Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal diversity in some commonly occurring medicinal plants of Western Ghats, Goa region

Thirty-six medicinal plant species belonging to 25 families were surveyed to study Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal diversity from different localities of North and South Goa of Western Ghats, Goa region, India. A total of 30 medicinal plant species were found to be mycorrhizal and six plant species showed absence of AM fungal colonization. Forty two AM fungal species belonging to five genera viz., Glomus, Acaulospora, Scutellospora, Gigaspora and Ambispora were recovered from the rhizosphere soil. Glomus was found to be the most dominant genera in the study sites, and Glomus fasciculatum the most dominant AM fungal species. Negative significant correlation was observed between percent colonization and spore density. Simpson’s and Shannon Weiner diversity index studies carried out in North and South Goa exhibited less variation in both the sites, indicating a stable and a diverse plant community.