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Mycorrhizal nutrient acquisition strategies shape tree competition and coexistence dynamics

Van Nuland, M. E., P.J. Ke, J. Wan and K. G. Peay. 2022.

Abstract

1- Mycorrhizal fungi with different nutrient acquisition strategies influence plant species performance and physiology, thereby defining their trophic niche. This might drive resource competition dynamics that cumulatively impact tree species coexistence, but few manipulative experiments have directly tested this. 2-Combining surveys and experiments in a modern coexistence theory framework, we tested how variation in mycorrhizal strategies and nutrient conditions affect plant competitive outcomes. We focused on two genera of co-occurring tree species with different mycorrhizal states: Acer (arbuscular mycorrhizal, AM) and Populus (dual mycorrhizal, but often considered predominantly ectomycorrhizal, EM). 3- The EM and AM fungal responsiveness in Populus species varied with latitude and nitrogen (N) limitation. Host-specific soil microbiome conditioning and inorganic N fertilization combined to qualitatively affect coexistence outcomes. Lower N conditions favored Populus over Acer trees, and N fertilization reversed this outcome for southern species, aligning with regional-scale forest mycorrhizal transitions. 4- Results from the coexistence experiment also predict competitive exclusion between the tree species pairs, which could arise, in part, from their mycorrhizal differences and is consistent with alternative stable states in dominant forest mycorrhizal strategies. Such bistability appears in natural systems as a bimodal distribution of Populus vs. Acer tree species dominance using long-term forest inventory data. Synthesis- The magnitude and outcome of microbially-mediated competition between Populus and Acer depends on soil nutrient availability, which likely relates to their mycorrhizal differentiation. These findings support the importance of mycorrhizal symbioses for contributing to large-scale biogeographic patterns of tree species trophic niche separation across soil resource gradients and bistability in forest mycorrhizal structure.

Key Words

arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, coexistence, competition, ectomycorrhizal fungi, nitrogen, plant%u2013 soil feedback, soil nutrients