Syzygium schistaceum is an endemic shrub from New Caledonia restricted to the north east of Grande Terre, from Pouébo to Ouégoa. It is found in dense humid forest on volcano sedimentary substrate between 500 and 780 m asl. The population size is unknown. The main threats identified are bushfires and Rusa deer (Rusa timorensis) causing a degradation of its habitat quality. Its extent of occurrence (EOO) and area of occupancy (AOO) are 24 and 16 km², respectively, with an estimation of 3 locations. Therefore, S. schistaceum is listed as Endangered (EN) under criteria B1ab(iii,v)+B2ab(iii,v).

Geographical area

S. schistaceum is endemic to New Caledonia where it is restricted to the north east of Grande Terre, from Pouébo to Ouégoa. It is known from 3 subpopulations: Ouangati, Haute Diahot and Bwaté (Ouégoa).

Population

Population size is unknown.

Habitat

S. schistaceum occurs in dense humid forest on volcano sedimentary substrate between 500 and 780 m asl.

Threats

The main threats identified are bushfires and Rusa deer (Rusa timorensis) causing a degradation of its habitat quality.

Conservation

This species is not protected by legislation in New Caledonia and it does not occur in any protected area. This species should be included in the regional legislation for a better protection of the species and ex situ and in situ conservation efforts are urgently needed, in particular : ensuring the follow-up of the known sub-populations and preserving it on delimited perimeters. The local authority responsible for the coordination of the firefighting effort should be informed about the presence of the species in the concerned areas. And it is recommended to improve the knowledge of the species (prospections, more herbarium specimens, specie's ecology) to better understand its distribution and better estimate its status.

Bibliography

Endemia.nc 2016. Faune et Flore de Nouvelle-Calédonie.

Morat, P.; Jaffré, T.; Tronchet, F.; Munzinger, J.; Pillon, Y.; Veillon, J.-M. and Chalopin, M. 2012. Le référentiel taxonomique Florical et les caractéristiques de la flore vasculaire indigène de la Nouvelle-Calédonie [The taxonomic database « FLORICAL » and characteristics of the indigenous flora of New Caledonia]. Adansonia sér 3(34) , p.177-219.

Dawson J.W. 1999. Flore de la Nouvelle-Calédonie et dépendances. Volume 23 : Myrtaceae Myrtoideae 1 : Syzygium.

Experts

Assessor(s): Héquet, V., Vandrot, H., Barrabé, L., Amice, R., Butin, J., Cazé, H., Fleurot, D., Suprin, B., Chambrey, C., Laudereau, C., Haverkamp, C., Fogliani, B.

Reviewer(s): Gâteblé, G.

Facilitator(s): Warimavute, G., Tanguy, V., Meyer, S.