This week I thought I would highlight a species of critically endangered fungus (which the majority of people would obviously overlook), rather than the typical furry or enigmatic animals usually focused on.
The White Ferula Mushroom (or Bailin Oyster Mushroom; Funcia di basilicu), Pleurotus nebrodensis, grows in Sicily on Limestone [1], and is a creamy white to yellow colour. At maturity, the fungus can reach a diameter of 5-20cm, and develops extremely angled gills [2].
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| The White Ferula Mushroom, Pleurotus nebrodensis. Picture from [2]. |
On its discovery in 1866, Italian botanist Giuseppe Inzenga described it as "the most delicious mushroom of the Sicilian mycological flora" (which might give you some idea as to why the species is critically endangered) [1, 2].
Number left in existence:
It is estimated that less than 250 individuals reach maturity in the wild each year [1, 2, 3].
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| The geographical location of the White Ferula Mushroom; Sicily. Map from [3]. |
Geographical Range in the wild:
The species only occurs in Northern Sicily, growing in scattered localities in the Madonie Mountains at an altitude of 1,200-2,000m [1, 2, 3]. The area where the White Ferula Mushroom can be found covers less than 100 square kilometers, and populations are extremely fragmented [1, 2, 3].
The mushroom is so edible it is considered as prized for consumption. This has led to collection both by amateurs and professionals, causing severe damage to population numbers. To make matters worse their rareness has dramatically increased their price to around 70 Euros per kilo, meaning sellers and collectors are now picking unripe specimens (stopping them reproducing) [1, 2, 3].
The species is also under threat by anthropogenic habitat degradation and trampling by live stock.
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| The species is just too tasty! |
What can we do to help?
Stop picking, buying and eating them! (although this is obviously restricted to a minority of people that do trade in the species). Unfortunately there are currently no laws protecting this species, and even in protected areas there is no ban on collection. However draft rules have been prepared, and if these are approved collection in certain areas of protected parks will be illegal [1].
Thankfully populations of the species are now getting some respite as the species is being cultivated ex situ (outside of its natural habitat) to reduce collection pressure on wild populations [1, 2, 3]. But much greater legal attention is still required to prevent harmful collection practices, and extinction of the species.
References:
1. http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/61597/0
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleurotus_nebrodensis
3. http://i.iucnredlist.org/documents/amazingspecies/pleurotus-nebrodensis.pdf
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