The southern hairy-nosed wombat ( Lasiorhinus latifrons ) as an agent of mycorrhizal fungi dispersal

The southern hairy-nosed wombat (Lasiorhinus latifrons) was investigated as a possible vector of mycorrhizal fungi dispersal. Mycorrhizal fungi are essential for sustaining many different plant species globally through the formation of fungal-plant symbiotic relationships. In Australia, although many digging marsupials have been identified as mycophagous and responsible for the dispersal of mycorrhizal fungal spores, L. latifrons had not been investigated within this context. Despite this, L. latifrons digging activities, its foraging behaviour and diet, and its creation of subterranean systems with an environment conducive to fungal growth, increase the likelihood of incidental or deliberate ingestion of mycorrhizal components. Samples of L. latifrons faeces collected in the mid-north of South Australia were found to contain components of mycorrhizal fungi. Although L. latifrons dispersal of mycorrhizae would be restricted by its small home range, faecal deposition is abundant in some locations, increasing the probability for fungal inoculation. The results from this study must be interpreted within the context of the prevailing severe drought conditions. The loss of many of Australia’s digging species, including those considered to be mycophagous, and the reliance of many plant species on fungal symbiosis, increase the significance of this finding while providing crucial baseline information for further investigation.