Mycorrhizal Ecology: Carbon, Nutrient Cycling, and Ecosystems

This report delves into the multifaceted roles of mycorrhizal fungi within ecosystems, focusing on their influence on carbon and nutrient cycling. It explores how these fungi, including arbuscular and ectomycorrhizae, impact plant productivity by facilitating nutrient uptake and influencing soil aggregation. The report examines the fungi's contribution to the carbon cycle, highlighting their interaction with plant photosynthetic products and their role in both terrestrial and agricultural ecosystems. Furthermore, it discusses the fungi's effects on nutrient availability, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus, and their potential to reduce nutrient losses. The report also considers the impact of mycorrhizal fungi on ecosystem functionality, plant community stability, and even plant invasion. Ultimately, the study underscores the importance of these fungi in enhancing ecosystem multifunctionality, emphasizing their positive influence on soil biodiversity and the overall health of various ecosystems.

RUNNING HEAD: MYCORRHIZAL ECOLOGY 0
MYCORRHIZAL ECOLOGY

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Carbon and nutrient cycling and ecosystem multi functionality
The nutrient cycle describes the use, movement, and recycling of nutrients in the environment.
Influence on the C cycling
 Mycorrhizal fungi play a significant role in the cycles of biogeochemical or in the
ecosystem of terrestrial. Various studies have found that allocation of photosynthetic by
the plant was up to 10 to 20 percent in the arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi.
 The twenty percentage allocation of assimilates is done in ectomycorrhiza and
mycorrhizal fungi whereas sometimes it also allocates fifty percent.
 The mycorrhizal fungi play vital role in the international C cycle because entire terrestrial
ecosystem as well as few of the agriculture ecosystems is conquered by all these fungi
which includes ectomycorrhiza, ericoid mycorrhizal and arbuscular mycorrhiza in the
formation of trees and shrubs.
 The large quantity of arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi leads the disturbance in higher
fertilization as well as in soil. However, still various crops such as cereals and potato are
occupied through AM fungi and also give out C to the fungal section under the ground.
Influence on the cycles of N and P
 Mycorrhizal fungi offer the major quantity of N as well as P in the host plants, the studies
demonstrate that arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi contributed about ninety percent in Plant P
whereas AM fungi contribution in Plant N is dependent on the several aspects which are
soil type and soil water content.
 Ectomycorrhizal fungi acquire eighty percent of Plant N as well as Plant P, the
development of several methods for the functioning of AM fungi in the natural
environment which are tree trenching, isotopes.
 The study shows that an AM fungus leads in diminishing the losses of nutrient, which can
cause the loss of organic as well as inorganic nutrients. However, by avoiding the losses
of nutrients, it can increase the efficiency regarding the usage of nutrient and leads in
sustainability of environment.
 Recently, arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi decrease the Nitrous oxide emissions; it is
considered the significant greenhouse gas.

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Productivity of Plant, functioning of ecosystem and multi functionality
 Mycorrhizal fungi also engage in playing a vital role in the functioning of ecosystems, it
helps in raising the productivity of the plant because some of the plant species is highly
depend on mycorrhizal fungi which includes grasses etc.
 Mycorrhizal fungi affects soil aggregation as well as soil erosion, it also helps in
extending the niche of plants and the co existing between two plants is not done in the
absence of Mycorrhizal fungi.
 The studies also show that mycorrhizal fungi impact the stability in the community of
plant by diminishing the temporary variability in efficiency. However, the some studies
shows describe that AM fungi in habitats leads in supporting the plant invasion.
Therefore, it also finds that it is difficult to identify the influence of AM fungi in the
ecological system.
 Through summarizing various functions of ecosystems, it demonstrates that existence of
Mycorrhizal fungi leads in enhancing the multi functionality of ecosystem. The study
observed that there is positive relationship between soil biodiversity with the multi
functionality of ecosystem because of optimistic influence on the diversification of plant.

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