AUTHOR=Wang Xiaobing , Han Qisheng 

TITLE=A Closer Examination of the ‘Abundant-Center’ for Ectomycorrhizal Fungal Community Associated With Picea crassifolia in China

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=13

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2022.759801

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2022.759801

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p>A long-standing hypothesis in biogeography predicts that a species’ abundance is highest at the center of its geographical range and decreases toward its edges. In this study, we test the <italic>abundant-center hypothesis</italic> of ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungal communities associated with <italic>Picea crassifolia</italic>, an endemic species widely distributed in northwest China. We analyzed the taxonomic richness and the relative abundance of ECM fungi in four main distribution areas, from center to edges. In total, 234 species of ECM fungi were detected, and of these, 137 species were shared among all four sites. <italic>Inocybe</italic>, <italic>Sebacina</italic>, <italic>Tomentella</italic>, and <italic>Cortinarius</italic> were the dominant genera. ECM fungal richness and biodiversity were highest at the central and lower at peripheral sites. Our results indicated that ECM fungal species richness was consistent with the <italic>abundant-center hypothesis</italic>, while the relative abundances of individual fungal genera shifted inconsistently across the plant’s range.</p>