Abstract:

Background: Polypores are an important group of wood-decaying fungi and have important ecological functions and economic values. The unique geographical structure and complex vegetation types in China provide abundant substrates for the growth of polypores. Although the taxonomy of polypores has been well studied in China, few comparative studies on the diversity and flora of polypores among different climatic zones has been performed. This study is intended to compare the florae and populations of polypores in multiple forest zones with different climates and vegetations, and will provide the basis for the protection of species diversity and the development of application potential of polypores.
Methods: In this study, we comparatively analyzed the polypore species, ecological habits and floral characteristics in the Altai Mountains, the Qinling Mountains and the Nanling Mountains which are respectively located in boreal, temperate and subtropical zones in China.
Results: A total of 287 poroid wood-decaying fungal species belonging to 107 genera, 29 families, and 8 orders were obtained from the three mountain ranges. Of these species, 84, 132 and 160 were found in the Altai Mountains, the Qinling Mountains and the Nanling Mountains, respectively, and the community was dominated by families Polyporaceae and Hymenochaetaceae. In the generic and species levels, 25 genera and 14 species were common in the three mountain ranges. Floristic analysis found that polypores in the Altai Mountains and the Qinling Mountains were dominated by the cosmopolitan and the northern temperate elements, while polypores in the Nanling Mountains were dominated by the cosmopolitan and the pantropical taxa. In terms of host preference, polypores in the Altai Mountains preferentially grow on gymnosperms over angiosperms, while the opposite was true in the Qinling Mountains and Nanling Mountains. In the two rotting types caused by polypores, the species number of white rot polypores increased, but that of the brown rot decreased, gradually from boreal to subtropical zones.
Conclusion: Climate and vegetation types are the major influencing factors on the flora composition of polypores, based on the analysis of species diversity, host preference and decaying type of polypores in the three mountains.

Key words: polypores, species diversity, floral composition, distribution character