Fungos conidiais associados ao folhedo de Euterpe oleracea Mart. em três áreas da Amazônia Oriental, Pará, Brasil.

Abstract

Conidial fungi are important decomposers agents present in the trophic chain, acting to break down organic debris, being one of its first colonizers; they also act as parasites in plants and animals and endophytes in plant tissues. Therefore, the objective of this work was to carry out a taxonomic study of conidial fungi (Ascomycota) associated to decomposing parts of leaf litter of Euterpe oleracea Mart. litter in forest areas and plantation areas in the eastern Amazon, Pará, Brazil. Two collections were carried out in December/2020 and June/2021, where 15 individuals of E. oleracea were selected per area and samples of decaying substrates (sheaths, bunches, leaflets, petioles, rachis) were collected, totaling 225 samples. The samples were submitted to the washing technique in running water and, later, conditioned in a humid chamber for up to 45 days. The reproductive structures of the fungi were visualized under a stereomicroscope and mounted on semi-permanent slides for morphological analysis and identification. In total, 68 species of conidial fungi were identified, distributed in 55 genera, 23 families, 15 orders, and four class. Most fungi occurred on lignified substrates such as sheaths, rachis, and petioles. The data indicate a high diversity of conidial fungi acting as decomposers of E. oleracea substrates in forest and plantation areas. This study expanded the knowledge of fungi present in the Amazon region, with six new records for the Brazilian Amazon (Arachnophora polybrachiata, Dictyosporium araucariae, Dictyosporium tetrasporum, Ellisembia bambusicola, Parasympodiella lauri, Penzigomyces australiensis), three for Brazil (Mycelephas robustus, Parasympodiella eucalypti, and Polytretophora calcarata) and four for the American Continent (Acrodictys balladynae, Didymobotryum korthalsiae, Melanographium laxum, and Wiesneriomyces conjunctosporus), in addition to the description of a new species (Anaexserticlava amazonica).