Rare Rafflesia species discovered in new locations in Sabah

KOTA KINABALU: A recent study found that Sabah’s rarest Rafflesia has been discoveredin new locations, says the Sabah Forestry Department.

Chief Conservator of Forests, Datuk Frederick Kugan said this endemic species–Rafflesia tengku-adlinii–was found in Bukit Monkobo and Bukit Mentapok Forest Reserve in Sabah during the Heart of Borneo (HoB) scientific expedition in mid-August, 2023.

He said this species is the rarest among the three rafflesias found in Sabah.

Previously, it was only found in the western and central parts of the state namely the Trus Madi Range and Maliau Basin Conservation Area, he said.

He said the Rafflesia tengku-adlinii was named after one of Sabah’s foremost conservationists, Datuk Dr Tengku D. Z. Adlin. The flower was discovered in 1987 by the late Prof. Kamarudin Mat Salleh in the Trus Madi Range.

The flower is small (20.5-23.2 cm in diameter) compared to the other two species, and it has homogeneous orange-coloured perigone lobes with roundish orange warts, he said.

“Rafflesias are parasitic plants. The host plant of this species was identified as Tetrastigma diepenhorstii,” Kugan said.

This discovery was made by a group of researchers led by John Sugau, Dr Reuben Nilus and Razy Japir, from the Sabah Forestry Department Forest Research Centre, with cooperation from the Beluran District Forestry Office and TSH Resources Berhad.

Kugan said that the discovery of the rare rafflesia species would enhance the protection and conservation of this reserve, which was re-gazetted as a Class I Forest Reserve (Protection) in 2015.

He said the 5,443 ha reserve is almost entirely enclosed by Ulu Tungud Forest Reserve except for the southern part, which borders private land.

He said the Ulu Tungud FR is licensed to TSH Resources Berhad.

The Monkobo (1,829 m) and the adjacent Mentapok (1,581 m) peaks are among the lesser-known and much-unexplored mountains in the north-central part of Sabah.