It’s been just over a month since the 12th International Conference on Mycorrhiza. In these blog posts, we hear from some of the winners of Functional Ecology’s poster and talk prizes! Here, Solomon Maerowitz-McMahan – who won our first place prize for his talk “From ashes to insights: mycorrhizal fungi role in post-fire landscapes” – discusses navigating his first conference, the joys of both lab and field work, and his goal to understand the role of fungal communities
This was the first conference I have ever attended, and it was quite an experience to finally put faces to the names of other researchers in my field. Attending the conference was both overwhelming and exciting; practically everyone I spoke to was friendly and eager to discuss their own research, answer my questions, or talk about the work I’m currently doing.
One challenge I faced was finding the time to talk to all the researchers who interested me. I spent quite a bit of time trying to track down specific individuals to discuss their work, my research, or potential collaborations. The most interesting aspect of the conference for me was hearing different researchers critically evaluate their own work and openly acknowledge its limitations. This kind of self-reflection isn’t often emphasized in publications but seemed more present in many of the talks and sessions I attended.
If I could offer one piece of advice to someone attending a conference for the first time, it would be to email the people you want to speak with ahead of time. This increases the likelihood of having the conversations you want and ensures that people know who you are beforehand. For those preparing to give their first talk at a conference, my main suggestion would be to simplify your message and presentation as much as possible, and try to tell the story behind your work. Many of the presentations I saw were packed with interesting content, but it was sometimes difficult to know what to focus on. I made a conscious effort to narrow my scope during my talk and saved more detailed discussions for the coffee breaks, when I could engage with people who had specific questions.
My research focuses on studying patterns of mycorrhizal fungal communities in forested systems following large-scale fires along the southeastern coast of Australia in 2019 and 2020. By using a combination of community-based analyses and physically collecting these fungi from the soil, I aim to infer the ecological roles and characteristics (traits) of these communities. In my talk, I discussed the progress I’ve made so far, particularly focusing on the methods I’ve been using to collect these data. Although I’m still in the early stages of this project, I’ve observed that fungal mycorrhizal communities are influenced by the fire history of a site as well as the severity of the last burn. Interestingly, I have not yet found any significant differences in the traits of these communities, but I have more data collection and analyses planned. I hope to integrate vegetation data with fungal community data, morphology, biomass production, and Carbon: Nitrogen: Phosphorus levels in my upcoming work to create a more complete picture of how these systems respond to fire. Ultimately, I hope that this work will contribute to a better understanding of the implications of different fire management practices on natural systems and how fungal communities respond to disturbances.
One of the main things that excites me about this work, and which attracted me to it in the first place, is the combination of field-based ecology and mycology. Oftentimes, studying fungi involves spending a lot of time in the lab or behind a desk, but while I still do quite a bit of that, I also get to be outside in some beautiful places around Australia!
I’m deeply interested in understanding how natural systems work. Much of the research that has been historically conducted tends to simplify these systems to better understand the underlying mechanisms. My goal is to understand the role of fungal communities while still embracing the complex interactions these fungi have with their environment and with each other.
When I’m not working, I try to spend as much time as I can hiking, camping, and climbing outdoors (sometimes quite near my field sites). The area around Sydney is beautiful, with always something new to discover, whether it’s hiking in the mountains or snorkeling along the coast.
