TAXONOMIC DIVERSITY AND DISTRIBUTION PATTERNS OF FUNGI AND LICHENS IN THE URAL RIVER VALLEY (WEST KAZAKHSTAN REGION)

The mycobiota of the Ural River valley and the West Kazakhstan region as a whole remains extremely understudied. The aim of this study was to investigate the taxonomic diversity and distribution patterns of fungi and lichens in the Ural River valley within the West Kazakhstan region. Sample collection was carried out in 2025 during route surveys of the Ural River valley. Laboratory processing and identification of samples were performed according to generally accepted mycological and lichenological methods. As a result of the research, 71 species of fungi, fungus-like organisms, and lichens, belonging to 47 genera, 32 families, 19 orders, and 8 classes, were identified in the Ural River valley within the West Kazakhstan region. The largest families are Erysiphaceae Tul. & C. Tul. (13 species, 37% of the total number of species), Physciaceae Zahlbr. (9 species), and Pucciniaceae Chevall. (6 species). The majority of the discovered genera (37) of fungi and lichens are monotypic in the studied sample, accounting for 51% of the total number of species. Five genera are represented by two species each, and two genera include three species of fungi. The genus Physcia (Schreb.) Michx. comprises 4 species, and the genus Puccinia Pers. is represented by six species. The largest genus is Erysiphe R. Hedw. ex DC., which includes 8 species. The species Puccinia glechomae DC. on Glechoma hederacea L. was found for the first time in this territory. In the Middle Steppe Interplatform Geobotanical Region, 30 species of fungi, fungus-like organisms, and lichens were identified; in the Caspian Steppe, 45 species of fungi and lichens; and in the Caspian Desert, 15 species of fungi.

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