Red List Status
EN - Endangered, B1ab(iii)+2ab(iii) (IUCN version 3.1)

Red List Assessment

Red List Status

Is the reassessment subject to the 5-year rule? (Not specified)

Assessment Information

Date of Assessment: 2023-01-30

Reviewed? (Not specified)

Assessor(s): Braun, K.

Reviewer(s): (Not specified)

Contributor(s): (Not specified)

Facilitators/Compilers: (Not specified)

Institution(s): (Not specified)

Acknowledgements: (Not specified)

Regions: Global

Regional Expert Questions: (Not specified)

Assessment Rationale

Ocimum motjaneanum has a restricted distribution, with an estimated extent of occurrence of 1,137.857 km² and area of occupancy of 20 km². All but one of the records for this subspecies have been found within a small area in Eswatini, on ultramafic soils. Threats to this species include potential changes in land use, for urban development and agriculture, as well as potential habitat degradation from ongoing heavy grazing by livestock and uncontrolled burning, and spread of invasive alien plant species. Based on this, the subspecies has been assessed as Endangered, under Criteria B1 and B2.
Date last seen: 2020

Reasons for Change

Reason(s) for Change in Red List Category from the Previous Assessment: (Not specified)

Red List Index

Red List Index: (Not specified)

Distribution

Geographic Range

This species was initially only known from north west Eswatini in the Motjane and Forbes Reef areas. The description of this species included a description of the known populations with an area of occupancy of perhaps 1 km2, with all known plants occurring in an area of less than 25 km, known only from ultramafic sites. An additional record from South Africa near Hendrina raises the question of whether this species is in fact much more widely distributed but poorly collected.

Area of Occupancy (AOO)

Estimated area of occupancy (AOO) - in km2	Justification
20	The area of occupancy is based on five recorded localities, calculated using GeoCAT (Bachman et al. 2011), with the standard 2x2 km grid cell being applied.

Continuing decline in area of occupancy (AOO)	Qualifier	Justification
Unknown	-	No surveys of this species have been conducted in recent years, so there is currently no evidence of decline in area of occupancy.

Extreme fluctuations in area of occupancy (AOO): (Not specified)

Extent of Occurrence (EOO)

Estimated extent of occurrence (EOO)- in km2	EOO estimate calculated from Minimum Convex Polygon	Justification
1137.857	true	The estimated extent of occurrence is based on five localities, calculated using GeoCAT (Bachman et al. 2011).

Continuing decline in extent of occurrence (EOO): (Not specified)

Extreme fluctuations in extent of occurrence (EOO): (Not specified)

Locations Information

Number of Locations	Justification
5	The estimated number of locations is based on four localities recorded in Eswatini and one in South Africa.

Continuing decline in number of locations	Qualifier	Justification
Unknown	-	-

Extreme fluctuations in the number of locations: (Not specified)

Very restricted AOO or number of locations (triggers VU D2)

Very restricted in area of occupancy (AOO) and/or # of locations	Justification
Yes	The estimated area of occupancy is 20 km2, all but one restricted to the ultramafic sites in north western Eswatini. The more recent record of this species in South Africa raises the question of whether this species is more widespread than originally believed. Further fieldwork might extend the area of occupancy, so it would no longer be classified as very restricted.

Elevation / Depth / Depth Zones

Elevation Lower Limit (in metres above sea level): 1315

Elevation Upper Limit (in metres above sea level): 1645

Depth Lower Limit (in metres below sea level): (Not specified)

Depth Upper Limit (in metres below sea level): (Not specified)

Depth Zone: (Not specified)

Map Status

Map Status: (Not specified)

Biogeographic Realms

Biogeographic Realm: Afrotropical

Country	Presence	Origin	Formerly Bred	Seasonality
Eswatini	Extant	Native	-	Resident
South Africa -> Mpumalanga	Extant	Native	-	Resident

Population

The information for this species within Eswatini is based on fieldwork carried out by Donald McCallum and Kevin Balkwill in 1997. There have been no more recent surveys of this species, and there is a need for more fieldwork to confirm the continued existence in the previously documented localities. For the purposes of this assessment, it has been assumed that the plants still occur in these areas. The additional record from South Africa, recorded in 2020, significantly extends the range of this species, but there is currently no further information on its presence in South Africa.

Population Information

Current Population Trend: (Not specified)

Number of mature individuals (=population size): (Not specified)

Extreme fluctuations? (in # of mature individuals): (Not specified)

Severely fragmented? (Not specified)

Continuing decline in mature individuals? (Not specified)

Continuing decline % in mature individuals within 1 generation or 3 years, whichever is longer (up to max. of 100 years in the future): (Not specified)

Continuing decline % in mature individuals within 2 generations or 5 years, whichever is longer (up to max. of 100 years in the future): (Not specified)

Continuing decline % in mature individuals within 3 generations or 10 years, whichever is longer (up to max. of 100 years in the future): (Not specified)

Extreme fluctuations in the number of subpopulations: (Not specified)

Continuing decline in number of subpopulations: (Not specified)

All individuals in one subpopulation: (Not specified)

Number of mature individuals in largest subpopulation: (Not specified)

Number of Subpopulations: (Not specified)

Population Reduction - Past

Percent Change in past: (Not specified)

Past Population Reduction Basis: (Not specified)

Causes of past reduction reversible? (Not specified)

Causes of past reduction understood? (Not specified)

Causes of past reduction ceased? (Not specified)

Population Reduction - Future

Percent Change in future: (Not specified)

Future Population Reduction Basis: (Not specified)

