Despite the megadiversity of tropical African fungi, they are still largely under-represented in international occurrence databases and GenBank. For example, only 0.64% of the occurrence data in the GBIF databases from Benin specifically concerns fungi. In the fungal group, data on Wild Edible Fungi (WEF) are of paramount importance. WEF constitute an important source of food income and medicines for local communities in Benin.

Data compilation on Wild Edible Fungi will help to map regions rich in WEF and their most threatened areas which deserve conservation action as well as to guide policies regarding the suitable areas for the establishment of WEF value chains. The mycoflora of Benin comprises 16,842 species of which only between 1-3% are known (Piepenbring et al. 2020). Investigating fungi by the Data Mobilization and Long Term Conservation of Wild Fungi (WEF) project in Benin will fill an important knowledge gap and benefit scientists and local people that depend on fungi as a supplemental food source.

The key goals for the Data Mobilization and Long Term Conservation of Wild Fungi (WEF) in Benin include:

Goal 1: Compile occurrence data of fungi in a unified singled database.
Indicator: About 10,000 occurrence data of fungi are compiled and accessible for public use.

Goal 2: Train local scientists, conservationists, and students on how to gather and format occurrence data.
Indicator: Up to 100 people, including scientists, conservationists, and students are equipped with advanced techniques to collect, preserve, identify and format WEF occurrence data.

Goal 3: Train local scientists, conservationists, and students on how to generate morphological and genetic data of fungi.
Indicator: Up to 100 people, including scientists, conservationists, and students are able to generate macro and microscopic data of fungi, extract fungal DNA, amplify, sequence, and submit sequences on NCBI and UNITE.

Goal 4: Upload occurrence data of WEF onto the homepage of GBIF and iNaturalist.
Indicator: About 5000 new occurrence data of WEF from Benin are available on GBIF and iNaturalist homepages.

Goal 5: Generate and submit WEF DNA sequences on NCBI and UNITE.
Indicator: More than 1000 DNA sequences of WEF from Benin are generated and submitted to NCBI and UNITE for public use.

Goal 6: Establish the checklist of WEF of Benin.
Indicator: A well-illustrated checklist of WEF of Benin is produced and published in peer-reviewed journals.

Goal 7: Establish a distribution map of WEFs highlighting priority areas for conservation.
Indicator: A distribution map of WEFs highlighting priority areas for conservation is produced and disseminated to local authorities and policy makers.

Roël Houdanon is a postdoctoral fellow in tropical Mycology at the University of Parakou (Benin). His research focuses on fungi, especially those that form an ectomycorrhizal symbiosis with the roots of plants. Currently, for his post-doc studies, he is researching the processes that generate and maintain the diversity of ectomycorrhizal species. The questions he addresses span scientific fields — including evolution, taxonomy, and ecology and he uses a wide range of methods in his field studies such as DNA sequencing, and bioinformatics and phyloinformatics. In addition, he researches applied questions such as how fungi are used by local populations (ethnomycology).