Despite the importance of the Zamboanga Peninsula in terms of presence of restricted-range and endemic species, very few studies have been conducted in the area. However, thanks to ongoing field exploration efforts in the area over the past few years, new plant taxa have been discovered within the Zamboanga Peninsula in Philippines.
With the help of three citizen scientists, an unknown Cryptocoryne population was found in one of the streams of Zamboanga del Norte province, western Mindanao in March 2023. After careful morphological studies and literature review, researchers from Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) and their collaborators confirmed the unknown species was distinctive and new to science.
The new species was named Cryptocoryne zamboangaensis to refer to Zamboanga Peninsula where this species was discovered. The result was published in Nordic Journal of Botany.
Cryptocoryne zamboangaensis is a perennial, amphibious, large herb. It is similar to Cryptocoryne aponogetifolia in having very long leaves and a long spathe tube, but recognized by having a narrowly ovate, about 2 cm broad, densely verrucose bright purple spathe limb with a distinct narrow collar.
The new species is endemic to the Zamboanga Peninsula. So far, the species has only been found in the type locality where fewer than 250 mature individuals have been observed. The population is currently under threat by anthropogenic activities. The researchers thus proposed its conservation status as ‘Endangered' according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) standard.
"Zamboanga has the greatest number of recorded Cryptocoryne species (also known as water trumpet plants. With the discovery of this new endemic species, the Philippines now holds 11 taxa of Cryptocoryne,” said Mark Arcebal Naive, a Philippine student having Ph.D studies in XTBG.
Contact
Mark Arcebal K. Naive
Center for Integrative Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Menglun, Mengla, Yunnan 666303, China
E-mail: mark@xtbg.ac.cn
First published: 17 October 2023
Cryptocoryne zamboangaensis （Image by Mark Arcebal K. Naive）
Cryptocoryne zamboangaensis （Image by Mark Arcebal K. Naive）
Cryptocoryne zamboangaensis （Image by Mark Arcebal K. Naive）
Cryptocoryne zamboangaensis （Image by Mark Arcebal K. Naive）
