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Over the years, a number of studies have documented the fungi possibly associating with members of the Monotropoideae; with the advancement of molecular approaches, the identities of some fungi have been confirmed. The plant genera examined are associated with members of five families of Basidiomycetes (Basidiomycota), fungi also known to form ectomycorrhizas with numerous tree species. The interesting trend is that each plant genus or species, where there is more than one species in the genus, has become highly specialized in terms of its fungal associates. For example, Monotropa hypopitys appears to form monotropoid mycorrhizas only with species in the fungal genus Tricholoma, whereas Monotropa uniflora forms mycorrhizas with Russula species and other members in the family Russulaceae. This specificity is true regardless of the geographical distribution of the plant species. The monotypic plant species Sarcodes sanguinea and
Pterospora andromedea, shown to be closely related phylogenetically, form mycorrhizas with fungal species in the genus Rhizopogon, with each plant species showing preference for particular Rhizopogon species.
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