Symbiotic associations between mammals and fungi have been well documented and are widely regarded as vital to ecosystem functions around the world. Symbioses between birds and fungi are also ecologically vital but have been far less thoroughly studied. This manuscript is the first to review a wide range of symbiotic associations between birds and fungi. We compile the largest list to date of bird species reported to eat fungi (54 bird species in 27 families) and follow up with a discussion of these symbioses and suggestions for how future studies can determine the prevalence of associations between birds and fungi. We review the importance of fungi for cavity-excavating birds and show that at least 30 bird species in three families form varying levels of associations with fungi for cavity excavation. We also review the use of fungal rhizomorphs in nest construction and show that 176 bird species in 37 families use fungal material in their nests. All of these interactions have wide-reaching ecosystem implications, particularly in regard to fungal dispersal and biogeography, plant health, ecosystem function, bird nutrition/fitness and bird behaviour.

中文翻译：

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鸟类与真菌共生关系的生态学意义的全球综述

哺乳动物与真菌之间的共生联系已得到充分证明，并被广泛认为对世界各地的生态系统功能至关重要。鸟类与真菌之间的共生酶在生态上也至关重要，但尚未进行充分的研究。该手稿是第一个研究鸟类与真菌之间广泛共生关系的文献。我们汇编了迄今为止报道的食用真菌的鸟类最多的清单（27个科目中有54种鸟类），并对这些共生关系进行了讨论，并就未来的研究如何确定鸟类与真菌之间的关联性流行提出了建议。我们回顾了真菌对发掘空洞鸟类的重要性，并显示了三个科中至少30种鸟类与真菌在空洞发掘中形成了不同程度的关联。我们还回顾了真菌根瘤菌在巢结构中的使用，并表明37个科的176种鸟类在其巢中使用真菌材料。所有这些相互作用都具有广泛的生态系统影响，特别是在真菌传播和生物地理，植物健康，生态系统功能，鸟类营养/健康和鸟类行为方面。