The Effects of Species Abundance, Spatial Distribution, and Phylogeny on a Plant-Ectomycorrhizal Fungal Network.

ABSTRACT: Plant and root fungal interactions are among the most important belowground ecological interactions, however, the mechanisms underlying pairwise interactions and network patterns of rhizosphere fungi and host plants remain unknown. We tested whether neutral process or spatial constraints individually or jointly best explained quantitative plant-ectomycorrhizal fungal network assembly in a subtropical forest in southern China. Results showed that the observed plant-ectomycorrhizal fungal network had low connectivity, high interaction evenness, and an intermediate level of specialization, with nestedness and modularity both greater than random expectation. Incorporating information on the relative abundance and spatial overlap of plants and fungi well predicted network nestedness and connect

SUBMITTER: Zhu C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9158544 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature