Kandelia candel (L.) Druce is a true mangrove species under the family Rhizophoraceae. It is distributed throughout southeast Asia to south China, the Ryukyu Island and southern Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. In the Philippines, its only known area of occurrence is the province of Aurora, the central easternmost coast of Luzon island. However, there has been a long-standing debate on the presence of natural populations of Kandelia candel in the Philippines. Adding to the confusion, a number of molecular studies reported that the Kandelia populations from north of the South China Sea (SCS) are a genetically different species – Kandelia obovata – making the genus non-monotypic. Some mangrove biologists hypothesized that Kandelia populations in Aurora might have been introduced to the province by some fishermen from Taiwan. On the other hand, some papers suggest that Kandelia populations in the Philippines were shaped by the founders from the populations in Southern SCS. A recent population inventory conducted by the authors, complemented by taxonomic characterization, strongly suggests that Kandelia candel is native in the province of Aurora, Philippines.

A new species, Helicia danlagunzadii, from the mossy forest of the Mt. Mantalingahan Protected Landscape (MMPL) in southern Palawan, Philippines is described and illustrated. The new species is distinct from the other known species of Helicia in the Philippines because of its ramiflorous flowering, very short inflorescences (less than 4 cm), and yellow color. Helicia danlagunzadii is the sixth species of the genus recorded in the Philippines. Following the assessment criteria of IUCN, the species is assessed as Critically Endangered.