Population Reduction - Ongoing

Both: Percent Change over any 10 year or 3 generation period, whichever is longer, and must include both past and future, future can't go beyond 100 years: (Not specified)

Both Population Reduction Basis: (Not specified)

Causes of both (past and future) reduction reversible? (Not specified)

Causes of both (past and future) reduction understood? (Not specified)

Causes of both (past and future) reduction ceased? (Not specified)

Quantitative Analysis

Probability of extinction in the wild within 3 generations or 10 years, whichever is longer, maximum 100 years: (Not specified)

Probability of extinction in the wild within 5 generations or 20 years, whichever is longer, maximum 100 years: (Not specified)

Probability of extinction in the wild within 100 years: (Not specified)

Habitats and Ecology

Within Eswatini, this species is known from ultramafic soils in highveld grassland, vegetation type KaNgwane Montane Grassland (Gm16), and in South Africa, in Eastern Highveld Grassland (Gm12) (Mucina et. al. 2018).

IUCN Habitats Classification Scheme

Habitat	Season	Suitability	Major Importance?
4.7. Grassland -> Grassland - Subtropical/Tropical High Altitude	-	Suitable	Yes

Continuing Decline in Habitat

Continuing decline in area, extent and/or quality of habitat?	Qualifier	Justification
Yes	Inferred	There is an ongoing decline in the quality and extent of the habitat within Eswatini, due to development in the area and the encroachment of black wattle.

Life History

Generation Length: (Not specified)

Age at maturity: female or unspecified: (Not specified)

Age at Maturity: Male: (Not specified)

Size at Maturity (in cms): Female: (Not specified)

Size at Maturity (in cms): Male: (Not specified)

Longevity: (Not specified)

Average Reproductive Age: (Not specified)

Maximum Size (in cms): (Not specified)

Size at Birth (in cms): (Not specified)

Gestation Time: (Not specified)

Reproductive Periodicity: (Not specified)

Average Annual Fecundity or Litter Size: (Not specified)

Annual Rate of Population Increase: (Not specified)

Natural Mortality: (Not specified)

Does the species lay eggs? (Not specified)

Does the species give birth to live young: (Not specified)

Does the species exhibit parthenogenesis: (Not specified)

Does the species have a free-living larval stage? (Not specified)

Does the species require water for breeding? (Not specified)

Movement Patterns

Movement Patterns: (Not specified)

Congregatory: (Not specified)

Systems

System: Terrestrial

Plant / Fungi Specific

Wild relative of a crop? (Not specified)

Plant and Fungal Growth Forms: (Not specified)

Use and Trade

General Use and Trade Information

Species not utilized: (Not specified)

No use/trade information for this species: true

General notes regarding trade and use of this species: (Not specified)

Local Livelihood: (Not specified)

National Commercial Value: (Not specified)

International Commercial Value: (Not specified)

End Use: (Not specified)

Is there harvest from captive/cultivated sources of this species? (Not specified)

Trend in level of total offtake from wild sources: (Not specified)

Trend in level of total offtake from domesticated sources: (Not specified)

Harvest Trend Comments: (Not specified)

Non- Consumptive Use

Non-consumptive use of the species? (Not specified)

Explanation of non-consumptive use: (Not specified)

Livelihoods

Livelihoods: (Not specified)

Threats

There is an ongoing decline in the quality and extent of the habitat within Eswatini, due to development in the area and the encroachment of black wattle. The grassland is also heavily grazed and frequently burnt.

Threats Classification Scheme

No past, ongoing, or future threats exist to this species. (Not specified)

The threats to this species are unknown. (Not specified)

Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity
1.2. Residential & commercial development -> Commercial & industrial areas	Ongoing	Minority (<50%)	Very Rapid Declines
2.3.2. Agriculture & aquaculture -> Livestock farming & ranching -> Small-holder grazing, ranching or farming	Ongoing	Majority (50-90%)	Slow, Significant Declines
8.4.2. Invasive and other problematic species, genes & diseases -> Problematic species/disease of unknown origin -> Named species	Ongoing	Minority (<50%)	Slow, Significant Declines
8.4.2. Invasive and other problematic species, genes & diseases -> Problematic species/disease of unknown origin -> Named species	Ongoing	Minority (<50%)	Slow, Significant Declines

Conservation

None of the known localities for this species fall within a conservation area.

Conservation Actions In- Place

Action Recovery Plan	Note
No	-

Systematic monitoring scheme	Note
No	-

Conservation sites identified	Note
No	-

Occur in at least one PA	Note
No	-

Percentage of population protected by PAs (0-100)	Note
0	-

Area based regional management plan	Note
No	-

Invasive species control or prevention	Note
No	-

Harvest management plan	Note
No	-

Successfully reintroduced or introduced benignly	Note
No	-

Subject to ex-situ conservation	Note
No	-

Subject to recent education and awareness programmes	Note
No	-

Included in international legislation	Note
No	-

Subject to any international management/trade controls	Note
No	-

Important Conservation Actions Needed

Conservation Actions	Note
1.2. Land/water protection -> Resource & habitat protection	Currently, none of the known localities for this species fall within a protected area.
3.4.2. Species management -> Ex-situ conservation -> Genome resource bank	No material has yet been collected for ex-situ conservation of this species.

Research Needed

Research	Note
1.2. Research -> Population size, distribution & trends	Fieldwork is required to determine whether this species is more widespread than initially thought, as well as to determine the status of previously recorded sub-populations.

Ocimum motjaneanum - McCallum & K.Balkwill