Maurici

I am interested in their presence in submerged plants, not in emerged ones. Have you observed this kind of symbiosis in your aquarium tank? Can you give me some information about the plant/s species involved and their success?

fishfry

Does it grow on emersed and submerged plants too? I have heard about it growing on terrestrial plants before, like the obligate mycorrhizal plants and non-obligate. It is a quite interesting symbiosis.

Maurici

Yes, they exist in natural habitats in both types of plants (emerged and submerged) and are quite important for isoetid species (eg. Isoetes spp.). It can be a crucial help to obtain phosphorous from substract but I ignore the relative gain for a planted aquarium stability with our constant intervention in nutrient supply.

Phil Edwards

Mycorrhizae aren't nearly as important in out nutrient supplimented aquariums as they are in the wild. Also, mycorrhizae are habitat specific, meaning that fungi from your local soil very likely aren't going to be suitable for your plants and vice versa. All in all, they don't play a role in our aquariums. Native biotope soil based aquariums are the exception, and there mycorrhizae can play a major part in the overall ecology of the aquarium.

Best,
Phil

Maurici

Very interesting Phil, I've thought that the fungus of these VAM (zygomycota forming endomycorrhizae) were no so species plant specific as you say. Ever you learn something, thanks. Maurici.

HeyPK

A long time ago I saw what must have been mycorrhizae on, of all things, Ceratophyllum, which does not have roots. I grew some in a gallon jar with soil on the bottom, and, later, when I removed the plant, gobs of mud clung to the stem where it had been pressed into the surface. I washed away the mud and found a dense mat of colorless half inch hair-like threads coming from the stem and even from the leaves. Under the microscope these threads looked like fungal hyphae. I could clearly see the cross walls separating the cells.

Maurici

I think it would be slighty difficult to assess the benefits to a species which grow normally very fast, but could you infer anything relating to more resistance to bad conditions (not optimal levels of nutrients)?

MiamiAG

I believe there is very little known about this subject. However, please look at this site for some thoughts:
http://biology.kenyon.edu/fennessy/SrexMarx/inwater.htm

plantbrain

Actually roughly 50% of aquatic plants have been found to have fungal associations. There are several papers that looked at broad surveys. I have a paper on it floating around here somewhere.

I identified a number of Exomychorrhizae on Bolbitus and I'm pretty sure there are some on Blyxa, Crinum, hairgrass and others.

These do live in aquariums also.
Our substrates are excellent for fungi, soil based substrates, antyhting anaerobic/low O2 is not good for fungi. They are obligate aerobes.

I've even suggested that this association is part of why algae does not grow at higher O2 levels with plants.

It can also explain and number of plants doing a little better after a little while of acclimation and why some plant cuttings from some folks do better than others.

I saw several presentations of fungal associations at a wetland soils conference here last fall.

Not many Mycologist running around.

In year's past, it was assumed that fungal association did not really exist in submersed aquatics but they have found more lately and started to look into it more.

Regards,
Tom Barr

Maurici

Hello Tom,
do you know something about the ecology of the fungus species? are they specially aquatic species? do you have some idea about the success of planting terrestrial mycorrhizae in aquariums?
Regards. Maurici.