- Proposed
- Under Assessment
- DDPreliminary Assessed
- 4Assessed
- 5Published
Spongispora temasekensis G. Wu, S.M.L. Lee, E. Horak & Zhu L. Yang
- Scientific name
- Spongispora temasekensis
- Author
- G. Wu, S.M.L. Lee, E. Horak & Zhu L. Yang
- Common names
- IUCN Specialist Group
Mushroom, Bracket and Puffball- Kingdom
- Fungi
- Phylum
- Basidiomycota
- Class
- Agaricomycetes
- Order
- Boletales
- Family
- Boletaceae
- Assessment status
- Preliminary Assessed
- Preliminary Category
- DD
- Proposed by
- Amy Choong
- Assessors
- Amy Choong
- Editors
- Gregory Mueller, Olivier Raspé
- Contributors
- Annya Ambrose, Angeles De Leon, Gerhard Kost, SuSee Lee, Siti Nordahliawate Mohamed Sidique, Gregory Mueller, Andrew Anak Ngadin, Cherdchai Phosri, Olivier Raspé, Rosnida Tajuddin
- Comments etc.
- Mohd Salleh Sanusi
Assessment Notes
Fungi found in two sites in Singapore (Zhenghua Park and Singapore Botanic Gardens) and some unpublished sites in Malaysia.
Justification
Fungi is limited to this Hopea odorata host tree in Singapore and only ectomycorrhizal on large trees with leaf litter. Elsewhere in urban environment where there are young trees, they are not seen.
Taxonomic notes
Phylogenetic analyses of five loci indicate that Spongispora is nested in the subfamily Leccinoideae of the Boletaceae, most closely related to an inclusive clade of Leccinum, Leccinellum,
Octaviania, Rossbeevera, and Turmalinea.
Why suggested for a Global Red List Assessment?
Apparently ectomycorrhizal host is limited only to the Hopea odorata (Dipterocarpaceae). If this tree species is lost or the forested environment is lost, then this fungus may also be lost.
Geographic range
Singapore, Malaysia
Population and Trends
Known from Singapore Botanic Gardens and Zhenghua Park from Hopea odorata host tree and also from Peninsular Malaysia (unknown location). Regional forest/habitat loss may impact this species. In Malaysia, Google Map detected a loss of about 14% forest cover between 2002 and 2012 which was partly offset by a 25,978 sq km gain in vegetation cover resulting from natural recovery, reforestation, and establishment of industrial timber and oil palm plantations (Butler, 2013). Forest loss has mainly occurred in lowland rain forest dominated by members of the ectomycorrhizal Dipterocarpaceae
Population Trend: Decreasing
Habitat and Ecology
Ectomycorrhizal only with old Hopea odorata trees. Emerge from soil with leaf litter. Some fungi associated with some trees produce fruiting bodies regularly all through the year. They are produced singly but scattered.
Threats
IUCN considers this plant as vulnerable (https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/32305/2813234) in its natural distribution (Bangladesh, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Thailand and northern part of Malaysia). Singapore is not its natural distribution. Hopea odorata, although widely planted in Singapore, the basidioma have not been seen to emerge in urban environment (roadside). They only emerge in forested leaf litter. Conversion to park land with grassy area or habitat loss by forest loss will affect this fungus.
Conservation Actions
none so far.
Research needed
Confirm its distribution, whether limited to Singapore and Malaysia or also found elsewhere in the region.
Use and Trade
none known
Bibliography
Gang Wu, Serena M. L. Lee, Egon Horak & Zhu L. Yang (2018):
Spongisporatemakensis, a new boletoid genus and species from Singapore, Mycologia, DOI:
10.1080/00275514.2018.1496387
