A common ericoid shrub modulates the diversity and structure of fungal communities across an arbuscular to ectomycorrhizal tree dominance gradient.

Differences between arbuscular (AM) and ectomycorrhizal (EcM) trees strongly influence forest ecosystem processes, in part through their impact on saprotrophic fungal communities. Ericoid mycorrhizal (ErM) shrubs likely also impact saprotrophic communities given that they can shape nutrient cycling by slowing decomposition rates and intensifying nitrogen limitation. We investigated the depth distributions of saprotrophic and EcM fungal communities in paired subplots with and without a common understory ErM shrub, mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia L.), across an AM to EcM tree dominance gradient in a temperate forest by analyzing soils from the organic, upper mineral (0-10 cm), and lower mineral (cumulative depth of 30 cm) horizons. The presence of K. latifolia was strongly associated with the taxonomic and functional composition of saprotrophic and EcM communities. Saprotrophic richness was consistently lower in the Oa horizon when this ErM shrub species was present. However, in AM tree-dominated plots, the presence of the ErM shrub was associated with a higher relative abundance of saprotrophs. Given that EcM trees suppress both the diversity and relative abundance of saprotrophic communities, our results suggest that separate consideration of ErM shrubs and EcM trees may be necessary when assessing the impacts of plant mycorrhizal associations on belowground communities.