Initial Checklist of Macrofungi in the Karst Area of Cavinti, Laguna

Macrofungi play important functions in forest ecosystems. They are involved in nutrient cycling, form mycorrhizal associations which transport water and minerals from the soil needed by the host plants, and in the case of plant pathogens, cause diseases of trees and other forest plants. Additionally, macrofungi are also important as food sources for humans and other organisms. Some macrofungi have medicinal properties and thus are important to pharmacology while others have industrial applications because of their biodegradation and biodeterioration potentials. However, information about their diversity is sorely lacking. This study was conducted to investigate and document the macrofungi composition in the Cavinti Underground River and Cave Complex (CURCC), Cavinti, Laguna. A total of 507 macrofungi were collected consisting of 41 species that represent 34 genera from 20 families. Most of the species belong to the family Polyporaceae which accounted for 29.07% of the total relative fungal density in the collection while the most common genus was  Microporus  with three species. The highest density was recorded for  Daldinia concentrica  (Bolton) Ces. & De Not. (20.43%) followed by  Rigidoporus microporus  (Sw.) Overeem (14.93%),  Auricularia auricula  (L . ) Underw. (11.00%),  Lentinus tigrinus  (Bull) Fr. (7.86%),  Schizophyllum commune  Fr. (5.89%),  Microporus xanthopus  (Fr.) Kuntze (5.30%), and the rest ranged from 3.93-0.20%. This is the first report on the macrofungal composition in CURCC.