Fungal community structure and dynamics: drivers of wood decay and carbon cycling
Lead Research Organisation:
CARDIFF UNIVERSITY
Department Name: School of Biosciences
Abstract
Globally, forests contain a vast reservoir of carbon, approximately 30% of that in the biosphere, much of which is in the form of woody plant tissues. Every year this is added to as plants photosynthesise, but in balanced systems a similar amount is broken down to CO2 and water, and nutrients are released. Understanding what controls this balance is crucial for understanding carbon cycling, and for predicting carbon cycle responses to global climate changes. Recycling of woody resources is almost exclusively confined to a narrow range of specialist fungi: basidiomycetes and a few ascomycetes. Thus, these fungi are central to carbon and nutrient cycling, and yet we still have relatively little understanding of how they grow in wood, how they interact with each other and how different community composition affects decay. Key objectives of this proposal are, therefore, to unravel these processes, and to obtain quantitative data on the way in which fungal communities influence wood decay rate to be able to incorporate these dynamics into global models of carbon cycling. The majority of decay takes place in fallen wood, but wood decay actually begins in standing dead parts of trunks and attached dead branches. Moreover, the fungi that start the process are already latently present while the tissues are still functional. When the wood dries, the latent fungi grow throughout the wood as mycelium and begin the decay process. Later, other fungi, arriving as spores, 'fight' with those already present. Preliminary evidence suggests that fungal community composition, when species become established, and how they interact with each other, have a dramatic effect on the rates of wood decay and thus carbon cycling. We have a general understanding of factors affecting the process built from studies on fungal communities developing in attached branches, and from felled wood, but felled logs do not reflect the situation in nature as they are not already well colonized. In this project we will for the first time investigate community development when naturally colonized wood falls to the forest floor. We will simulate naturally fallen wood by pre-colonising wood slices with fungi that are primary colonizers of attached beech branches. Firstly, we will determine whether certain species effectively 'select' which fungi follow them, by leaving colonized slices on the forest floor and collecting after different times, using new high throughput DNA sequencing technologies and traditional isolation onto agar. Secondly, we will quantify wood decay rate, by measuring loss of density of slices in the field experiment. Thus, we will relate the species mix of primary and later colonisers with decay rate. As decay in the field will also be affected by climatic variables etc., we will also perform lab experiments on the effect on decay rate of adding specific later colonisers to slices pre-colonised with specific primary colonisers, by measuring CO2 evolution and weight loss. Thirdly, we will study how antagonistic interactions between fungi affect decay rate. When fungi interact, the outcome can be deadlock in which neither species gains territory, or replacement of one species by the other. A preliminary study has indicated that decay rate actually changes during the course of replacement of one fungus by another. We will investigate this in detail and also ask whether the outcome of the interaction is related to decay rate, by following CO2 evolution during the interaction. Finally we want to know how different numbers of individuals/species affects decay rate. We will precolonize wood slices and then vary the number of individual strains added, and measure decay rate in the laboratory under standard conditions. This project will reveal how fungal communities alter, how communities affect decay rate, provide data for carbon cycling models, and possibly form the basis for future manipulations of fungal communities to optimise carbon cycling.
Organisations
Publications
Hiscox J
(2015)
Priority effects during fungal community establishment in beech wood.
in The ISME journal
Hiscox J
(2015)
Antagonistic fungal interactions influence carbon dioxide evolution from decomposing wood
in Fungal Ecology
Hiscox J
(2016)
Effects of pre-colonisation and temperature on interspecific fungal interactions in wood
in Fungal Ecology
Hiscox J
(2016)
Location, location, location: priority effects in wood decay communities may vary between sites.
in Environmental microbiology
Hiscox J
(2016)
Location, location, location: priority effects in wood decay communities may vary between sites.
in Environmental microbiology
O'Leary J
(2019)
The whiff of decay: Linking volatile production and extracellular enzymes to outcomes of fungal interactions at different temperatures
in Fungal Ecology
Johnston SR
(2019)
Highly competitive fungi manipulate bacterial communities in decomposing beech wood (Fagus sylvatica).
in FEMS microbiology ecology
Description | Priority effects occur during fungal community development. Priority effects differ in different forests. Interspecific interactions have an effect on fungal metabolism. |
Exploitation Route | Ongoing research |
Sectors | Environment |
Description | "Deep down and Dirty: The Science of Soil" broadcast on BBC4 this Thursday 17th of April at 21:00 2014 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | I talked about the importance of fungi in soils for a few minutes. Some email interest. Considerable interest from undergraduate students at Cardiff. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Arboriculture Association Consultants development day Coventry |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | I presented a talk on "Fungi in the life and death of a tree", which resulted in considerable questions and discussion. Considerable interest from practitioners. Possibilities of some research funding were mooted. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | BBC Radio 4 Life Scientific 15 November 2016 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | A half hour programme based on my research career, and including work on fungal communities and decay processes in wood. Following the broadcast there was a lot of email interest in a wide range of aspects. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | BBC radio Wales 27 sept 2016 Science Café 'Unknown Wales' |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Explain the role of fungi in ecosystems, including wood decay processes |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | BBC radio Wales Sept 2016 Countryside in Focus "to pick or not to pick" |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Explaining aspects of fungal ecology, including wood decay fungi, and whether or not it is appropriate to pick them. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | BBC's The One Show segment - Humongous fungus |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Participated in a segment for BBC's 'The One Show' on fungal cord systems. Was interviewed about cord system formation and uncovered cord systems in the New Forest for the film crews Lots of contact from the public after the segment aired |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |
Description | Biology Rocks |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | We had a fungus stand; 3000 people attended the day of activities and displays at the National Museum of Cardiff. considerable interest from different age groups |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://fungalecologycardiff.com/the-team/professor-lynne-boddy/ |
Description | Birkbeck April 30 2014 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Seminar on fungus-fungus interactions, which sparked considerable discussion Possibilities of collaboration were discussed |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | British Mycological Society 2012 - presented a poster |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
Results and Impact | Presented a poster on changes in respiration during fungal antagonism at the BMS annual conference. Won the prize for best poster |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |
Description | Chanel 4 Sunday brunch programme 2013 06 October |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | Lots of email interest and requests for other presentations and tv appearances sparked a lot of general interest |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | Earthwatch/BES woodland fungi workshop Sept 2013 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | 20 woodland managers attended talks and field visits by Andy Taylor (Hutton Institute) and myself, revealing the importance of fungi and why they should be considered during management. Request to do 2 webinars for Natural England staff |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | Fungi - woodlands depend on the hidden kingdom |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | Yes |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | Webinar to Natural England Staff |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Fungi on the Sunday Brunch |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | Short tv slot 4 min slot on Chanel 4 Sunday Brunch Programme |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | June 2016 Soapbox Science Cardiff |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Soapbox science. Talked in the city centre on a soapbox |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Mycological Society of America 2014 - presented a talk |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
Results and Impact | Spoke at the MSA annual conference 2014 in Michigan to an international audience. Presented our work on priority effects. Useful discussions and potential collaborations |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Nature Event at Natural History Museum |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Activities to show families the importance of fungi Conference organized by Lynne Boddy in association with the British Mycological Society, including talks presented by Lynne Boddy and Jennifer Hiscox |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |
Description | November 2013 BBC Radio 4 the Living World - fairy rings |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | Radio programme on fairy rings, which sparked a lot of email interest. Requests for article and appearance on tv programmes |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | October 2016 Tree decay Edinburgh Arb Association |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Explain how trees decay to arborists |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | OnE lecture |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
Results and Impact | Presented my research as an internal seminar speaker. The audience comprised postgraduate students and academic colleagues. Lots of useful suggestions |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution - Biology Rocks 2016! |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Participation in an open day at the National Museum of Wales - Biology Rocks |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Radio 4 Living World programme on fairy rings |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | Yes |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | Radio 4 Living World programme on fairy rings |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | Science programme on Radio Slovenia - about fungus wars (Dec 3013) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | A radio interview about how wood decay fungi fight against each other. No direct responses to me from the Slovenian public. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | Seminar Universite of California Berkeley |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Seminar on fungus-fungus interactions, which sparked considerable discussion Possibilities for collaboration |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Seminar University of California Stanford Oct 2014 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Seminar on fungus-fungus interactions, which sparked considerable discussion Changed the way in which some people will do their experiments |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Superfungi:Will fungi help to save the world? |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | participated in a documentary on fungi screening on various occasions on European tv chanels |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | Superfungi:Will fungi help to save the world? tv film |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | Our work on cord-forming fungi and interactions was one of the main features of the French-made film. Interest from overseas (where the film was shown) in fungi and their interactions, including researchers in related fields. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013,2014 |
Description | Talk to the Miller Institute University of California Berkeley |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
Results and Impact | Seminar on fungal mycelia and interactions, to about 30 postdocs and professors from a wide diversity of scientific disciplines, which stimulated a lot of discussion Researchers from other disciplines sought me out at other talks and in the lab. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | UK Fungus day |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | All day activities at the Cambridge Science centre |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | UK Fungus day at Cambridge Oct 2013 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | A whole range of fungal related activities and talks at the Cambridge Science Centre. Considerable interest from adults and children. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | University of Helsinki November 2013 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Students attended a workshop on wood decay, and I gave a plenary lecture on fungus-fungus interactions Considerable interest and questions. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
Description | Webinars for Natural England March 2 and May 1 2014 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | I gave 2 webinars on fungi in ecosystems and decomposition. A lot of questions |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |