Fungal communities associated with the decomposition of a common leaf litter (Quercus leucotrichophora A. Camus) along an elevational transect in the Central Himalaya

Summary We studied the fungal communities associated with decomposing common leaf litter (Quercus leucotrichophora A. Camus) placed in five forests of Central Himalaya between the elevations of 330 and 2150 m. During the initial period of decay, conciding with the rainy season, a progressive increase in fungal counts and species diversity was observed in all forest sites. The sal forest site had a greater weight loss and supported the largest fungal densities, whereas the pine forest had a lower weight loss and the smallest fungal densities. Deuteromycetes were the dominant group in all the forest sites. Most of the species isolated during the annual cycle of the forest sites were of the accidental type. Species diversity and fungal counts on the common leaf litter were markedly affected by the environmental changes brought about by the native leaf litter. This effect was most obvious in the chir pine forest site where the leaf litter of the native dominant species was distinctly more resistant to decay than those of the other sites, making the soil environment of the site markedly different from that of other sites. The pattern of fungal-species changes with progressive decay of the substrate was similar to that suggested by the tolerance model of Connel and Slatyer.