| IUCN Species Information Service (SIS) Toolkit |
| Assessment Report | |
| Taxonomy | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kingdom | Phylum | Class | Order | Family |
| PLANTAE | TRACHEOPHYTA | MAGNOLIOPSIDA | LAMIALES | SCROPHULARIACEAE |
| Scientific Name: | Melanospermum swazicum |
| Species Authority: | Hilliard |
| Common Name/s: - | |
| Synonym/s: | - |
| Taxonomic Notes: | - |
| Assessment Information | |
|---|---|
| Red List Category & Criteria: | Vulnerable B1ab(iii)+2ab(iii) |
| Year Assessed: | 2023 |
| Assessor/s: | Braun, K. |
| Reviewer/s: | |
| Contributor/s: | |
| Facilitator/s: | |
| Institutions/s: | |
| Justification: Melanospermum swazicum has a restricted distribution, limited to a small area within Eswatini apart from one record from South Africa. The estimated extent of occurrence is 2,108.659 km2 and area of occupancy 32 km2. There are possible ongoing threats most of the population of species of habitat degradation due to overgrazing by livestock and burning, and the possibility of urban development affecting part of its range. Based on this, it has been assessed as Vulnerable, under Criteria B1 and B2. Date last seen: 1994 | |
| History: | - |
| Geographic Range | |
|---|---|
| Range Description: | This species is known primarily from the Eswatini highveld near Mbabane. There is one additional record from KwaZulu Natal in the Ngome area. |
| Countries: | Native: Eswatini; KwaZulu-Natal; |
| Population | |
|---|---|
| Population: | No detailed population surveys have been carried out for this species. For the purposes of this assessment, it has been assumed that it still exists in localities from older records, as the habitat is still present in many of these areas. |
| Population Trend: | Unknown |
| Habitat and Ecology | |
|---|---|
| Habitat and Ecology: | This species has been found on hilltops in grassland areas, in moist shaded peaty soil in the shelter of granite rocks. The vegetation type for the Eswatini localities being KaNgwane Montane Grassland (Gm16), and Northern Zululand Mistbelt Grassland for the KwaZulu Natal locality (Mucina et. al. 2018). |
| List of Habitats: | 4 Grassland 4.7 Grassland - Subtropical/Tropical High Altitude |
| Threats | |
|---|---|
| Major Threat(s): | As this species is found on hilltops, its habitat has been only marginally affected by urban development. It is also likely that the rocky nature has provided some protection from grazing and burning. |
| List of Threats: | 1 Residential & commercial development 1.1 Housing & urban areas 2 Agriculture & aquaculture 2.3 Livestock farming & ranching 2.3.2 Small-holder grazing, ranching or farming |
| Conservation Actions | |
|---|---|
| Conservation Actions: | This species has been recorded from within Malolotja Nature Reserve. The remainder of the known localities are not in protected areas. |
| List of Conservation Actions: | 1 Land/water protection 1.2 Resource & habitat protection 3 Species management 3.4 Ex-situ conservation 3.4.2 Genome resource bank |
| Bibliography | |
|---|---|
| Bachman
S, Moat J, Hill AW, de la Torre J and Scott B. 2011. Supporting Red
List threat assessments with GeoCAT geospatial conservation tool. In:
Smith V, Penev L (Eds) e-Infrastructure for data publishing in
biodiversity science. . ZooKeys 150: 117-126. Mucina, L., Rutherford, M.C. and Powrie, L.W. (Editors). 2018. The Vegetation Map of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. South African National Biodiversity Institute. Available at: http://bgis.sanbi.org/Projects/Detail/186. | |
| Citation: | - |