First evidence for the joint dispersal of mycorrhizal fungi and plant diaspores by birds

What is it about?

Plants depend on several mutualisms established both, belowground with mycorrhizal fungi and aboveground with animals that disperse their seeds. Birds, essential dispersers for many plant species, could also be co-dispersers of seeds and mycorrhizal fungi. We show that birds can effectively co-disperse viable seeds and mycorrhizal fungi, potentially over long distances, providing a possible mechanism to understand the cosmopolitan distribution of AMF.

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