Mycorrhizal feedbacks influence global forest structure and diversity

  • Camille S. Delavaux
  • , Joseph A. LaManna
  • , Jonathan A. Myers
  • , Richard P. Phillips
  • , Salomón Aguilar
  • , David Allen
  • , Alfonso Alonso
  • , Kristina J. Anderson-Teixeira
  • , Matthew E. Baker
  • , Jennifer L. Baltzer
  • , Pulchérie Bissiengou
  • , Mariana Bonfim
  • , Norman A. Bourg
  • , Warren Y. Brockelman
  • , David F.R.P. Burslem
  • , Li Wan Chang
  • , Yang Chen
  • , Jyh Min Chiang
  • , Chengjin Chu
  • , Keith Clay
  • Susan Cordell, Mary Cortese, Jan den Ouden, Christopher Dick, Sisira Ediriweera, Erle C. Ellis, Anna Feistner, Amy L. Freestone, Thomas Giambelluca, Christian P. Giardina, Gregory S. Gilbert, Fangliang He, Jan Holík, Robert W. Howe, Walter Huaraca Huasca, Stephen P. Hubbell, Faith Inman, Patrick A. Jansen, Daniel J. Johnson, Kamil Kral, Andrew J. Larson, Creighton M. Litton, James A. Lutz, Yadvinder Malhi, Krista McGuire, Sean M. McMahon, William J. McShea, Hervé Memiaghe, Anuttara Nathalang, Natalia Norden, Vojtech Novotny, Michael J. O’Brien, David A. Orwig, Rebecca Ostertag, Geoffrey G.(‘Jess’) Parker, Rolando Pérez, Glen Reynolds, Sabrina E. Russo, Lawren Sack, Pavel Šamonil, I. Fang Sun, Mark E. Swanson, Jill Thompson, Maria Uriarte, John Vandermeer, Xihua Wang, Ian Ware, George D. Weiblen, Amy Wolf, Shu Hui Wu, Jess K. Zimmerman, Thomas Lauber, Daniel S. Maynard, Thomas W. Crowther, Colin Averill

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

40 Scopus citations

Abstract

One mechanism proposed to explain high species diversity in tropical systems is strong negative conspecific density dependence (CDD), which reduces recruitment of juveniles in proximity to conspecific adult plants. Although evidence shows that plant-specific soil pathogens can drive negative CDD, trees also form key mutualisms with mycorrhizal fungi, which may counteract these effects. Across 43 large-scale forest plots worldwide, we tested whether ectomycorrhizal tree species exhibit weaker negative CDD than arbuscular mycorrhizal tree species. We further tested for conmycorrhizal density dependence (CMDD) to test for benefit from shared mutualists. We found that the strength of CDD varies systematically with mycorrhizal type, with ectomycorrhizal tree species exhibiting higher sapling densities with increasing adult densities than arbuscular mycorrhizal tree species. Moreover, we found evidence of positive CMDD for tree species of both mycorrhizal types. Collectively, these findings indicate that mycorrhizal interactions likely play a foundational role in global forest diversity patterns and structure.

Original languageEnglish
Article number1066
Pages (from-to)1066
JournalCommunications Biology
Volume6
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 19 2023

Funding

Funding was provided by the Swiss National Science Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship TMPFP3_209925 (C.S.D.), Swiss National Science Foundation Ambizione PZOOP3_17990 (C.A.), US National Science Foundation grant DEB-2024903 (J.A.L.), DOB Ecology and the Bernina Foundation (T.W.C., C.S.D.). We thank everyone involved in the collection of the vast quantity of data in the ForestGEO network (see Table for site-specific acknowledgments). The authors also thank James Bever for his early contributions in establishing the measurement of conmycorrhizal density dependence as well as Jenna Luecke and Chrysa Chouliara for their assistance in creating Fig. .

Funder number
DEB-2024903
TMPFP3_209925, PZOOP3_17990

    Keywords

    • Mycorrhizae
    • Feedback
    • Symbiosis
    • Plants/microbiology
    • Soil

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