Outdoor airborne fungal spores in Singapore

• Published in: Grana Vol. 37; no. 4; pp. 246 - 252
• Main Authors: Lim, Soo Hwee, Chew, Fook Tim, Binti Mohd Dali, Siti Dahlia, Wah Tan, Hugh Tiang, Lee, Bee Wah, Tan, Teck Koon
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis Group 01.01.1998
• ISSN: 0017-3134; 1651-2049
• DOI: 10.1080/00173139809362674

A continuous sampling of airspora in Singapore was carried out over a period of 5 years at 3 different sites. Fungal spores were found to be numerically dominant, comprising between 86.0-89.4% of the total airspora which also consisted of spores of fern and pollen grains. Conidia of Cladosporium were the most abundant fungal spore type, followed by the ascospores of Didymosphaeria and the conidia of Curvularia, Drechslera and Pithomyces. Variations in fungal spore counts were discernible. Two periods of high spore densities were observed annually; in the months of February-March, and October-November. Minor peak periods were observed occasionally in April and July-August. The seasonal trends of the 5 most common fungi generally coincided with these same peak periods for spore counts. Correlation analysis showed that fungal spore counts were influenced by meteorological factors, especially temperature and relative humidity. In particular, Didymosphaeria ascospore counts were positively correlated with relative humidity and total daily rainfall, and inversely correlated with temperature and wind speed. Conversely, Curvularia, Drechslera and Pithomyces spore counts decreased with increases in relative humidity and precipitation. The spore counts of Curvularia and Cladosporium were also positively correlated with temperature, while those of Drechslera were positively correlated with wind speed. This study revealed the existence of a rich fungal airspora in Singapore.