ABSTRACT
Succession in plant communities, and associated mycorrhizal fungi, can be defined as a “directional change in the composition, relative abundance, and spatial pattern of species comprising communities” (Frankland, 1992, 1998). In other words, component species replace one another as the dynamic communities change in space and time, and each species is adapted to the occupation of particular niches within the successional seres. A number of model systems have sought to follow the succession of mycorrhizal fungi. We will briefly review examples of those for background and, in turn, introduce our proposed conceptual model.
