Soil microbial diversity in adjacent forest systems - contrasting native, old growth kauri (Agathis australis) forest with exotic pine (Pinus radiata) plantation forest.

ABSTRACT: Globally, the conversion of primary forests to plantations and agricultural landscapes is a common land use change. Kauri (Agathis australis) is one of the most heavily impacted indigenous tree species of New Zealand with <1% of primary forest remaining as fragments adjacent to pastoral farming and exotic forest plantations. By contrasting two forest systems, we investigated if the fragmentation of kauri forests and introduction of pine plantations (Pinus radiata) are significantly impacting the diversity and composition of soil microbial communities across Waipoua kauri forest, New Zealand. Using next generation based 16S rRNA and ITS gene region sequencing, we identified that fungal and bacterial community composition significantly differed between kauri and pine forest soils. However, f

SUBMITTER: Byers AK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7161737 | biostudies-literature | 2020 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature