Community composition of the entomopathogenic fungal genus Metarhizium in soils of tropical and temperate conventional and organic strawberry fields.

Studies on community composition and population structure of entomopathogenic fungi are imperative to link ecosystem functions to conservation biological control. We studied the diversity and abundance of Metarhizium spp. from soil of conventionally and organically farmed strawberry crops and from the adjacent field margins in two different climatic zones: Brazil (tropical) and Denmark (temperate), using the same isolating methods. In Brazilian strawberry soil, Metarhizium robertsii (n = 129 isolates) was the most abundant species, followed by M. humberi (n = 16); M. anisopliae (n = 6); one new taxonomically unassigned lineage Metarhizium sp. indet. 5 (n = 4); M. pingshaense (n = 1) and M. brunneum (n = 1). In Denmark, species composition was very different, with M. brunneum (n = 33) being isolated most commonly, followed by M. flavoviride (n = 6) and M. pemphigi (n = 5), described for the first time in Denmark. In total, 17 haplotypes were determined based on MzFG543igs sequences, four representing Danish isolates and 13 representing Brazilian isolates. No overall difference between the two climatic regimes was detected regarding the abundance of Metarhizium spp. in the soil in strawberry fields and the field margins. However, we found a higher Shannon's diversity index in organically managed soils, confirming a more diverse Metarhizium community than in soils of conventionally managed agroecosystems in both countries. These findings contribute to the knowledge of the indigenous diversity of Metarhizium in agricultural field margins with the potential to contribute to pest regulation in strawberry cropping systems.