Spatial distribution of discrete RAPD phenotypes of a root endophytic fungus, Phialocephala fortinii , at a primary successional site on a glacier forefront

Phialocephala fortinii is among the few identified hyphomycetes belonging to the Mycelium radicis atrovirens complex. This ‘dark‐septate endophyte’ has a global distribution and colonizes a wide variety of host plants. In this study, the spatial distribution of discrete genets of P. fortinii on the forefront of a receding glacier was analysed using the randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) technique to determine plants colonized and patterns of colonization. In two consecutive years of sampling, a total of 74 isolates of P. fortinii were obtained from nine plant species, typically ectomycorrhizal, ericoid mycorrhizal or non‐mycorrhizal. The isolates showed substantial variation, sharing on average approx. half the RAPD markers. In the first year, three isolates belonging to a single genet were obtained from two plants separated by a distance of nearly 1.5 m. The continuity of this genet was assessed by a sampling the following year. No isolates similar to that, or any of the genets collected the year before were observed. Consequently, the identical isolates from the previous year were concluded to represent discontinuous ramets. Two additional large genets were observed during the second year of sampling, which inhabited roots of several plants representing three different species. These data suggest that the sharing of P. fortinii genets among plant species might play a fundamental role in adaptation and interaction within the whole plant community in a system undergoing primary succession.