Mycorrhizal associations of ferns and lycopods of central Veracruz, Mexico

• Published in: Symbiosis (Philadelphia, Pa.) Pa.), 2015-02, Vol.65 (2), p.85-92
• Main Authors: Lara-Pérez, Luis A., Valdés-Baizabal, Mauricio D., Noa-Carrazana, Juan C., Zulueta-Rodríguez, Ramón, Lara-Capistrán, Liliana, Andrade-Torres, Antonio
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Asplenium praemorsum; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Developmental Biology; Ecology; Evolutionary Biology; Life Sciences; Marattia; Microbiology; Plant Sciences; Polypodium; Short Communication
• ISSN: 0334-5114; 1878-7665
• DOI: 10.1007/s13199-015-0320-8

We studied the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and dark septate fungi (DSF) in two lycopods and 23 ferns species collected from the tropical montane cloud forest in central Veracruz, Mexico. This is the first report of the mycorrhizal status for 17 species. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi were present in 11 species (44 %) which characterized by arbuscules and in a further 11 species were found with only hyphae and vesicles. The abundance of AMF in the roots varied with the species, and ranged from 7 % ( Polypodium lepidotrichum ) to 88 % ( Marattia sp.). Colonization of the roots was not observed in Asplenium praemorsum , A. miradorense and Pecluma dispersa. A Paris -type of AMF morphology was dominant, 72 %, while 8 % were found to be of the Arum -type and 8 % of the intermediate-type. AMF colonization was accompanied by DSF in 10 species (40 %). This is the first detailed report of AMF and DSE associations of ferns and lycopods from Mexico.