Scientific name

Meliola burseracearum F. Stevens [IndexFungorum. Petrak's Lists 3: 202]

Synonyms

None noted.

Vernacular names

None known.

Taxonomic position

Meliolaceae, Meliolales, Sordariomycetes, Ascomycota, Fungi.

Red List assessment

Vulnerable [IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria: version 3.1. Level: global].

Rationale

This evaluation is based on 53 records [breakdown: Cybernome (1 record); IndexFungorum (1 record); other catalogues (1 record)]. There are 22 records with dates, the earliest 1923 (the species was first described in 1928), the most recent 2015. Of dated records, 9% are post 1960. This species is recorded from 7 countries distributed through 3 continents and regions. This fungus is known to occur in association with 5 other species belonging in 5 genera. Although this species is widely distributed and associated with more than one other genus, only a small proportion of dated records were made after 1960.

Reasons for change from previous assessment

None: not previously assessed.

Date of assessment

29 November 2025.

Name/s of the assessor/s

D.W. Minter

Text documentation

Taxonomy. No comment. Geographical distribution. Brazil (Bahia, Pernambuco); Dominican Republic (Monseñor Nouel, San Cristóbal, Santo Domingo); French Guiana (Saint Laurent du Maroni); Panama; Surinam; Trinidad & Tobago (Trinidad); Venezuela. IUCN area statistics [km²] AOO EOO Pre-1961 40 3,881,244 1961-2000 4 insufficient data Post-2000 4 insufficient data Associated organisms and substrata [IUCN Red List status, if known]. Fungi (part): Sepedonium epimeliola Cif. Plantae (part): ; Cupania sp. (leaf); Icica sp. (leaf); Protium attenuatum Urb. (leaf); Protium sp. (leaf); Tetragastris balsamifera (Sw.) Kuntze; Tetragastris panamensis [LC] (leaf). Habitat and ecology. Woodland: unspecified. Threats. Climate change. Not known. Habitat destruction. Not known. Persecution. Not known. Pollution. Not known. Population. Not known. With no direct information, observation frequency over time, if available, can be considered as a proxy to infer current population trend; for species associated with trees, loss of woodland cover over time is another possible proxy. Observation frequency over time. The species was first described in 1928. There are 22 datable records of this species. The earliest is 1923 and the most recent is 2015. The profile of dated records is: pre-1961 (20); 1961-2000 (1); post-2000 (1); Observations have declined sharply. Loss of tree cover over time. This species occurs associated with trees in the following countries (percentage loss of tree cover between 2001 and 2024 in brackets): Trinidad & Tobago (6.5%); Venezuela (4.5%) [figures from 'Forest change' tab of Global Forest Watch]. Current trend (inferred). Long-term steep decline possibly driven by habitat destruction. The small number of datable records makes this inference very uncertain. Conservation actions (in situ). None known. Conservation actions (ex situ). Culture collections. Straininfo: check current status. Genome banks. European Nucleotide Archive: check current status; NCBI: check current status. Economic impacts (positive). Bioremediation. None known. Biotechnology. None known. Cultural. None known. Ecosystem services. None known. Feed (animals). None known. Food (human). None known. Medical/veterinary. None known. Economic impacts (negative). Biodeterioration. None known. Disease. None known. Invasiveness. None known.