Ecology & Biology

·

Study

Clear-Cutting Disrupts Forest Fungi for Up to 100 Years

Clear-Cutting Disrupts Forest Fungi for Up to 100 Years

Webcap, Brittlegill

What they found

Across more than 1,500 sites, ectomycorrhizal fungi richness recovered after 30–40 years but communities stayed altered for up to 100 years.

Across more than 1,500 sites, ectomycorrhizal fungi richness recovered after 30–40 years but communities stayed altered for up to 100 years.

The number

remained altered for up to 100 years

How solid is it?

Field study

Field study

Field/ecology

Field/ecology

Evidence ladder: Lab dish → Animal → Early human → Strong human. Reviews summarize earlier research.

At a glance

Latin name

Cortinarius, Russula

Cortinarius, Russula

Sample size

>1500 sites

>1500 sites

Published in

New Phytologist

New Phytologist

Covered in Shroom Scan

Section

ECOLOGY & CONSERVATION

ECOLOGY & CONSERVATION

As it ran in Shroom Scan

Forest Network Disruption

Forest Network Disruption

Clear-cutting removes tree hosts, causing ectomycorrhizal fungi to decline rapidly after harvest and reducing diversity in early-stage forests. Across >1500 sites, species richness recovered and peaked at 30–40 years, but community composition remained altered for up to 100 years, with key old-growth species like Cortinarius and Russula declining long-term.

Clear-cutting removes tree hosts, causing ectomycorrhizal fungi to decline rapidly after harvest and reducing diversity in early-stage forests. Across >1500 sites, species richness recovered and peaked at 30–40 years, but community composition remained altered for up to 100 years, with key old-growth species like Cortinarius and Russula declining long-term.

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