Wojciech Pusz

Assessment of Abundance and Species Composition of Filamentous Fungi in the Underground Rzeczka Complex in Sowie Mountains (Lower Silesia, Poland)

Our study is the first mycological evaluation of the air and the rocks in the underground Rzeczka complex in Sowie Mountains (Lower Silesia, Poland). The density of filamentous fungi isolated from the air inside and outside the adit ranged between 245.5 to 1332.6 Colony Forming Units in 1 m3 of air. Sixteen species of filamentous fungi were isolated from the internal air sampled and 11 from the outside of the adit. Cladosporium spp. were the fungi most frequently isolated from the internal atmosphere of the adit and from the external air. From the rock walls and from the rock debris on the floor of the adit only seven species of fungi were isolated. The fungi most frequently isolated from the rock walls were the Aspergillus niger group and from the rock debris we also found A. niger group along with species of Mucor. The concentration of airborne fungi in the adit did not exceed official limits and norms present for a health risk to the tourists, but fungi species isolated from the rocks can cause their degradation.

Microclimate Effects on Number and Distribution of Fungi in the Włodarz Underground Complex in the Owl Mountains (Góry Sowie), Poland

In July 2013 we studied the occurrence of fungi in an underground complex named Wlodarz, located inside the massif of Wlodarz, within the Owl Mountains, Lower Silesia, Poland. The study is the first mycological evaluation of the rocks in the Wlodarz underground complex and the air inside and outside of it. To examine the air, the Air Ideal 3P sampler and PDA medium were used. Microbiological evaluation of the rocks inside the adit was performed using two methods, swab sampling and rinse sampling. The results were analyzed by ANOVA, and means were compared using Fisher’s least significant difference (LSD) test at a # 0.05. Eleven taxa of filamentous fungi were isolated from the air sampled outside the Wlodarz adit, and fifteen from the air inside. Between 65.5 and 1003 colony-forming units of fungi per m of air were isolated from the air sampled in the adit and about 1115 CFU from the air sampled outside of it; the differences are statistically significant. The majority of the airborne fungi were isolated from outside the adit and from the ventilation shaft containing a waterfall, probably due to air movement. From the rock walls of the shafts seven taxa of fungi were isolated, whereas from the rock debris on the adit’s floor, only six taxa. The densities of fungi obtained from the research locations are statistically significant, and the most dense fungus isolated from the air outside and inside the adit was Cladosporium cladosporioides, followed by C. herbarum at one locations in the adit. Taxa of the Aspergillus niger group were most common on the rock debris and wall rocks except for one location where Penicillium chrysogenum was most common on the rock debris and one location where Cladosporium cladosporioides was most common from the rocks walls.

Airborne fungi as indicators of ecosystem disturbance: an example from selected Tatra Mountains caves (Poland)

We report on the determination of the spore concentration and the species composition of the airborne fungi in selected caves of the Tatra Mountains, Poland. The following caves were surveyed: Mylna, Obłazkowa, Mroźna, Zimna and Naciekowa. The sampling was carried out in July 2015 and in January 2016. The aeromycological analyses were performed with the impact method, using the Air Ideal 3P apparatus and potato dextrose agar (PDA, Biocorp) culture medium. In the course of the July 2015 analysis, 17 species of fungi were isolated and 11 species were isolated in January 2016. In Mylna and Naciekowa caves, the dominant species were Cladosporium cladosporioides and Stachybotrys cylindrospora. In Obłazkowa cave, Rhizoctonia predominated and in Zimna cave—the colonies of the yeast-like fungi, along with S. cylindrospora. In Mroźna cave, Penicillium notatum was the most abundant taxon. In the winter time, in the majority of the caves Penicillium spp. predominated, with the exception of Mroźna and Naciekowa caves where Aspergillus niger was dominant. We propose that aeromycological monitoring be performed regularly in the following caves: Mroźna, Naciekowa and Zimna.

Cyanobacteria and algae in an old mine adit (Marcinków, Sudety Mountains, southwestern Poland)

1 Department of Botany, Institute of Biology, Jan Kochanowski University, Świętokrzyska 15, PL-25-406 Kielce, Poland 2 Division of Plant Pathology and Mycology, Department of Plant Protection, Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Poland 3 Division of Applied Geology, Dewatering and Ecology, Wrocław University of Technology, Poland C Corresponding Author: marcinko@kielce.com.pl Abstract

Effect of weather conditions on the incidence of Lophodermium yellow needle blight in the dwarf mountain pine in the Karkonosze and Izerskie Mountains (Poland)

The study aimed to determine, by using a statistical model, the effect of weather conditions on the incidence of Lophodermium yellow needle blight causing by new species for science - Lophodermium corconticum, in the mountain dwarf pine growing in the subalpine Karkonosze Mountains and the Izerskie Mountains (Poland). Needles showed symptoms of yellow spots, gradual discolouration and premature fall in July. The assessment of healthiness of infected mountain dwarf pine needles spanned three years (2011 - 2013) and was conducted in several test sites in the Karkonosze and Izerskie Mountains. The results were analyzed by taking into account the meteorological conditions. Field observations seem to indicate that the highest infestation of mountain dwarf pine occurs in June and July, while September and October see a significantly lower disease index in the Karkonosze Mountains. The lower indices of the infestation of mountain dwarf pine are characteristic for the vegetation in the Hala Izerska high mountain pasture; whereas the environmental conditions prevailing in the Kocioł Małego Stawu cirque and above the Samotnia hostel are conducive to the development of Lophodermium yellow needle blight.