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Scientific Name | Aloiampelos commixta (A.Berger) Klopper & Gideon.F.Sm. |
Higher Classification | Monocotyledons |
Family | ASPHODELACEAE |
Synonyms | Aloe commixta A.Berger, Aloe gracilis Baker (later homonym), not of Haw. (1825) |
National Status |
Status and Criteria | Vulnerable D2 |
Assessment Date | 2020/01/28 |
Assessor(s) | E.J. van Jaarsveld, N.A. Helme, D. Raimondo & L. von Staden |
Justification | This species is a localized endemic to the Cape Peninsula, with an extent of occurrence (EOO) of 68-163 km², and an area of occupancy (AOO) of 44-68 km². It is estimated to occur at three to five locations. The population is currently stable, but it is dependent on ongoing management and clearing of alien invasive plants to avoid its risk of extinction increasing. It therefore qualifies as Vulnerable under criterion D. |
Distribution |
Endemism | South African endemic |
Provincial distribution | Western Cape |
Range | This species is endemic to the southern Cape Peninsula, South Africa, where it occurs from Silvermine to the Cape Point section of Table Mountain National Park. |
Habitat and Ecology |
Major system | Terrestrial |
Major habitats | Peninsula Shale Renosterveld, Peninsula Sandstone Fynbos, Peninsula Granite Fynbos |
Description | It occurs on rocky sandstone outcrops, 0-600 m. |
Threats |
| This species lost some of its habitat to urban expansion in the past, but most of its remaining habitat is now protected in the Table Mountain National Park (TMNP), and development is no longer a significant threat. Most of its range was densely invaded by alien invasive plants in the past, but there has been extensive efforts to clear alien invasive plants inside TMNP. Alien invasive plants require ongoing management and clearing, and re-emergence of invasive species from soil-stored seed banks remain a potential threat.
Parts of the Cape Peninsula is being impacted by too frequent fires, which can lead to the local extinctions of reseeder species dependent on seed banks for regeneration. It is however a resprouter (E. van Jaarsveld pers. comm.) and therefore likely to be resilient to increases in fire frequency. |
Population |
Recent (2010-2019) field observations recorded several subpopulations on the northern Cape Peninsula. It is not certain whether these are wild populations or not. Within the species' known range on the southern Peninsula, there are at least six subpopulations. The wild populations are healthy and does not appear to be declining (E. van Jaarsveld pers. comm. 2018). The population is suspected to be small, but the estimate of the population size is uncertain. It is possibly smaller than 1000 mature individuals, but field surveys are needed to confirm this.
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Population trend | Stable |
Conservation |
| Most of the population of this species is protected within the Table Mountain National Park. |
Assessment History |
Taxon assessed |
Status and Criteria |
Citation/Red List version | | Aloiampelos commixta (A.Berger) Klopper & Gideon.F.Sm. | VU D1+2 | 2014.1 | | Aloe commixta A.Berger | VU D1+2 | Raimondo et al. (2009) | |
Bibliography |
Glen, H.F. and Hardy, D.S. 2000. Aloaceae (First part): Aloe. In: G. Germishuizen (ed). Flora of Southern Africa 5 Part 1, Fascicle 1:1-159. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
Goldblatt, P. and Manning, J.C. 2000. Cape Plants: A conspectus of the Cape Flora of South Africa. Strelitzia 9. National Botanical Institute, Cape Town.
Grace, O.M., Klopper, R.R., Smith, G.F., Crouch, N.R., Figueiredo, E., Rønsted, N. and Van Wyk, A.E. 2013. A revised generic classification for Aloe (Xanthorrhoeaceae subfam. Asphodeloideae). Phytotaxa 76(1):7-14.
Helme, N.A. and Trinder-Smith, T.H. 2006. The endemic flora of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa. South African Journal of Botany 72(2):205-210.
Raimondo, D., von Staden, L., Foden, W., Victor, J.E., Helme, N.A., Turner, R.C., Kamundi, D.A. and Manyama, P.A. 2009. Red List of South African Plants. Strelitzia 25. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria.
Reynolds, G.W. 1969. The Aloes of South Africa. A.A. Balkema, Cape Town.
Van Wyk, B.-E. and Smith, G.F. 2014. Guide to the Aloes of South Africa. (Third ed.). Briza Publications, Pretoria.
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Citation |
| van Jaarsveld, E.J., Helme, N.A., Raimondo, D. & von Staden, L. 2020. Aloiampelos commixta (A.Berger) Klopper & Gideon.F.Sm. National Assessment: Red List of South African Plants version . Accessed on 2025/05/15 |
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