Biodiversity of Macrofungi in Allen, Northern Samar, Philippines

Abstract

Macrofungi are huge fructifications visible to the unaided eye, and by the untrained sight, in contrast to microfungi, which are made conspicuous by the sickness, rotting, and deformation they cause. Although by definition they are visible to the naked eye, macrofungi are, like other fungi, microorganisms. The study aimed to determine the macrofungi species present in Allen, Northern Samar, Philippines. Particularly, this descriptive research was done to collect and identify the different macrofungi species present in the area; document the environmental parameters, such as air and soil temperature, soil pH, type of substrate, relative humidity, rainfall intensity, and vegetation; evaluate the economic uses of macrofungi; and, determine the anthropogenic activities affecting macrofungi in six barangays of Allen, Northern Samar, namely: Barangays Alejandro, Bonifacio, Cabacungan, Jubasan, Lipata, and Victoria. The purposive sampling technique was used in each of the study sites. A total of thirty-eight (38) macrofungi species were collected and identified. The air temperature was generally warm with an average of 24.7 °C, soil temperature that ranged from 24 °C to 25 °C, and soil pH that was slightly alkaline. The substrates of the macrofungi species were on twigs, fences, decaying logs, coconut trunk, soil, and banana trunk and in clay loam soil. The humidity ranged from 89.6% to 95.8%, and all sampling sites had the same vegetation, which was a coconut plantation, grassland, and shrubs. Rainfall intensity based on secondary data was an average of 56.5 mm in January and 19.51 mm in February 2023. There were only eight macrofungi species that were used for economic purposes, particularly for food. "Kaingin", deforestation, and urban area expansion are the anthropogenic activities in the sampling sites. The results indicated that there is a diversity of macrofungal species in the sampling areas, and the environmental conditions were crucial for the growth and development of macrofungal species. The anthropogenic activities did impact macrofungal diversity. The researcher recommends studying these macrofungi species further to learn more about their economic relevance and researching alternatives to mitigate the anthropogenic activities in the sampling sites.