- Proposed
- Under Assessment
- Preliminary Assessed
- Assessed
- NTPublished
Cymatoderma sclerotioides (Lloyd) D.A. Reid
- Scientific name
- Cymatoderma sclerotioides
- Author
- (Lloyd) D.A. Reid
- Common names
- IUCN Specialist Group
Mushroom, Bracket and Puffball- Kingdom
- Fungi
- Phylum
- Basidiomycota
- Class
- Agaricomycetes
- Order
- Polyporales
- Family
- Meruliaceae
- Assessment status
- Published
- Assessment date
- 2020-08-18
- IUCN Red List Category
- NT
- Assessors
- Funez, L., Kossmann, T., Guimarães, D.K., Martins da Cunha, K., Leopoldo, E., Vasco-Palacios, A.M. & Drechsler-Santos, E.
- Reviewers
- Mueller, G.M.
Assessment Notes
Justification
This is a very rare species, having being recorded from only a limited number of sites since 1922, represented by no more than 25 collections. The species has conspicuous large, colourful basidiomata, thus the small number of collections is probably due to its rarity. Based on the potential area of occurrence, it is conservatively estimated that there are up to 1,000-2,000 sites, each holding 5-10 mature individuals, resulting in a total population size of 10,000-20,000. Although the Amazon Forest domain is the largest and most preserved Tropical Forest in Brazil, the areas where the species occurs are under threat, with the Amazon facing growing deforestation and the possibility of approaching its tipping point (Amigo 2020, INPE 2020). Central American montane forests are under threat throughout much of their range due to land use changes, including timber harvest, conversion to pine and other non-native tree plantations, agriculture, and expansion of towns and cities. Further pressure and population reductions are expected to continue throughout the species range, and as such a population decline of up to 20% is suspected over in the next 20 years. The species is assessed as Near Threatened under criteria A3c; C1.Taxonomic notes
This species was originally described as Stereum sclerotioides by Lloyd (1922), based on a specimen with no precise geographic data, from the Amazon Forest. In 1959, D.A. Reid placed this species in the genus Cymatoderma Reid (1958).Geographic range
This species is currently known from the Amazon Forest of Brazil (Mato Grosso and Roraima states), Peru (Loreto Department) and Colombia (Caqueta and Amazonas). It is also known from northern Panama and southern Costa Rica, both in montane tropical forests near Volcán Barú/Cordillera Talamanca. In the Amazon, the known sites are about 1,500-2,000 km away from each other. The species is expected to occur throughout the Amazon and through tropical forests of Colombia into Panama and Costa Rica.Population and Trends
The species was first recorded in 1922 in the Brazilian Amazon Forest without precise information about its locality. Six other records are known from the Amazon, four in the western Amazon (two from Iquito, Peru in 1984 and one each from two localities in Colombia), one from northern Amazon (Roraima, Brazil in 2008), and one in southern Amazon (Mato Grosso, Brazil in 2018). The species has also been recorded in Central America, in Costa Rica and Panama, where ca. 20 collections have been reported, all in the tropical montane forests in the Cordillera Talamanca. Although this species has a wide distribution, it is likely rare in the Amazon, as there are few records even in well sampled areas. For example, at the Cristalino Particular Reserve, in Mato Grosso state where fungi have been studied and documented intensively in the last decade, just one basidiome of Cymatoderma sclerotioides has been found.
Based on the potential area of occurrence, it is conservatively estimated that there are up to 2,000 sites for the species, each holding 5-10 mature individuals, resulting in a total population size of up to 20,000. However, due to the species' rarity, these numbers could be an overestimate, and the population size may not exceed 10,000 mature individuals.
The Amazon Forest is undergoing rapid deforestation and facing increased fire frequency and intensity, following years of decline (INPE 2020). The forest could be dangerously approaching a tipping point, when the forest can no longer sustain its own water cycles, drastically changing into a savannah, leading to huge biodiversity losses (Amigo 2020).
Central American montane forests are also under threat throughout much of their range due to land use changes, including timber harvest, conversion to pine and other non-native tree plantations, agriculture, and expansion of towns and cities. Further pressures are expected to continue. Deforestation in Colombia has increased in recent years and is anticipated to continue into the near future. Parts of the Talamancas are protected in National parks, but other areas are privately held, and there is limited logging ongoing as well as commercial and housing developments. Additionally, in mountainous areas were this species occurs, the total forest cover has not significantly changed in the last 20 years (MINAE et al. 2018).
Overall, the species is suspected to undergo a population decline of up to 20% in the next 20 years.
Population Trend: decreasing
