How to sample natural populations

Strains from nature have been widely used in experimental and evolutionary studies (reviewed by Perkins and Turner 1988, Turner et al. 2001), most recently for creating phylogenetic trees which provide information on speciation (Dettman et al. 2003). Natural populations have usually been sampled by obtaining conidia from visible colonies on burned vegetation, mostly in tropical or subtropical regions. Soil samples have been another source, yielding mainly ascospore-derived homothallic and pseudohomothallic isolates. Most recently, trees killed by forest-fires have provided a source in temperate climates (Jacobson et al. 2004). Wild populations have been the only source of Spore killer strains (Turner 2001).