Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi modulate the adaptation of aeluropus lagopoides in hypersaline environments.
Dar BA, Assaeed AM, Malik JA, Alqarawi AA, Abd-ElGawad AM
Mycorrhizal Networks
Degraded salt flats and coastal marshes — the kind slowly swallowing low-lying shorelines — may be restorable using native fungi already adapted to extreme salt, without expensive inputs or genetic engineering.
Researchers studied a tough grass that thrives in super-salty soils across Saudi Arabia and found it partners with beneficial root fungi even in these extreme conditions. The fungi help the plant absorb nutrients, and different fungi communities showed up in different regions depending mostly on how salty the soil was. This suggests that native salt-tolerant fungi could be harnessed to help restore barren, salt-damaged land.
Key Findings
17 distinct fungal types from 5 families were identified across 5 hypersaline regions, with the Glomeraceae family dominating at 58% of all types found.
Spore density varied significantly by location — highest in Jizan and Qaseem, lowest in Salwa — driven primarily by soil electrical conductivity (salt level).
Six fungal species appeared across all five regions, suggesting broad salt tolerance and ecological importance as candidates for restoration use.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Beneficial soil fungi help a salt-tolerant grass survive in some of the world's harshest saline environments by improving nutrient uptake, and the specific fungi present vary by region based largely on soil salinity.
Abstract Preview
Aeluropus lagopoides, a key halophytic perennial grass found in both inland and coastal sabkhat, shows tolerance to extreme salinity through physiological and morphological adaptations. Arbuscular ...
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Species Mentioned
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Aeluropus lagopoides, sometimes called mangrove grass or rabbit-foot aeluropus, is a species of Eurasian and African plant in the grass family, found primarily in salty soils and waste places.