In Manila’s shadow, a forest refuge still shelters rare plants

Rare Samar Rafflesia rediscovered in protected forest after 15 years

Inquirer.net reported One of the country’s rarest flowering plants, the endangered Samar Rafflesia (Rafflesia manillana), has been documented once again inside the protected forests of Samar Island, marking its first confirmed sighting in 15 years and underscoring the island’s status as one of the Philippines’ most important biodiversity hotspots. The rare parasitic plant was recorded during an exploratory survey conducted by the Samar Island Na…

In Manila’s shadow, a forest refuge still shelters rare plants

A mountainous reserve near Manila, the Philippine capital, is a critical ecological refuge, harboring high levels of plant diversity despite its proximity to the highly urbanized city, according to a recent study. The findings come from surveys done 10 years earlier, however, and mounting pressures on the area's forests since then may have had an impact, the authors say. As the last remaining natural lowland forest in Cavite province, on the sou…