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Distribution of polypores along the altitudinal gradients in Silent Valley National Park, Southern Western Ghats, Kerala, India
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The distribution pattern of polypores in Silent Valley National Park along different altitudinal gradient were analyzed. A total of 34 species under five families were documented by the plot-based survey conducted from the National Park. Most of the species showed a drastic reduction in density as the altitude increases. In lower altitude wet evergreen forest at Sairandhri (1000-1050 m) possessed more number of species (29 species) and found to be gradually decreasing as the altitude increases. The species richness decreased to 27 species (7 % reduction) at Poochippara (1150-1200 m) and in Walakkad (1300-1350 m) it was reduced to 25 (14 % reduction). Interestingly it was reduced to 11 species in Sispara (1950-2000 m) with 63 % reduction as comparing to that of the lower altitude. At Cheriyamkandam (2100-2150 m) and Valliyamkandam (2200-2250 m) the species richness was found to be 8 and 5 with 72 per cent and 83 per cent reduction respectively as comparing to that of Sairandhri. This monotonic decrease in species richness is also reflected in the polypore density. The density was found to be decreased from 2613 at Sairandhri (1000-1050 m) to 435 in high altitude shola forest at Valliyamkandam (2200-2250 m).
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The first on-line fungal website from India has been launched with seven databases of Indian fungi containing 7528 specimen records representing 384 families, 1385 genera, and 5906 species. Every species has been given a unique identity number that can be cited in any publication. Every record in this database has the name checked in MycoBank, and will be linked to other fungal databases throughout the World. This is also the first Indian initiative towards the international documentation of the country’s biodiversity.
Phytochemical and antinutrients analyses of Trametes betulina, T. cingulata, Meripilus sumstinei and Oxyporus populinus fruiting bodies were carried out. The phytochemical screening result shows the presence of sterols and triterpenes in large amounts, except in M. sumstinei. The quantity of alkaloids, saponins, flavonoids and carbohydrates varied in all samples. The antinutrients analysis revealed the presence of tannins (10.14±0.15 – 55.88±0.25mg/100g), phytates (4.12±0.20 – 27.00±0.03 mg/100g), hydrogen cyanide (6.13±0.03 – 13.54±0.10 mg/100g), soluble oxalates (7.04±0.09 – 70.4± 0.02 mg/100g), insoluble oxalates (52.70±0.09 – 98.56±0.25 mg/100g) and total oxalates (105.60±0.31 – 158.40±0.44 mg/100g). These corky and woody polypores may be inedible due to their fibrous nature; however, the permissible antinutrient levels and inherent phytochemicals may find medicinal and industrial relevance.
Unlike in temperate regions, few studies have examined the effect of sampling effort on the observed number of wood-decaying polypores in the tropics. We conducted field surveys at Pasoh Forest Reserve and Lambir Hills National Park, two primary lowland dipterocarp forests in Malaysia, to compare the numbers of observed and estimated species for each site. Field surveys included five occasions over 4 years on a 2-ha plot in Pasoh, and two occasions in 1 year in 12 0.1-ha transects in Lambir. From Pasoh, 140 polypore species were recorded and 188 species were estimated (using the Chao2 estimator). From Lambir, 90 species were recorded and 149 estimated. Thus, at both sites the number of species observed comprised <75 % of the estimated number of species. At Pasoh, more than 80 % of the total species were recorded by the end of the third sampling occasion. When sampling effort (area × number of sampling occasions) was constant, more species were recorded by field surveys conducted over larger areas with less frequent sampling than those conducted over smaller areas with more frequent sampling. The numbers of species recorded in the present work were greater than those identified in temperate and boreal regions in previous studies. The species richness of wood-decaying polypores in tropical regions may be largely underestimated without conducting field surveys on at least three occasions. If potential sampling effort is limited, surveying a larger area on fewer occasions is a reasonable compromise to ensure coverage of the majority of polypore species.
During field and literature surveys, a rich mycobiota was observed in the
vegetation of India. The heavy rainfall and high humidity favours the growth of
Aphyllophoraceous fungi. The present work materially adds to our knowledge of
Poroid and Non-Poroid Aphyllophorales from all over India. A total of more than
190 genera of 52 families and total 1175 species of from poroid and non-poroid
Aphyllophorales fungi were reported from Indian literature till 2012.The checklist
gives the total count of aphyllophoraceous fungal diversity from India which is also
a valued addition for comparing aphyllophoraceous diversity in the world.
