Fungal Species Conservation: Alessioporus ichnusanus (Alessio, Galli & Littini) Gelardi, Vizzini & Simonini and Poronia punctata (L.) Fr. two new entries IUCN red list in 2019 thanks to a national collaboration network

Abstract

On the 30 November 2018 in Rome was held the Workshop “Matching fungal conservation in Italy: the current state and future challenges” sponsored by The Italian Botanical Society and organized by the mycology working group with the participation of Anders Dahlberg. Following the workshop, the mycology working group committed to work, within The Global Fungal Red List Initiative, on the assessment of the threat status of two fungal species, in order to get them included in the IUCN red list. To pursue the assessment in the best possible way, thanks to a first opportunity of collaboration during the workshop, was promoted the initiative of developing a national collaboration network including the Italian Botanical Society mycology working group, research institutes and amateur associations. The two species that were chosen to be assessed within The Global Fungal Red List Initiative were Alessioporus ichnusanus (Alessio, Galli & Littini) Gelardi, Vizzini & Simonini (Basidiomycota) and Poronia punctata (L.) Fr. (Ascomycota). Alessioporus ichnusanus is an ectomycorrhizal species that grows in thermophilous broadleaved forests, associated with pure or mixed evergreen sclerophyllous and deciduous oak communities (1). The analysed data showed that this species has a range restricted to European Mediterranean region and grows in small scattered localities. Poronia punctata is a coprophilous fungal species mainly associated with horse dung. Therefore, major threats to this species include the reduction of natural grazing of equines and other domestic animals and the reduction or loss of typical semi-natural habitats (2). Despite this species has a worldwide distribution, a substantial decline and several local extinctions have been observed during the last century in its population. Data provided by members of the Italian Botanical Society Mycology Working Group, ISPRA Special Fungi Project, Associazione Micologica Ecologica Romana (AMER) and Agaricwatching Mycology Association, together with data reported in literature and in online databases, were crucial to estimate the current distribution and geographic range of these species. The assessments proposed by this working group to The Global Fungal Red List Initiative (http://iucn.ekoo.se/en) have been reviewed within the ECCF Workshop in Cambridge, 25–29 March 2019 during which the following assessments have been formalized. Alessioporus ichnusanus qualifies for the IUCN red list as Endangered under criterion C2a(i) because of less than 250 mature individuals in largest subpopulation and population decline. Poronia punctata is assessed as Least Concern, because, even though the magnitude of its past population decline and several local extinctions, the risk of global extinction is currently low. However, Poronia punctata is considered of conservation concern and in case the decline restart, then it may quickly move towards a threatened category. The upcoming publication (2019) of these two fungal species in the IUCN red list represents a remarkable result in order to promote fungal species conservation. Moreover, this experience showed the great importance of a collaboration network in order to achieve relevant results in nature conservation both on a national and international level