Environment-driven control of fungi in subterranean ecosystems: the case of La Garma Cave (northern Spain).

ABSTRACT: Airborne microorganisms can cause important conservation problems in caves with Paleolithic art and therefore the knowledge of cave aerodynamic is essential. La Garma Cave (Cantabria, Spain), an exceptional archaeological site with several levels of galleries interconnected and two entrances, presents a complex atmospheric dynamics. An approach including aerobiological sampling together with microclimate monitoring was applied to assess the factors controlling the origin of airborne fungi. Here we show that winter ventilation is critical for the increasing of Basidiomycota spores in the cave air and the highest concentrations were found in the most ventilated areas. On the contrary, Ascomycota spores prevailed in absence of ventilation. Besides, most Ascomycota were linked to insects and b

SUBMITTER: Sanchez-Moral S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8616876 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature