New UC Riverside research shows that fungi and bacteria that can survive in tanoak redwood forest fires are “cousins” of microorganisms that normally increase after sensing the fire.
Fires of unprecedented scale and intensity, known as megafires, are becoming increasingly common. In the West, climate change is causing temperatures to rise and snow to melt earlier, prolonging the dry season when forests are most vulnerable to fires.
The fungus Lyophyllum Atratum thrived in the Fire soil after the Soberanes. Image credit: Dylan Enright / UCR
Although some ecosystems are adapted to less intense fires, tiny squash plants or related soil microorganisms will respond to large fires, especially in areas California’s charismatic tanoak redwoods.
“It is unlikely that plants would recover from major fires without beneficial fungi that supply the roots with nutrients,” said Sydney Glassman, UCR mycologist and lead author of the study. nutrients or bacteria that convert carbon and nitrogen in the soil after burning. “Understanding the bacteria is key to any recovery effort.”
The UCR team contributes to this understanding with paper in the journal Molecular Ecology.
In addition to examining the effect of high fire on tanoak redwood forest microorganisms, this study is unusual. Soil samples were taken from the same plots before and shortly after the 2016 Soberanes fire in Monterey County.
“In order to get this kind of data, a researcher almost has to burn the diagram on his own. It’s difficult to predict exactly where burns will occur,” Glassman said.
The team was not surprised to find that the Soberanes fire had a major impact on bacterial and fungal communities, with a 70% reduction in bacterial species populations. They were surprised that some yeasts and bacteria not only survived the fire, but also greatly increased.
Increased bacteria include Actinobacteria, responsible to help plants decompose. The group also noticed an increase in Firmicutes, known for promote plant growth, help control plant pathogens, and remove heavy metals in the soil.
Within the fungus, the team discovered a dramatic increase in the heat-resistant yeast Basidioacus, which can degrade various components in wood, including lignin, the challenging part of plant cell walls that gives structure and protects them from insect attack.
Some bacteria may have used new strategies to increase their numbers in burn scarred soil. “The Penicillium is probably taking advantage of the food secreted from the carcass, or ‘corpse,’ and some species may also be eating charcoal,” says Glassman.
The image highlights the color and morphological diversity of microorganisms obtained from burned soil in the Soberanes. Image credit: Jenna Maddox / UCR
Perhaps the team’s most important finding is that fungi and bacteria – both those that survived the great fire and those that didn’t – appear to be genetically related.
“They share adaptations that allow them to respond to fire. This improves the ability to predict which microorganisms will respond positively or negatively to events like these,” Glassman said.
Overall, very little is known about fungi and the full extent of their impact on the environment. Studies like these must continue to reveal how they can help the environment recover from a fire.
“One of the reasons that people know so little about mushrooms is that so few theologians have studied them,” says Glassman. “But they have important impacts, especially in the aftermath of major fires, which are increasing in frequency and severity both here and globally.”
The source: UC Riverside
