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Scientific Name | Pachycarpus suaveolens (Schltr.) Nicholas & Goyder |
Higher Classification | Dicotyledons |
Family | APOCYNACEAE |
Synonyms | Asclepias macra Schltr., Asclepias suaveolens Schltr., Gomphocarpus suaveolens Schltr. |
National Status |
Status and Criteria | Vulnerable B1ab(iii) |
Assessment Date | 2007/05/18 |
Assessor(s) | M. Lötter, A. Nicholas & L. von Staden |
Justification | A showy plant known from eight historical locations and probably extremely rare. One location, last collected in Gauteng in 1929 has subsequently been lost to urban expansion and this species is likely to be locally extinct in Gauteng. The grasslands habitat across its range (EOO 19 900 km²) is extensively transformed by urban development, crop cultivation, mining and invasive alien plants. Mining is causing a continuing decline in habitat between Witbank and Carolina. |
Distribution |
Endemism | Not endemic to South Africa |
Provincial distribution | Gauteng, Mpumalanga |
Range | Gauteng and Mpumalanga to Swaziland. |
Habitat and Ecology |
Major system | Terrestrial |
Major habitats | Soweto Highveld Grassland, Steenkampsberg Montane Grassland, Eastern Highveld Grassland, Rand Highveld Grassland |
Description | Short or annually burnt grasslands, 1400-2000 m. |
Threats |
| Threatened by agriculture, mining and aliens. Seventy-five percent of the known localities occur in heavily transformed areas, with about 45% of the habitat within its known range already transformed (M. Lötter, pers. comm.). Around the Witbank-Carolina-Ermelo area there is substantial coal mining already, as well as renewed interest in coal mining. A number of mining applications are currently under consideration for that area (see Khadia carolinensis).
Urban expansion may have led to the local extinction of this species in Gauteng (A. Nicholas pers. comm.). |
Population |
Population trend | Decreasing |
Conservation |
| Unknown. There are no known records from formally conserved areas, but it could occur in the Malolotja Nature Reserve. |
Assessment History |
Taxon assessed |
Status and Criteria |
Citation/Red List version | | Pachycarpus suaveolens (Schltr.) Nicholas & Goyder | VU B1ab(iii) | Raimondo et al. (2009) | | Pachycarpus suaveolens (Schltr.) Nicholas & Goyder | Rare | Hilton-Taylor (1996) | |
Bibliography |
Hilton-Taylor, C. 1996. Red data list of southern African plants. Strelitzia 4. South African National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
Nicholas, A. 1999. A taxonomic reassessment of the subtribe Asclepiadinae (Asclepiaceae) in Southern Africa. Unpublished Ph.D., University of Durban-Westville, Durban.
Nicholas, A. and Goyder, D.J. 1990. Corona lobe variation and the generic position of Asclepias macra (Asclepiadaceae). Bothalia 20(1):88-90.
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.
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Citation |
| Lötter, M., Nicholas, A. & von Staden, L. 2007. Pachycarpus suaveolens (Schltr.) Nicholas & Goyder. National Assessment: Red List of South African Plants version . Accessed on 2025/04/14 |
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