The surprising fungal diversity of biancana badlands

Irene Mazza ¹, Elena Salerni ², Letizia Conti ², Claudia Perini ³

Department of Earth and Marine Sciences, University of Palermo, 90123 Palermo, Italy; NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Piazza Marina 61, 90133, Palermo, Italy; Department of Life Science, University of Siena, P. A. Mattioli 4, 53100 Siena, Italy ¹, Department of Life Science, University of Siena, P. A. Mattioli 4, 53100 Siena, Italy ², Department of Life Science, University of Siena, P. A. Mattioli 4, 53100 Siena, Italy; NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Piazza Marina 61, 90133, Palermo, Italy ³

Badlands, somehow meaning “eroded lands difficult to cross”, are multivariate, self-enhancing systems that can be contemplated globally due to its distinctive topography. Among these the Italian badlands, epitomized by calanchi and biancane, are considered a cultural landscape of great interest. The biancane badlands located in the Natura 2000 Network site "Crete di Camposodo e Crete di Leonina" (Asciano, Tuscany, Italy), part of the well-known “Crete Senesi” complex, are characterized by a series of clay dome reliefs, with whitening color, bare or almost, that arise gently from micropediments. Studied from a geological and botanical point of view, Leonina shows a sparse, mosaiced and dynamic vegetation, plant communities of conservation interest and the protected endemic Artemisia caerulescens subsp. cretacea. The habitats present in the studied area (i.e. pediment, grassland, shrubs, mossy islands), for the first time, have been investigated from a mycological point of view to achieve knowledge about the fungal community, such as presence and diversity of epigeous macromycetes. The study revealed a fungal richness of 180 species, which is surprising compared with the Funga of Tuscan forests. The most represented genus was Conocybe (Bolbitiaceae), 50% of them new entrances for the Sienese Fungarium, often found in the most peculiar habitat of the biancane, the pediment. The most mycodiverse habitat results to be grasslands, followed by pediments. Among the species collected some are of conservation interest such as Hygrocybe mucronella and H. citrinovirens. The latter is an indicator of species-rich semi-natural grasslands and was assessed as “VU” by IUCN due to the loss and degradation of this habitat. The presence of these Hygrocybe species together with Clavaria (3 species), Entoloma (5 species) and Geoglossum (2 species), recognized as environmental quality bioindicators, allow the inclusion of Leonina as an Important Fungus Areas (IFAs). This study on Funga in biancana badlands has added a new aspect to the known Flora, Fauna, geomorphology, and history, from which the uniqueness and fragility of these environments already emerged. This could lead to a wider understanding of the role that whole biodiversity has in the functioning of this vanishing ecosystem and push for conservation action plans.

Main author career stage: PhD student

Contribution type: Talk

First choice session: 3. Biodiversity and global change

Second choice session: 3. Biodiversity and global change