Thursday, August 30, 2007

Sabah reveals orchid diversity


Botanists have known for years the plant diversity at one of Malaysia’s key icons, Mount Kinabalu.

Nearly three quarters of the more than 1,200 orchid species found in Sabah, for example, are endemic to the mountain and the 754 sq km park area, about three time the size of Penang island, surrounding it.

The vast diversity of Sabah’s orchids continues to reveal itself as researchers continue to uncover new species of the plant.

Borneo Orchid Society of Sabah (BOSS) president Datuk C.L. Chan said most of the species were “small and uninteresting” and usually referred to as “botanical orchids”.

An exception to this was a ground-growing orchid with “gorgeous” yellow-orange blooms found on the Silau Silau Trail on Mount Kinabalu that botanists recently realised was a new species.

Continue reading (incl. pics) at: Sabah reveals orchid diversity

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