Scientific name

Meliola byrsonimicola F. Stevens & Tehon [IndexFungorum. Sylloge Fungorum 26: 99. Petrak's Lists 3: 202]

Synonyms

None noted.

Vernacular names

None known.

Taxonomic position

Meliolaceae, Meliolales, Sordariomycetes, Ascomycota, Fungi.

Red List assessment

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

Rationale

This evaluation is based on 56 records [breakdown: Cybernome (1 record); IndexFungorum (1 record); other catalogues (2 records)]. There are 22 records with dates, the earliest 1908 (the species was first described in 1926), the most recent 1976. Of dated records, 59% 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 6 other species belonging in 3 genera. This species is widely distributed and associated with more than one other genus. An appreciable proportion of the 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 (Amazonas, Pará); Cuba (Pinar del Río); Dominican Republic; Guyana; South Africa; Trinidad & Tobago (St George, Trinidad); Venezuela. IUCN area statistics [km²] AOO EOO Pre-1961 28 2,983,347 1961-2000 28 16,161,432 Post-2000 0 0 Associated organisms and substrata [IUCN Red List status, if known]. Fungi (part): Spiropes Cif. Plantae (part): Byrsonima crassifolia (L.) Kunth [LC] (leaf); Byrsonima crispa [LC] (leaf); Byrsonima lancifolia [LC]; Byrsonima laurifolia (leaf); Byrsonima verbascifolia (L.) DC. [LC] (leaf); Byrsonima sp. (leaf); Malpighia biflora Poir.; Malpighia biflora Poir. Habitat and ecology. Woodland: conifer. 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 1926. There are 22 datable records of this species. The earliest is 1908 and the most recent is 1976. The profile of dated records is: pre-1961 (9); 1961-2000 (13); post-2000 (0). Observations have increased and then declined again. 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): Brazil (14%); Cuba (10%); Dominican Republic (15%); Trinidad & Tobago (6.5%); Venezuela (4.5%) [figures from 'Forest change' tab of Global Forest Watch]. Current trend (inferred). Recent 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.