Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

"Examining Continent-Scale Variation In Aerial Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Communities Using Edna, Raechel Hearth

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi form an important symbiosis with plants that make these fungi critical for plant health and ecosystem functioning. Although previous studies have shown that AM fungi disperse through the air, few studies have examined which environmental factors may be impacting their dispersal and aerial community composition, especially at large geographical scales. The goal of this study was to determine which environmental factors influenced air-dispersed AM fungal species composition across five different research sites in the Midwest and Western regions of the United States. By collecting dust at three different heights in the air, using modified Wilson and …