Richness and Distribution of Orchids (Orchidaceae) in the Forests of Mount Busa, Sarangani, Southern Mindanao, Philippines

Abstract

Orchids are one of the most diverse yet threatened plant families in the world and the Philippines. Despite the new species discoveries of orchids in the country in recent years, diversity and distribution studies are still severely lacking. Here, we provide a list of orchid species found among different forest types in Mount Busa and provide information on the species’ altitudinal and vertical distributions and ornamental use. We recorded 108 species of orchids from 51 genera, of which 53 species are endemic to the Philippines and 15 species are known only to occur on Mindanao island. Species composition differed among forest types, with the MASLEF (mixed advanced secondary lowland evergreen forest) hosting the highest number of orchid species recorded, followed by the UMF (upper montane forest), LMF (lower montane forest), and MESLEF (mixed early secondary lowland evergreen forest). Our results suggest a relatively rich and distinct orchid diversity among different forest types in Mount Busa that reinforces the high conservation value of the mountain range.

Orchid trade at the source: Epiphytic species with conspicuous flowers in low‐elevation forests are more locally collected in a Philippine key biodiversity area

“…It encompasses the major mountains of Busa, Three Kings, Melibengoy, Malibato, and Tasaday, with Busa peak as its highest point, reaching 2064 masl (Figure 1). The KBA 196 has mixed advanced secondary and primary lowland evergreen, lower montane, and upper montane forests (Saavedra & Pitogo, 2021), which are source areas for locally collected orchids in the region.…”

“…These surveys aimed to inventory orchid species while accounting for temporal and spatial variations in species distribution. Over this 5‐year period, we employed a combination of 2‐km transect surveys upslope along the primary trails of major mountains and opportunistic surveys in randomly chosen sampling points outside of transects (e.g., forest interior, forest patches, riparian areas, and ravines; Saavedra & Pitogo, 2021) to ensure a good representative of local orchid diversity in KBA 196.…”

“…This dynamic likely contributes significantly to the notable influence of elevational distribution on local orchid collection practices within KBA 196. Many local villagers opportunistically collect orchid species for ornamental use during visits to nearby low-elevation forests, where most subsistence activities such as farming, wood collection, and gathering of other forest products take place (Saavedra & Pitogo, 2021; this study). Collected species with traits traditionally perceived as having lower horticultural value may be indicative of this opportunistic collection.…”

“…Unfortunately, little research has been done to understand drivers and dynamics of orchid trade in the Philippines despite being the most species‐rich plant family in the country. Orchid collections from the wild for ornamental use and commercial exchange has been previously documented (Diamante‐Camacho et al., 2009; Lewis, 1988; Saavedra & Pitogo, 2021), but the extent to which these species end up high in the wildlife trade chain remains unclear. Implementing targeted interventions in source areas to address this concern proves challenging due to technical constraints (Hinsley et al., 2018; Ticktin et al., 2023).…”

Orchid diversity across different forest types on Mt. Malindang, Philippines

“…Malindang (18 species from 16 genera). Another study by Saavedra et al (2021) in Mt. Busa recorded 108 species of orchids from 51 genera with relatively high endemism (53 species), of which 15 are Mindanao endemics.…”