Testing sampling effort and relative abundance descriptors of belowground ectomycorrhizal fungi in a UK planted scots pine woodland

The native Caledonian pinewoods of Scotland, UK contain a unique and unexplored biodiversity of below-ground ectomycorrhizal fungi which may constitute a valuable source of microbial genetics resources for woodland restoration. In this study we test the sampling effort, taxa detection (ectomycorrhiza morpho-anatotyping) and relative abundance measurements (ectomycorrhizal root tip number vs. dry weight) of below-ground ectomycorrhizal fungal communities in a planted Pinus sylvestris Caledonian woodland. A total of 18 replicated sampling points were set up at differential distance along a 125 m transect, in a 50-yr-old, stem exclusion: thicket phase, Pinus sylvestris pinewood stand. A total of 11 ectomycorrhizal morpho-anatotypes were detected from 6689 ectomycorrhizal root tips counted and weighing 992.6 mg dry weight. The major ectomycorrhizal taxa were Meliniomyces bicolor and Cortinarius spp. accounting ~50% of total pine roots. A highly significant relationship (r(2) = 0.16, p < 0.000) was found between Sørensen dissimilarity in soil cores and distance apart. In this study, the spatial arrangement of samples indicated that over short distances the dissimilarity was lower in contrast with the longer distances along the transect.