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Fungi in Australia’s temperate woodlands
More Australian fungi have been studied in high rainfall forest areas than in woodlands. Recent studies have revealed a previously underestimated diversity of fungi in Australian woodlands. For example surveys in several remnant woodland vegetation patches near Kelleberrin in the Western Australian wheatbelt during three ‘fruiting seasons’ yielded 51 genera of native fungi. (see the 2002 report "Using native soil fungi to improve sustainability of woodland revegetation" and others in the Additional Resources Section) Some native woodland fungi are currently only known from a few remnant woodland patches (such as Torrendia grandis).
Site quality and variations in topographical, geological, soil and vegetation conditions within Australian woodlands greatly influence the types and diversity of fungi. Abundant networks of fine fungal mycelium occur in woodland soil, and many woodland plants have mycorrhizas (see also the CSIRO Mycorrhiza website for more detail about Australian mycorrhiza).
The dung of some small marsupials such as bettongs from Australian woodlands can contain abundant spores of truffle fungi, indicating an interdependency between the fungi and the animals (see the topic Fungi Feed Animals).
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