Mycorrhizal status of Guarianthe skinneri (Orchidaceae) in urban trees in Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico

Objective: To isolate and classify morphologically and molecularly mycorrhizal fungi associated with adult plants of Guarianthe skinneri (Bateman) Dressler & W.E. Higgins (Orchidaceae), distributed in different phorophytes, exotic and native trees, in the City of Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico. Design/Methodology/Approach: We sampled roots from adult plants growing in two native phorophytes, Byrsonima crassifolia (L.) KUNTH and Tabebuia rosea (BERTOL.) BERTERO EX A. DC. and two exotic phorophytes, Terminalia catappa L. and Ficus benjamina L. located in the city’s road. By the isolation of mycorrhizal strains, we had diagnosed them by morpho-physiological attributes, and molecularly (Sanger sequencing of the ITS1-4 region). Results: Forty-three fungal strains of two anamorphic mycorrhizal genus Epulorhiza and Ceratorhiza were obtained: 50% of the isolates came from plants growing in the exotic tree T. catappa with undigested pelotons and the highest molecular diversity (three contigs of the genus Tulasnella). Ficus benjamina had one molecular species shared with the native B. crassifolia. Roots growing in the native T. rosea tree, even though few isolates could be purified. Study Limitations/Implications: Even if the research was exploratory, it was possible to highlight the diverse mycorrhizal partners that urban phorophytes of G. skinneri harbor, showing their potential in the ex situ conservation of this species. Findings/Conclusions: The large number of the anamorph Epulorhiza isolates obtained from all phorophytes, reinforces previous observations suggesting that candelaria is preferentially associated with species of the Family Tulasnellaceae.