Fungi Occurring in Freshly Harvested and in-Market Pecans

SUMMARY

In a survey of fungi associated with freshly harvested and market pecans, 44 genera and 119 species were identified. These included 10 phycomycetes, 13 ascomycetes, and 96 deuteromycetes. Thirty genera and 98 species were isolated from pecans for the first time. Twenty-two genera occurred only in the freshly harvested sample, 16 genera occurred in both freshly harvested and market samples, and 6 genera occurred only in the market samples. In the freshly harvested sample, Penicillium was the most common genus, followed by Aspergillus, Pestalotia, Rhizopus, and Fusarium. The predominant species were Penicillium cyclopium, P. steckii, P. decuntbens series, and Aspergillus niger. In the market samples, the dominant genera in decreasing order were Aspergillus, Penicillium, Eurotium, and Rhizopus, with Aspergillus niger, A. flavus, Eurotium repens, E. rubrum, and A. parasiticus being the dominant species. The market pecans contained more isolates of Aspergillus flavus and A. parasiticus than did freshly harvested pecans. Two thermophilic fungi, Mucor pusillus and Humicola lanuginosa, were also recovered from pecans.