title: Beyond ectomycorrhizal bipartite networks: projected networks demonstrate contrasted patterns between early- and late-successional plants in Corsica.
abstract: The ectomycorrhizal (ECM) symbiosis connects mutualistic plants and fungal species into bipartite networks. While links between one focal ECM plant and its fungal symbionts have been widely documented, systemic views of ECM networks are lacking, in particular, concerning the ability of fungal species to mediate indirect ecological interactions between ECM plant species (projected-ECM networks). We assembled a large dataset of plant-fungi associations at the species level and at the scale of Corsica using molecular data and unambiguously host-assigned records to: (i) examine the correlation between the number of fungal symbionts of a plant species and the average specialization of these fungal species, (ii) explore the structure of the plant-plant projected network and (iii) compare plant association patterns in regard to their position along the ecological succession. Our analysis reveals no trade-off between specialization of plants and specialization of their partners and a saturation of the plant projected network. Moreover, there is a significantly lower-than-expected sharing of partners between early- and late-successional plant species, with fewer fungal partners for early-successional ones and similar average specialization of symbionts of early- and late-successional plants. Our work paves the way for ecological readings of Mediterranean landscapes that include the astonishing diversity of below-ground interactions.
authors.affiliation: UMR 5175, CEFE - CNRS - Université de Montpellier - Université Paul Valéry Montpellier - EPHE - INSERM Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: Adrien
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Taudiere
authors.affiliation: UM2, UMR AMAP Montpellier, France ; French Institute of Pondicherry Pondicherry, India.
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Munoz
authors.affiliation: CNRS, LPTMC UMR 7600, Université Pierre et Marie Curie-Paris 6, Sorbonne Universités Paris, France ; CNRS, IGMM UMR 5535, Université de Montpellier Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: Annick
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lesne
authors.affiliation: UMR 5175, CEFE - CNRS - Université de Montpellier - Université Paul Valéry Montpellier - EPHE - INSERM Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: Anne-Christine
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Monnet
authors.affiliation: UMR 5175, CEFE - CNRS - Université de Montpellier - Université Paul Valéry Montpellier - EPHE - INSERM Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: Jean-Michel
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Bellanger
authors.affiliation: CNRS, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, UMR 7205, Origine, Structure et Evolution de la Biodiversité Paris, France.
authors.forename: Marc-André
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Selosse
authors.affiliation: Département de Botanique, Faculté des Sciences Pharmaceutiques et Biologiques, Université Lille Lille, France.
authors.forename: Pierre-Arthur
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Moreau
authors.affiliation: UMR 5175, CEFE - CNRS - Université de Montpellier - Université Paul Valéry Montpellier - EPHE - INSERM Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: Franck
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Richard
keywords: Mediterranean forests; bipartite networks; ecological mycorrhizal network; ecological strategies; ectomycorrhiza; host-specificity; projected networks