Restoration of belowground fungal communities in reclaimed landscapes of the Canadian boreal forest

The trajectory of forests establishing on reclaimed oil sands mines in the Canadian boreal forest is uncertain. Soil microbes, namely mycorrhizal fungi, partly underlie successional trajectories of plant communities, yet their role in restoration is often overlooked. Here, we tested the relative imp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Restoration ecology 2019-11, Vol.27 (6), p.1369-1380
Main Authors: Pec, Gregory J., Scott, Natalie M., Hupperts, Stefan F., Hankin, Shanon L., Landhäusser, Simon M., Karst, Justine
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Boreal forests
community assembly
Community composition
Composition
disturbance
ecological benchmarks
Ecosystems
ectomycorrhizal fungi
Ectomycorrhizas
Forests
Fungi
Landscape
Management tools
Mine reclamation
Oil sands
Organic soils
Placement
Plant communities
Plant species
reclamation
Restoration
Soil
Soil dynamics
Soil layers
Soil microorganisms
Soils
Species
Strategic management
Taiga
Trajectories
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Summary:The trajectory of forests establishing on reclaimed oil sands mines in the Canadian boreal forest is uncertain. Soil microbes, namely mycorrhizal fungi, partly underlie successional trajectories of plant communities, yet their role in restoration is often overlooked. Here, we tested the relative importance of common management tools used in restoration—species planted and soil placement—on the recovery of ectomycorrhizal fungal communities over 4 years. Importantly, we further compared the community assembly of fungi on reclaimed landscapes to that in reference ecosystems disturbed to different degrees. This latter test addresses whether disturbance intensity is more important than common management interventions to restore fungal communities in these ecosystems. Three main findings emerged. (1) The effect of tree species planted and soil placement on ectomycorrhizal fungal communities establishing on reclaimed landscapes was dynamic through time. (2) Disturbances that remove or disrupt the organic layer of soils substantially affect the composition of ectomycorrhizal fungal communities. (3) Shifts in the community composition of ectomycorrhizal fungi were driven to a greater extent by disturbance severity than either tree species planted or soil placement.
ISSN:1061-2971
1526-100X
DOI:10.1111/rec.12990