| Citation |
|
Description |
Geographic Range [top]
Range Description: This species is a recently described, medium-sized rhizomatous perennial which is endemic to Borneo. Until recently, the taxon was thought to be endemic to the Batu Apoi Forest Reserve, in Brunei. However, a collection in Sabah (Malaysia), southwest of Bukit Madalon (within the Kinabalu National Park), about 250 km away, has recently been determined as Boesenbergia belalongensis.
Countries occurrence:
Native:
Brunei Darussalam; Malaysia (Sabah)
Additional data:
? Lower elevation limit (metres): 65
? Upper elevation limit (metres): 850
Range Map: Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.
Population [top]
Population: The species was reported from several localities in the Batu Apoi Reserve from Kuala Belalong, at 65 m to about 850 m asl near Bukit Belalong (Poulsen 1993). In field surveys at different altitudes within the reserve, in 1994, the taxon wasnt found in the three plots sampled at 200 m asl, two individuals were found in one plot at 500 m asl and 40 individuals were found within the three surveyed plots at 850 m asl (Poulsen 1995). The size of the subpopulation near Bukit Madalon, in Sabah is unknown. The dynamics of the population are unknown.
Current Population Trend: Unknown
Additional data:
Habitat and Ecology [top]
Habitat and Ecology: This species was collected on shale formations, in moist habitats, on steep banks and ridges, near streams and rivers, in primary mixed Dipterocarp forest, both in lowland and lower montane rainforest, from 65 m to about 850 m asl. The topography of the Batu Apoi Forest Reserve is very rugged with narrow ridges and steep valley slopes. Zingiberaceae and Araceae were found to be the families that had the highest number of species in the ground flora within this Forest Reserve. The climate in the region is tropical and almost constantly humid. The understory of the tall closed-canopy forest is characterized by low light intensity and high humidity (Poulsen 1993, 1996).
Systems: Terrestrial
Use and Trade [top]
Use and Trade: This species is not thought to be utilized.
Threats [top]
Major Threat(s): Over half of the lowland forest in Borneo has been converted or degraded due to human activities such as commercial and illegal logging, large-scale agriculture for oil palm, mining, dam construction, shifting cultivation and infrastructure development. Large fires have burnt several other remaining tracts. Many of Borneos mountain forests have remained largely intact due to their isolation and the rugged landscape, but mining operations, large dams, high-altitude timber operations, and road building are all increasing threats to this ecoregions biodiversity (Loucks 2001). However, the forest reserve of Bukit Belalong has continuous primary rainforest from its base to its summit (Pendry and Proctor 1997). Human impact on the forest is apparently slight and limited to hunting and gathering of forest products by local Iban People. The summit of Bukit Belalong has been cleared to allow helicopters to land and the clearing was extended to about 50 m x 50 m in January 1992 (Poulsen 1996). Deforestation in the Kinabalu area has slowed down considerably in the last decade. The park is proving to be effective in protecting the tropical forest against clearing. However, deforestation rates in the buffer zone have remained unchanged (Phua et al. 2008). Some species of Boesenbergia are used as spices and folk medicine and some have been found to have valuable medicinal properties, however, there is no recorded ethnobotanical use of this species. Gingers have enjoyed popularity as ornamental plants in Asia and the Far East for centuries. Ornamental gingers have rapidly increased in popularity in the western world in the past few years (West Demmy and Burch 1998), which has promoted an increase in illegal collecting. This is an attractive plant, with the central yellow-green leaves (Poulsen 1993), although it is not known whether extraction threatens the population of this species. Severe droughts have recently been affecting ecosystems in the region, however, the impact on this species is unknown.
Conservation Actions [top]
Conservation Actions: This species was collected within the Batu Apoi Forest Reserve, which covers 450 km2 of the Temburong district of Brunei and from within the Mount Kinabalu National Park, a World Heritage site in Sabah, which covers 754 km2. Habitats within these conservation units seem to have remained intact. Zingibericeae have often not been well explored in the field as collections were avoided by conventional workers due to the large herbaceous size, having fleshy rhizomes which pose a problem in the preparation of herbarium specimens. Additionally their occurrence as undergrowth in inaccessible forest areas can make collection difficult and the often short period of flowering hinders collection of materials with adequate character details (Prakash and Mehrotra 1996). Until recently, the region was largely botanically unexplored and under-collected and large tracts of montane rain forests still remain to be explored, it seems likely that many species may be incompletely mapped. Surveys should be conducted in historical sites of collection and potentially suitable areas to determine the current range and size of the population. The ecology and biology of the taxon should be studied and population viability analysis conducted. Seeds should be collected for germplasm conservation and cultivation as part of ex situ conservation measures. Collection of the taxon should otherwise be prohibited.
Citation: Chadburn, H., Contu, S. & Romand-Monnier, F. 2013. Boesenbergia belalongensis. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013: e.T44393569A44510279. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-2.RLTS.T44393569A44510279.en. Downloaded on 14 August 2017.
Disclaimer: To make use of this information, please check the .
Feedback: If you see any errors or have any questions or suggestions on what is shown on this page, please provide us with feedback so that we can correct or extend the information provided
|
