- Proposed
- Under Assessment
- Preliminary Assessed
- Assessed
- VUPublished
Gloeocantharellus aculeatus Linhares, P.P. Daniëls & M.A. Neves
- Scientific name
- Gloeocantharellus aculeatus
- Author
- Linhares, P.P. Daniëls & M.A. Neves
- Common names
- IUCN Specialist Group
Mushroom, Bracket and Puffball- Kingdom
- Fungi
- Phylum
- Basidiomycota
- Class
- Agaricomycetes
- Order
- Gomphales
- Family
- Gomphaceae
- Assessment status
- Published
- Assessment date
- 2024-02-21
- IUCN Red List Category
- VU
- IUCN Red List Criteria
- C2a(ii)
- Assessors
- de Andrade Borges, M., Menolli Jr, N., Zabin, D., Kossmann, T., Neves, M. & Magnago, A.
- Reviewers
- Drechsler-Santos, E.R., Martins da Cunha, K. & Mueller, G.M.
Assessment Notes
Justification
Gloeocantharellus aculeatus is likely an ectomycorrhizal species growing solitarily to scattered, sometimes forming fairy rings, on the ground in preserved fragments of forest. This species has conspicuous basidiomes with a remarkably vibrant colour but has only been found a few times, even in frequently surveyed sites. Thus G. aculeatus is considered a rare species. This species is known only from two sites in Brazil and it likely is restricted to the Atlantic Forest from southern to southeastern Brazil. The Atlantic Forest is home to the largest urban centres in Brazil and has experienced a habitat decline of more than 72% by the year 2020. The fragmentation and high loss of habitat in the Atlantic Forest are mainly due to urbanization, industrialization, and agricultural expansion. Considering the rarity and conspicuousness of G. aculeatus, the total population is estimated at 9,000 mature individuals, all in one subpopulation. Based on the severe loss of habitat area and declines in habitat quality, a population decline of around 26% within the last three generations (50 years) is suspected. Overall, it is assessed as Vulnerable C2a(ii).Geographic range
This species is known from the Atlantic Forest of Brazil (ombrophilous dense forest), where it was collected in two sites: one in southern Brazil, in Santa Catarina State (Pântano do Sul, Lagoinha do Leste Municipal Park trail) and one in southeastern Brazil, in Espírito Santo (Santa Teresa, Augusto Ruschi Biological Reserve). It is expected that the species is restricted to the Atlantic Forest from southern to southeastern Brazil. The northeastern Brazilian Atlantic Forest is a well-sampled region for macrofungi, due to the large presence of mycologists surveying several areas in the region over decades. As there are no records of the species for this area, coupled with the species conspicuousness, it is expected that Gloeocantharellus aculeatus does not occur in the northeastern Brazilian Atlantic Forest.Population and Trends
This species is known to occur in preserved fragments of the southern and southeastern Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Gloeocantharellus aculeatus is a conspicuous species with a remarkably vibrant colour, giving it high detectability. There are only six collections of the species, one from Santa Catarina state (Linhares et al. 2016) and five from Espírito Santo state (speciesLink 2021). Since the species is conspicuous and has only been found a few times, even in frequently surveyed sites over decades within the southern and southeastern Atlantic Forest, it is considered rare. It has not been found in northeastern Brazilian Atlantic Forest, despite extensive sampling of macrofungi by local mycologists in the region. Considering the rarity and conspicuousness of the species, its population is estimated to be restricted to approximately 300 sites, each with up to 30 mature individuals, resulting in an estimate of 9,000 mature individuals all restricted to one subpopulation.
The Atlantic Forest holds the largest urban centres in Brazil, housing more than 70% of the Brazilian population, thus urbanization, industrialization, and agricultural expansion have led to high loss and fragmentation of this forest. There has been a habitat decline of the Atlantic Forest of over 72% by the year 2020 (Rezende et al. 2018). Therefore, we precautionary suspected a population decline of at least 20-26% within the last three generations of this species (50 years) (Rezende et al. 2018, da Silva et al. 2020), inferred in light of the extensive loss of suitable habitat (da Silva et al. 2020) and the putative influence that habitat degradation has on species occupation in a given environment (Berglund and Jonsson 2003, Haddad et al. 2015).
Population Trend: decreasing
Habitat and Ecology
This is a possible ectomycorrhizal species growing on the forest floor. It is found growing solitarily to scattered, sometimes forming fairy rings. It is expected that the species is restricted to the southern and southeastern Brazilian Atlantic Forest, where its habitat requirements are met.Threats
The Atlantic Forest is considered a global hotspot and therefore a priority area for conservation (Myers et al. 2000). There has been a habitat decline of the Atlantic Forest of over 72% up to the year 2020 (Rezende et al. 2018), and most forest remnants are smaller than 100 ha and are isolated from each other (Ribeiro et al. 2009). This habitat loss and decline was caused by urban areas, pasture, agriculture and forestry. Comparing the period from 2017-2018 with 2018-2019 there was an increase of about 27% of deforestation in the Atlantic Forest remnants (Fundação SOS Mata Atlântica and Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais, 2020).The site where the species was found in Santa Catarina state is a Municipal Park within environmental protection areas, but it is open for recreational activities and tourism, in addition to being constantly threatened by illegal residential construction. The site in Espírito Santo state is a Biological Reserve, it is an area of well-preserved forest, open for visitation and ecological trails. This pattern is commonly observed along the Atlantic Forest, even in conservation areas.
