Genera Listing and Occurrence of Macrofungi at K'laja Karst Forest in Conel, General Santos City

The Philippines is renowned for its rich environmental diversity, owing to its favorable climatic conditions. Extensive research has been conducted on various species of flora and fauna across the country, including macrofungi. However, there remains to be a gap in the exploration and study of macrofungi in certain regions, such as General Santos City in Mindanao. This study aims to increase awareness about the variety of macrofungi in the K'laja Karst Forest in Barangay Conel, General Santos City, Mindanao, as a way of contributing to the knowledge of Philippine macrofungal diversity. Through morphological analysis and published taxonomic keys, 33 macrofungi specimens were identified, representing 18 gene genera, 13 families, and five orders. Notably, the order Polyporales exhibited the highest specimen count. The abundance of genera observed in the area serves as evidence for the macrofungal species diversity, with many of them thriving on wood substrates. As a recommendation for future studies, molecular techniques, such as DNA sequencing, were suggested to validate and refine the taxonomic identification of the macrofungi species.