Seasonal variability in fungal endophytes from Aizoaceae plants in the Succulent Karoo biodiversity hotspot, South Africa

All ten species of Aizoaceae screened in this study were populated with endophytes. Fifty nine fungal species from 25 genera, including fourteen rare species, were identified. Seasonal specificity was observed; with 32 and 21 fungal endophytes isolated only during the flowering and dry seasons, respectively. The genus Fusarium was the most abundant in samples from the flowering season, whilst Alternaria and Cladosporium were equally abundant in the dry season. Rarely isolated genera included Neophaeosphaeria, Periconia, Preussia, Schizothecium and Truncatella. Fusarium oxysporum, Paecilomyces victoriae and Talaromyces pinophilus were the largest contributors to the differences in community structure observed for fungal endophytes from the different seasons. Endophytic fungal richness was very high in comparison to other global arid regions. This is the first record of all these fungal species isolated from Aizoaceae plants in their endemic environment in the most biodiverse arid region in the world, the Succulent Karoo in South Africa.