Community Developmental Patterns and Ecological Functions of Ectomycorrhizal Fungi: Implications from Primary Succession

Ectomycorrhizal fungal (EMF) communities are extremely species-rich in most forest ecosystems (Horton and Bruns 2001). The number of EMF species can often reach more than 100 at even a small landscape scale (Walker et al. 2005; Ishida et al. 2007). The structure of EMF communities in developed forests resembles those of highly diverse plant and animal communities (Magurran 2004).

A variety of disturbances can create bare ground where a biological legacy is absent and primary succession begins (Walker and del Moral 2003). Such disturbances include volcanic activity, glacier retreat, sand dune movement, and mining. Specifically, intensive volcanic activity can abruptly create vast barren deserts completely covered by sterile substrates. These deserts are relatively large and homogeneous habitats relative to those created by other gradually occurring disturbances. Such homogeneous habitats would be ideal for testing fundamental ecological models that could be applied to other ecosystems. Indeed, many ecologists have been attracted to volcanic sites for these reasons (see Walker and del Moral 2003). Until recently, mycorrhizal fungi (especially EMF) have been ignored in studies of volcanic succession. However, data obtained from studies in volcanic systems may lead to a breakthrough in EMF ecology. In this chapter, I focus on EMF in volcanic deserts and use several basic ecological models to provide broadly applicable insights into EMF ecology.