Amorphophallus samarensis (Araceae), a new species endemic to Samar Island, Eastern Visayas, Philippines

From Firenze University Press Journal: Journal of Plant Taxonomy and Geography (Webbia)

Norilyn Fontarum-Bulawin, The Graduate School, University of Santo Tomas

Maria Melanie Medecilo-Guiang, Department of Biology/Center for Biodiversity Research and Extension in Mindanao (CEBREM), Central Mindanao University

Grecebio Jonathan D. Alejandro, The Graduate School, University of Santo Tomas

One of the biggest families of flora is Araceae. This family is also called “Arum” (Moodley et al. 2016). Amorphophallus is one of the biggest genera of the family Araceae (Claudel and Lev-Yadun 2021; Islam et al. 2023). This genus is considered to have an extremely small population (Tang et al. 2020) and is the third-largest genus of the family Araceae with paleotropical dis-persion (Claudel and Lev-Yadun 2021). Based on the record of the World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP 2022), there are 241 accepted Amorpho-phallus species worldwide (Bulawin et al. 2022; Bulawin et al. 2023). In the Philippines, a total of 20 accepted Amorphophallus species (Pelser et al. 2011 onwards; Bulawin et al. 2023) are currently recorded, and one of these could also be found in Samar. The discovery of A. samarensisisanother addition to Philippine Amorphophallus.Due to its unique topography, climate condition, and physical structure, the Philippines has a rich biodi-versity consisting of endemic and diverse species, nev-ertheless, it is on the list of conservation preferences (Batuyong et al. 2020). In the Philippines, Samar is con-sidered the third largest island, with a total land area of 13,458 sq km (PCARRD 2006). Samar Island consists of a huge area of karst, and some of these areas are part of Samar Island Natural Park (SINP) (Villanueva et al. 2021) and located in Northern and Eastern Samar. The park has highlands with distinct peaks surrounded by limestone rock (Patindol 2016). Under Presidential Proclamation 442, SINP was established as Protected Area on April 13, 2003 (Meniano 2022) by the National Inte-grated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) Act of 1992. The forest of Samar Island Natural Park covers 330,300 hectares and 124,500 hectares buffer zone and was nominat-ed as UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site (Villanue-va et al. 2021). The SINP is one of the significant spots in Samar because of its rich biodiversity (Patindol 2016). It is also a dwelling area for the Philippine Eagle, Philippine Hawk Eagle, and the Philippine Cockatoo and some endangered species like Giant Golden-Crowned Flying Fox, Philippine Nectar Bat, Philippine Pygmy Roundleaf Bat, Philippine Warty Pig, Philippine Brown Deer, large forest rat, hairy tailed rat, and squirrel (Senate Bill №2392). Additionally, new species of palms and orchids are included in the present record of SINP’s biodiversity. The first author conducted fieldwork last 2019 and found this interesting Amorphophallus species. Another fieldwork was done at SINP in 2022 to validate the new species and additional specimens were collected for further examination.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.36253/jopt-16302

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