Phellinus is a genus of fungi belonging to the family Hymenochaetaceae from order
Aphyllophorales. Phellinus spp. causing white rot of various kinds in live standing or dead
gymnospermic and angiospermic wood occurs worldwide. A total number of 427 records
(310 species, 06 sub-species, 42 varieties and 69 formas) of Phellinus are reported
worldwide so far. The current study was based on thorough world literature survey for the
host range of Phellinus species. About 91 plant families shows infection of Phellinus spp.
Amongst all the families, genera of Fabaceae are found to be most susceptible, followed by
Rosaceae, Myrtaceae, Cupressaceae, Caesalpiniaceae, Ericaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Lauraceae,
Meliaceae, Pinaceae, Rubiaceae Arecaceae, Fagaceae and Olecaceae are also amongst the
most frequently infected families. Quercus is the most frequent host of Phellinus.
Phellinus is a genus of fungi belonging to the family Hymenochaetaceae from order Aphyllophorales. Many species of Phellinus cause white rot. Phellinus spp. causing white rot of various kinds in live standing or dead gymnospermic and angiospermic wood occurs worldwide. A total number of 427 species of Phellinus are reported worldwide while only 96 species are reported from India. The current study was based on thorough Indian literature survey for the host range of Phellinus species. About 51 plant families shows infection of Phellinus spp. Amongst all the families, genera of Caesalpiniaceae are found to be most susceptible, followed by Euphorbiaceae, Fabaceae, Meliaceae, Pinaceae, Mimosaceae, Rubiaceae, Sapindaceae, Moraceae and Myrtaceae are also amongst the most frequently infected families. Mangifera is the most frequent host of Phellinus.
Epigeous mushroom production in the boreal forest ecosystem varies dramatically from year to year. We tested the hypothesis that the aboveground production of epigeous mushrooms in the Kluane region, Yukon, could be predicted by summer rainfall. There is a single crop in this part of the boreal zone with maximum production during the first 2 weeks of August. We measured standing crops from 1993 to 2007 at 13 areas along 210 km of the Alaska Highway and Haines Road in the southwestern Yukon. Aboveground mushroom crops averaged 24 kg/ha wet weight but varied from 0.0 to 117 kg/ha over the 15 years of study, with a coefficient of variation among years of 143%. Epigeous mushroom produc- tion could be predicted from June rainfall of the current year and May rainfall of the year previous with R2 = 0.85. Part of the lack of a perfect fit to rainfall was due to the constraint that years of high mushroom crops could not be followed by another high year, no matter what the rainfall pattern. We were not able to identify the species of mushrooms in this study but we confirm from natural history observations that mushrooms are a critical food for several of the small mammal spe- cies in the Yukon boreal forest.
The results of a study on the effects of weather (rainfall and minimum, mean, and maximum temperatures) on fruiting of macrofungi in a number of oak forests of Tuscany (central Italy) are reported. The fungal parameters (total number of species and total number of carpophores) were examined for statistical correlations with annual and seasonal temperature and rainfall and with temperature and rainfall in the 5-, 10-, 15-, and 30-day periods before the date of the sampling. It was found that abundant annual rainfall was necessary for the fungal mycelium to fruit. Spring rainfall in particular seemed to be related to the number of species found in autumn. Rainfall was the main influence on fruiting in the most important fruiting period (autumn). Highly significant correlations were found between the number of carpophores and rainfall in the 30 days preceding sampling.
We tested whether the spatiotemporal distribution of Norway spruce (Picea abies) logs influenced species richness and abundances of wood-decaying fungi in two 2-km2 boreal forest study sites in southeastern Norway. According to the random sample null-hypothesis equally large subsamples of logs should be equally efficient in sampling fungi from a regional species pool. Based on 0.25-ha plots at 1-ha grid resolution, we compared plots with high and low densities of ‘new logs’ (decay stages 1–5) and plots with ‘old logs’ (decay stages 5–8) present or absent. Based on visible sporocarps, 45 fungus species, including 15 redlisted, were identified among 4151 logs. When rarefying species accumulation curves to the same number of logs, we found no difference in species richness between old forest plots having high and low densities of new logs, or between plots where old logs were present or absent. Curves from young forest revealed fewer species than in old forest. Multiple regression analysis of six redlisted and six common species corroborated the rarefaction analysis in showing that the probability of occurrence was independent of the spatiotemporal distribution of logs for all but two common species. Aside from the fact that more dead wood harboured more wood-decaying fungi, we conclude that the spatiotemporal distribution of dead wood was of minor importance in determining species richness and abundances at the scales of