Details of Award

NERC Reference : NE/S008543/1

International Collaboration on Mycorrhizal Ecological Traits: i-COMET

ENRIs:: Biodiversity; Global Change; Natural Resource Management
Science Topics:: Agricultural systems; Soil science; Community Ecology; Environmental Microbiology; Responses to environment

Abstract:: Fungi are a key component of soils and soil health, responsible for many of the functions and services that soils provide. These include nutrient cycling and food productivity, and prevention of soil erosion and flooding. The are difficult organisms to work with, however, because they are often cryptic, and microscopic, so we know rather little about where they are and what they are doing Baas-Becking's well known phrase "Everything is everywhere, but, the environment selects." is a simple statement often made about microbial communities. It is based on the assumption that microbes are small and disperse easily. Where they land, the local biotic and abiotic environment determines their survival. But we do not know how realistic this is. Laboratory and field experiments are contradictory: recent evidence suggests that fungi with aerial spores that should wind-disperse easily, are in fact highly structured, and that other fungi that live entirely below ground, are nevertheless aerially dispersed. This is one example of trait variation that may have significant effects on ecosystem function, but for which we lack truly global, comparable data. In this project, we seek to bring together people from across the globe, and from across the spectrum of diversity, to develop a global-scale experiment to measure this key fungal trait. In this way we will gain novel insights into a global network of microbial function and into global networks of research.

Authorised funds only

This grant award has a total value of £80,177

DI - Other Costs	Indirect - Indirect Costs	Exception - Other Costs	DA - Investigators	DI - Staff	DA - Estate Costs	Exception - T&S	DI - T&S	DA - Other Directly Allocated
£2,721	£6,605	£3,036	£10,263	£3,045	£2,362	£10,122	£32,795	£9,229

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