Hygroaster cleefii Franco-Molano & López-Quintero sp. nov. Mycotaxon 99: 189-195 (2007).

So far, this species is restricted to lowland tropical rainforest in Colombia but more information on its distribution is needed. Because it is a very inconspicuos fungus it maybe overlooked. Although its habitat is threatened by deforestation and mining, data is missing. It is considered as DD

So far only registered in three locations of Colombia DPTO CAQUETA: Araracuara about 50 km downstream on the Río Caquetá, near Peña Roja, ca 0º 34’ S, 79º 08 W at 200-300 m elevation, 3 Sep. 1999. DPTO DE CHOCO: Municipio of Istmina, along of Panamerican Highway, 5 km W of Puerto Nuevo, 13 May 1991. PARQUE NATURAL NACIONAL ISLA GORGONA (no more data is povided).

This species appears to be rare and it has been found in areas that are quite threatened, which makes it easy to believe that its population is declining. One of the sites where this species has been found is an island (Gorgona) where conservation efforts have been taking place for over twenty years, and therefore its forests are
entering a period of strong recovery. The other two sites, Chocó and Caquetá, are regions where deforestation is a major issue, as well as mining and loss of habitat in general. According to a local newspaper, as of February 2015, Caquetá and Colombia recieved a score of 4 in the Forest 500 initiative, which measures the amount of deforestation for several countries in the world, making it one of the worst rated for the project. According to the project’s website,  “around 4% of all cattle in tropical countries are located in Colombia and between 2005 and 2010, 90% of the forest cleared in the Amazon and 80% of the forest cleared in the Andes was done so to create new pasture.” Another report on deforestation mentions that for the Chocó region, a great deal of deforestation is due to the presence of illegal armed groups. Because of this, and because this species has so far only been found in Colombia, it is possible to infer that its population is probably declining.

Gregarious or in groups, found on wood. Described initially for the Caquetá region in Colombia, where it was found at a 200-300 m elevation in 1999. It has also been found in two other regions of Colombia, including an island (Gorgona). It appears to be distributed only among lowlands.

Habitat fragmentation and loss.

No actions are currently in place for this species in Colombia.

Franco-Molano, Ana Esperanza & Carlos Alberto López-Quintero. A new species of Hygroaster (Hygrophoraceae, Agaricales) from Colombia. Mycotaxon 99: 189–195. 2007.
Franco-Molano, Ana Esperanza., Vasco-Palacios, Aída Marcela., López-Quintero, Carlos Alberto., & Boekhout, Teun. 2005. Macrohongos de la Región del Medio Caquetá - Colombia. Grupo de Taxonomía y Ecología de Hongos Universidad de Antioquia.
Forest 500 http://forest500.org/forest-500/jurisdictions/colombia 
García-Romero, Helena. Deforestación en Colombia: Retos y Perspectivas. http://www.fedesarrollo.org.co/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/KAS-SOPLA_Deforestación-en-Colombia-retos-y-perspectivas.pdf
Newspaper article on deforestation. http://www.elespectador.com/noticias/medio-ambiente/colombia-entre-los-500-responsables-de-deforestacion-gl-articulo-543630
Castro-Herrera, Fernando., Valencia-Aguilar, Anyelet., Villaquirán-Martínez, Diego F. Diversidad de Anfibios y Reptiles del Parque Nacional Natural Isla Gorgona.http://www.faae.org.co/PDF/Herpetofauna_Isla_Gorgona_2012.pdf