Influence of site conditions on the diversity of endophytic fungi of fir clubmoss Huperzia selago (L.) Bernh. ex Schrank et Mart

The aim of the study was to assess the influence of environmental conditions on the composition of endophytic assemblages associated with fir clubmoss, Huperzia selago (L.) Bernh. ex Schrank et Mart. This clubmoss is a cosmopolitan species widely spread in Eurasia and North America, and its gametophytes and sporophytes are colonised by endophytic fungi. Plants for this study were collected in October 2004 and between April and October 2007 from seven European sites, differing in altitude, average annual precipitation, temperature and plant community. Endophytes were isolated on PDA medium (4% potato-dextrose agar) and identified through morphological observations. Different ecological indices were calculated for each site like colonization factor, Fisher's alpha, Shannon's diversity, Morista-Horn and Jaccard's indices. Our results prove that altitude positively correlates with species diversity (Fisher's alpha) and species richness (number of species). Moreover, the similarity assessed from Jaccard's (0.66 for Larici-Piceetum sites) and Morista-Horn indices (0.77 for Juncetea trifidi sites) suggest the influence of plant community on fungal endophyte composition.