Legumes of the Koffler Scientific Reserve and Their Rhizobia

Jessie Wang , Julia A Boyle, Tia L Harrison, John R Stinchcombe 

In this document, we have consolidated information on the legumes of the Koffler Scientific Reserve (KSR, the University of Toronto’s biological research station, 44° 01' N, 79° 31' W; King Township, ON, Canada) and their associated rhizobia. The list of associated rhizobia was originally compiled in 2020 by J. Wang under the supervision of J.R. Stinchcombe, J.A. Boyle, and T.L. Harrison, and previously has been distributed via the field station website.

The structure of the document is as follows. For each of 17 legume species found at KSR, as determined by the KSR plant species list (193), we provide: Latin binomial, common name, links to the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), and then to any online collections of the species at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM). Photographs, native or invasive status, annual or perennial habit, and flowering times are also provided. Photographic images were obtained from iNaturalist images with CC0 licenses (copyright restrictions removed). Images of species should not be considered definitive and are provided only for aid in identification.

The legume species described in this document are all capable of forming symbiotic relationships with rhizobia, a group of nitrogen-fixing soil bacteria. Rhizobia colonize plant roots and induce the formation of nodules within which they convert atmospheric nitrogen into a plant usable form, receiving nutrients from the host plant in return.
For each plant species, we searched the literature to determine their symbiotic rhizobial partners and a qualitative evaluation of rhizobia strain effectiveness. Strain effectiveness was qualitatively scored based on the description of rhizobia activity in root nodule formation and nitrogen fixation. The scoring is as follows: NA = Not described; 0 = Nodulating, fixation not described; 1 = Ineffective (nodulating, fix-); 2 = Partially effective (fix±); 3 = Very effective (fix+). One important thing to note is that these are rhizobial species known to associate with the plant species, as reported in the literature, rather than as documented at KSR

The list is provided to facilitate studies on plant-microbe interactions, mutualism ecology and evolution, plant-microbiome studies, and other areas of evolutionary ecology.