Authors: SN Stohr J Dighton
Publish Date: 2004/09/23
Volume: 48, Issue: 3, Pages: 431-438
Abstract
A model system was devised evaluating the influence that species diversity species richness has on fungal establishment and coexistence Seven members of the fungal phylloplane community of Vaccinium macrocarpon American cranberry were selected to assess how species diversity affected development and coexistence of another community member Pestalotia vaccinii Pestalotia was engaged in competitive interactions on 1 Malt Extract Agar MEA petri dishes with each of the seven individual saprotrophs twoway interaction in random combinations with three of the seven saprotrophs fourway interaction and in random combinations with five of the seven saprotrophs sixway interaction The saprotrophic fungi used in this study were Aspergillus sp Alternaria alternata Cladosporium cladosporoides Curvularia lunata Epicoccum purpuracens Penicillium sp and Pithomyces chartarum We hypothesized that species diversity would have a significant impact on the establishment and coexistence of Pestalotia vaccinii in culture In an effort to minimize densitydependent effects the number of viable spores employed in the three types of interactions was kept constant Target spore concentrations of 50 viable spores of P vaccinii and 50 saprotroph spores were used regardless of the number of species involved in the interaction This proved to be a very important factor in the experiment As our results show species diversity had little or no effect on the establishment and coexistence of Pestalotia vaccinii however spore density played an extremely important role in the establishment and development of fungal propagules in our model
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