Seasonal and Spatial Dynamics of Fungal Leaf Endophytes in Eucalyptus crebra (Narrow-Leaved Ironbark)

Fungal endophytes play an important role in improving the health and productivity of native and cultivated plant species. Despite their ecological and industrial importance, few eucalypt species have been studied in terms of their endophyte communities. We examined the seasonal and spatial dynamics of fungal leaf endophytes in the model species, Eucalyptus crebra (narrow-leaved ironbark), using ITS-based amplicon sequencing. Alpha and beta diversity analyses revealed significantly higher species richness in summer compared to autumn and spring. Similarly, two-way ANOVA analysis showed significantly higher species diversity in summer compared to autumn (observed p