Kansas Aeromycology: XIII: Diurnal Studies 1959-60

Abstract

Using silicone slides and nutrient plates to study diurnal periodicity in airborne fungi in Kansas between Oct., 1959, and Nov., 1960, 16 24-hour and one 48-hour series were made. Viability studies were made of the spores. Most of the series were at 2-week intervals during the growing season, but some were during the fall and winter. Great variation was found from series to series and also from hour to hour. Diurnal periodicity was displayed only by the 1-celled hyaline spores and basidiospores, which had definite nighttime peaks. When yeasts were abundant, their peaks were at night. Cladosporium and Alternaria were very irregular, commonly without any marked peaks, but in some series there were morning, afternoon, and evening peaks, and not infrequently 2 or more minor peaks. Although numbers were generally low in the winter, conditions frequently favored spore production, as exemplified by basidiospores, which displayed typical diurnal periodicity at this time of year. In most series, spore viability ranged from 30-60% but occasionally reached as high as 90%.