The impact of the 1998 forest fire on ectomycorrhizae of dipterocarp trees and their recovery in tropical rain forests of East Kalimantan, Indonesia

Abstract

The impact of forest fire in 1997 and 1998 on the mycorrhzae was studied at the dipterocarp forest in East Kalimantan, Indonesia. In unaffected forest more than half of total ectomycorrhizae distributed in the organic layer but in the fire-affected forest one and a half years after the fire, total amount of mycorrhizae was smaller and they were found in deeper soil. The number of morphotypes of mycorrhizae was also smaller in fire-affected forest. An artificial plantation established after clear cut and prescribed burn had the largest amount of ectomycorrhizae, but the diversity was smaller than the unaffected forest. After four years, mycorrhizae had not yet recovered in fire-affected forest although the organic layer had recovered. Pioneer species of mycorrhizal fungi (early-stage fungi) developed sporocarps around the surviving hosts in severely affected forest and this suggests the start of secondary succession of mycorrhizae. In moderately affected forest, the species composition of mycorrhizal fungi which fruited during the study was similar to those of unaffected forest. This fact suggests that such sites may be the refugia of symbionts and be important in reforestation.