Elevation gradients and soil characteristics shape arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in the Indian mid‐Himalayas

The Indian mid‐Himalayan Region, a mountainous ecosystem with a range of biotic and abiotic conditions, provides a unique opportunity to study the diversity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). The present investigation was conducted to study AMF diversity across the altitudinal gradient, using both molecular and morphological techniques, and identifying key soil properties influencing AMF diversity and distribution in the Himalayan region. In this study, soil samples were collected from diverse land use systems of four districts of the Uttarakhand Himalayas ranging from ~1200 to 3100 m a.s.l. AMF species were identified using a morphological and molecular study of spores isolated from collected soil samples. A total of six species were identified, belonging to four genera and two families of Glomeromycota. Unlike spore density, AMF diversity and community composition were positively associated with altitude. The most widely distributed species and its relative abundance at both Chamoli and Bageshwar was Gigaspora margarita (~ 40 and 37%, respectively). At Almora and Nainital, the most widely distributed species and its relative abundance was Funneliformis mosseae (~28 and 31%, respectively); this was the dominant species. In a correlation study, AMF spore density was significantly positively associated with organic carbon, urease, acid phosphatase and root colonization percentage, while negatively associated with phosphorus, potassium and alkaline phosphatase. Overall, the present study suggested that the pattern and distribution of the AMF community in the Himalayan region are strongly driven by altitude and soil characteristics. The findings of the present study will be helpful for developing strategies for the AMF multiplication program and their further application to augment agricultural productivity and ecological restoration in the Himalayan region using reported native AMF species.