Magnolia fraseri

Magnolia fraseri is a tree in forests and coves endemic to the southern and central Appalachian mountains and adjacent piedmont in the eastern United States from Pennsylvania south to South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama. There are an estimated 850 occurrences which potentially face threats from development, silviculture, wildfires, and invasive species. Little is known about trends, but with a large range extent and large number of occurrences, abundant habitat, and no obvious intrinsic vulnerabilities, this species is considered apparently secure.

Magnolia fraseri is endemic to the southern and central Appalachian mountains and adjacent piedmont in the eastern United States from southwestern Pennsylvania south to northwestern South Carolina, northern Georgia, and northeastern Alabama (FNA 1997, Weakley and the Southeastern Flora Team 2024). Range extent was estimated to be approximately 152,000 square kilometers using herbarium specimens and photo-based observations documented between 1993 and 2024 (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, SEINet 2024).

By applying a 1 km separation distance to herbarium specimens and photo-based observations documented between 1993 and 2024, it is estimated that there are over 850 occurrences rangewide (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, SEINet 2024). This species is occasionally cultivated (FNA 1997), and iNatualist observations (3450) were not evaluated for evidence of cultivation, though observations outside the native range were excluded (iNaturalist 2024).

Although threats are not widely documented, this species is potentially threatened by development, silviculture, wildfires, invasive species, and other threats in some places. However, their overall impact is likely negligible given the species' broad range, large number of occurrences, and no obvious intrinsic vulnerabilities.