Dead wood diversity promotes fungal diversity

Summary

Dead wood is a source of life as it provides habitat and substrate for a wide range of fungal species. A growing number of studies show an important role of wood quality for fungal diversity, but in most cases for a limited number of wood traits or tree species. In this study, we evaluate how abiotic and biotic factors affect the fungal diversity and composition during dead wood decomposition. For ten common European tree species, fresh similar-sized logs were incubated simultaneously in two Dutch forests. Annual surveys of fungal fruiting bodies were made for an 8-year period. For each tree species, 20 fresh stem traits were measured that are important for chemical and physical defence and for nutritional quality. Throughout eight years, 4644 fruiting bodies belonging to 255 species and 90 genera were recorded on the logs of ten tree species. Fungal frequency and richness were higher for Angiosperms than for Gymnosperms, both for individual tree species and as a group, and higher for tree species with more acquisitive stem trait strategies (i.e. high nutritional value and low physical defence). Differences in fungal communities were strongly driven by phylogenetic group (Gymnosperms versus Angiosperms), stem traits, decay time and forest sites, together explaining 23% of the variation. Fungal communities in sandy site diverged early in the decay process but converged later because of substrate homogenization. Of the 128 fungal species included in the analyses, 41% showed a preference for specific tree species and 34% for a specific successional year. In conclusion, dead wood quality, determined by tree species and decay stage, is an important driver of fungal diversity. For forest management, promoting a wide array of dead tree species (especially angiosperm species), a range of stem trait values and decay stages will increase fungal and, thereby, forest biodiversity.