type relative to habitat characteristics in determining species richness and composition in seven forest blocks, each containing an ancient old-growth stand (> 1000 yrs) paired with a set-aside even-aged planted stand (ca. 180 yrs). We investigated the functionally important yet relatively neglected ectomycorrhizal fungi (EMF), a group for which the importance of forest age has not been assessed in

SUBMITTER: Spake R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4730558 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature