Plant Community Associates with Rare Rather than Abundant Fungal Taxa in Alpine Grassland Soils
Tang Li, Kai Xue, Zhe Pang, Lili Jiang, Biao Zhang, Weijing Wang, Shiping Wang, Zhihong Xu, Yichao Rui, Lei Zhong, Rongxiao Che, Tong Li, Shutong Zhou, Kui Wang, Jianqing Du, Zongsong Wang, Xiaoyong Cui, Yanbin Hao, Yanfen Wang
Abstract
Our current understanding of the ecology and functions of rare microbial taxa largely relies on research conducted on prokaryotes. Despite the key ecological roles of soil fungi, little is known about the biogeographic patterns and drivers of rare and abundant fungi in soils. In this study, we investigated the spatial patterns of rare and abundant fungal taxa in Qinghai-Tibetan plateau (QTP) alpine grassland soils across 2,000 km, with a special concentration on the importance of the plant communities in shaping rare fungal taxa. We showed that rare fungal taxa generally had a biogeographic pattern that was similar to that of abundant fungal taxa in alpine grassland soils on the QTP. Furthermore, the plant community composition was strongly related to the community composition of rare taxa but not abundant taxa. In summary, this study significantly increases our biogeographic and ecological knowledge of rare fungal taxa in alpine grassland soils.