FACTORS RELATED TO DIVERSITY OF DECOMPOSER FUNGI IN TROPICAL FORESTS

Recent studies suggest that host-preferences are common among certain groups of tropical fungal decomposers but rare in others, and sometime s occur where we least expect them. Host preferences among microfungi and ascomycetes that decompose leaf litter are common but usually invo lve differences in relative frequencies more than presence/absence, so their diversity may be loosely correlated with species richness of ho st trees. Strong host-specificity appears to be rare among wood decomp oser fungi, whereas characteristics of their substrata and habitat are very important for this group. Anthropogenic disturbance predisposed a tropical forest to subsequent hurricane damage, and the resulting di rect and indirect effects on host diversity and habitat heterogeneity were reflected in the decomposer fungal community more than sixty year s after the original disturbance. While species richness of dictyostel id slime molds and functional diversity of their bacterial prey increa sed with disturbance, the more diverse microfungi and ascomycetes were apparently negatively affected by disturbance.