Microfungi from decaying leaves of two rain forest trees in Puerto Rico

Abstract

Fungal species richness and abundance were compared in leaf litter of two tree species, Guarea guidonia and Manilkara bidentata, in the Luquillo Mountains of Puerto Rico. Four litter samples yielded a total of 3337 isolates, ranging from 591 to 1259 isolates/sample. The number of species/sample ranged from 134 to 228. Many uncommon litter hyphomycetes were recovered as well as coelomycetes, sterile strains, endophytes, and phytopathogens. Species-abundance distributions revealed a typical pattern of a few abundant species and a high proportion of rare species. Similarities in fungal species composition were not correlated with host species or with the site. Replicate samples examined by the moist chamber technique yielded a total of 24 species among the four litter samples. The particle filtration method indicated that leaves of G. guidonia were more species-rich, while moist chambers indicated leaves of M. bidentata were more species-rich. The moist chamber technique underestimated the number and species of viable fungi. © 1996 Society for Industrial Microbiology.