Abstract

Soil fungi play important roles in ecosystems. Although there is abundant information on the spatial distribution of organisms and its relationship with the environment for animals and plants, relevant information for soil fungi, particularly in arid desert areas, is limited. To determine the spatial distribution pattern of soil fungi in the desert area of the Junggar Basin, China, three representative desert plant formations were analyzed, and the composition and diversity of soil fungal communities were compared between these formations. The dominant phyla in the desert soil of the Junggar Basin were Ascomycota, Basidiomycota, Chytridiomycota, and Mortierellomycota, and their combined relative abundance was >87%. The relative abundance of Ascomycota was the highest among all three desert plant formations (>79%); however, the difference in fungal abundance between the three formations was not significant (P > 0.05). At the genus level, Neocamarosporium, Preussia, Alternaria, Paraphaeosphaeria, Chaetomium, and Didymella constituted the main fungi identified, but their relative abundance varied between the formations. The Anabasis salsa formation presented the highest fungal diversity, followed by the Seriphidium transiliense formation, whereas the Haloxylon persicum formation presented the lowest fungal diversity. Pearson’s correlation analysis and redundancy analysis showed that soil pH was the most significant environmental factor affecting the structure and diversity of the fungal communities investigated.