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Mineral composition variation in Boletales mushrooms—indication of soil properties and taxonomic influence
AbstractThe efficiency of element accumulation depends on numerous factors, where the physico-chemical characteristics of the soil seem to be very important, and the role of taxonomic rank in the accumulation of elements by mushrooms seems to be important. The aim of the study was to compare the mineral composition of 7 species belonging to Leccinum and Suillus genera, collected between 2019 and 2021 from localizations in the west-central part of Poland. The research aimed to indicate the role of selected soil parameters in stimulating/inhibiting the accumulation of elements by selected Boletales mushroom species and to answer the question about the role of species belonging to the genus as an indicator determining the specific mineral composition of fruiting bodies. Soil pH and other soil properties (granulometric composition, organic carbon, degree of organic matter decomposition) may significantly affect mushrooms' mineral composition. Mushroom species belonging to Leccinum genus exhibited the higher amount of essential major and trace elements than species of Suillus genus). It suggests that the affiliation of the studied mushroom species to a specific genus may affect their mineral composition, and the physicochemical properties of the soil may be responsible for the lack of a clear division in the efficiency of element(s) accumulation. Selected species contain high amounts of K, Cu, Fe, and Zn, while others, such as selected Suillus gravellei fruiting bodies, also contain As and Cd. The results described serve as an introduction to a broader scientific discussion and require many further studies to confirm the role of taxonomic ranks and the influence of soil characteristics on the accumulation of elements by fruiting bodies. Graphical Abstract
Discovering the ecological structure of different macrophyte groups in rivers using non-parametric and parametric multivariate ordination techniques
AbstractThis paper analyses various methods of ecological ordering that are often used in modelling the relationship between vegetation and habitat. The results of direct gradient ordination by Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA), which is based on correlation, were compared with Non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS), which is based on rank analyses. Both tools were also compared with Detrended correspondence analysis (DCA), which is a popular indirect gradient analysis method. The macrophyte assessment was conducted at 98 river locations in the lowland regions of Poland. Each of the surveyed locations falls within a consistent abiotic category: small to medium-sized lowland rivers with a sandy bottom. Habitat elements analysed included limnological variables and geographic parameters, and the botanical survey focused on submerged macrophytes, including vascular plants, as well as bryophytes and algae. Firstly, it was shown that various analytical tools for determining the importance of ecological factors (Monte Carlo test, BIOENV) identify slightly different significant factors responsible for the development of macrophytes in rivers. Secondly, considerable similarity was found in the structure of macrophyte communities generated on NMDS and DCA biplots, while macrophyte communities were presented very differently based on CCA. Thirdly, the ecological preferences of aquatic plants based on one-dimensional analyses primarily reflected the results of CCA, whereas they did not always follow the ecological pattern revealed by NMDS. Finally, by conducting separate studies for non-vascular plants and vascular macrophytes, it was confirmed that different ecological drivers are responsible for the development of particular groups of macrophytes