Coprophilous ascomycetes of the Left Bank grass steppe of Ukraine

Study Extent

National Nature Park “Oleshky Sands” is located on the pine terrace of the Lower Dnipro within three administrative districts of the Kherson region of Ukraine: Holoprystans'kyi, Kahovskyi, and Oleshkivskyi. The area of the Park is 11,671.06 hectares. The Park consists of three territorially separated areas. Two scientific research departments are allocated in its structure: “Radensk” (Kozachelager sand arena) and “Burkuty” (Chalba sand arena). The climate of the territory of the park “Oleshky Sands” is moderately continental, arid. Hot summers and little precipitation are characteristic. Vegetation on the territory of the park is quite diverse and is represented by the following types: sandy-steppe, forest, meadow, steppe-meadow, halophyte-meadow, salt marsh and wetland. The plant communities of the sandy steppes is predominant and indigenous. The fauna is typical steppe - more than 400 species of invertebrates and more than 150 species of vertebrates, there are also synanthropic and domestic animal species. National Nature Park “Dzharylhach” is located in the south of Ukraine in the Skadovsky district of the Kherson region. The park is located on the territory of the island of Dzharylgach, as well as on part of the coastline of the Dzharylgach Bay and covers an area of 10,000 hectares. The climate of the Park territory corresponds to the climate of southern Eastern Europe and is characterized as moderately continental with mild winters with little snow and hot, dry summers. Climatic conditions are due to the geographical location of the Park within the Black Sea coast of the Ukrainian steppe and are characterized by a large amount of light and heat. The proximity of the sea, the flat topography of Dzharylgach Island and the mainland coast, and relatively high wind speed have a great influence on the climate of the Park. The vegetation of the Dzharylhach National Nature Park is represented by psammophyte-steppe, meadow, marsh, salt and salt marsh, as well as higher water. Large areas are occupied by artificial plantings of trees and shrubs. Plant communities of disturbed areas are also common on Dzharylgach Island, as the territory is subject to significant anthropogenic pressure due to reforestation, excessive grazing by wild ungulates, and increased recreation. Dzharylgach Island and Dzharylgach Bay are a habitat for many species of plants and animals, a base for migration and wintering of waterfowl, and a place of rich stocks of commercial fish species. The flora of the National Nature Park includes about 500 species of higher spore and vascular plants. The specific weight of endemic and subendemic species is high. The fauna of the park includes about 800 species of animals, including 250 species of birds and 30 species of mammals. The authors express their sincere gratitude to the management and employees of two National Nature Parks of the Left Bank Grass Steppe of Ukraine: “Oleshky Sands” and “Dzharylhach”, namely A. V. Neprokin, O. I. Lozhkinia, I. V. Kravzyuk, A. O. Hudіm, A. M. Iosypchuk, V. P. Rudenko and A. O. Davydova, for their help in organizing expeditionary research. The authors are sincerely grateful to the NGO “Ukrainian Nature Conservation Group” for help in placing data in the GBIF system.

Sampling

The moist-chamber method of incubation was used to detect and obtain the fruit bodies of coprophilous ascomycetes (Keyworth 1951, Richardson 2001) from samples of dung gathered earlier. Samples of excrement were placed in a Petri dish on a filter paper, moistened with water and more added subsequently, if necessary, to maintain sufficient moisture of the substrate. The next day after placement in moist chambers, the samples were carefully examined using a stereomicroscope. This allows us to detect the fruit bodies that have already formed in nature. Further samples were examined frequently at intervals of a few days. The incubation was carried out at room temperature (18–20 ºC) under natural light for 30–50 days, depending on the nature of the ascoma development. Macro-and microstructures were observed in fresh material. Identification of species was done using stereomicroscope MBS-10 (JSC «LZOS») and a light microscope XSM-40 (Ningbo Sunni Instruments Co.). The microstructures such as asci, ascospores and paraphyses were studied in water. A minimum of 20 spores and asci were measured. The quotient between spore length and width (Q), as well as the average quotient (Qav) were calculated. The dimensions of fungi structures were measured using the Tsview7 modular software (Fuzhou Tucsen Imaging Technology Co.). The amyloid reaction of the apical apparatus and the walls of the asci were determined using Melzer's reagent. Aqueous Сotton Blue was used for staining the hyaline gelatinous sheath and/or appendages. Species were identified using various monographs, dichotomous and synoptic keys (van Brummelen 1967, Kimbrough et al. 1969, 1972, Ahmed & Cain 1972, Lundquist 1972, Doveri 2004, 2014, Bell 2005).

Quality Control

The author bears full responsibility for the quality of the data provided in the dataset.

Method steps

1. Conducting field research and collecting of samples.
2. Identification of species in the field and in the lab.
3. Georeferencing.
4. Organising of the dataset according to Darwin Core standards.

The dataset consists of species of coprophilous ascomycetes (Ascomycota, Fungi). Since the coprophilic ascomycetes (an ecological group of fungi) include species that develop on the animal’s dung (mainly herbivorous mammals), the database includes data on the names of the animals (marked as habitats) from whose feces the fungi were collected. In particular, the following animal names are used: roe deer (Dama dama Linnaeus), red deer (Cervus elaphus Linnaeus), hare (Lepus europaeus Pall.), european mouflon (Ovis aries musimon Pallas), wild boar (Sus scrofa Linnaeus), horse (Equus ferus caballus Linnaeus), cattle (Bos taurus Linnaeus). ,

1. Fungi
   rank: kingdom
2. Ascomycota
   rank: phylum
3. Dothideomycetes
   rank: class
4. Leotiomycetes
   rank: class
5. Pezizomycetes
   rank: class
6. Sordariomycetes
   rank: class
7. Coniochaetales
   rank: order
8. Microascales
   rank: order
9. Pezizales
   rank: order
10. Phaeotrichales
    rank: order
11. Pleosporales
    rank: order
12. Sordariales
    rank: order
13. Thelebolales
    rank: order
14. Xylariales
    rank: order

The dataset covers the territory of Kherson adminstrative region of Ukraine.