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For the past three decades, various biotic components in Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) natural habitats have been studied but less attention given to the largest family of flowering plants, the Orchidaceae. A preliminary survey in the campus areas has resulted in the discovery of more than ten species of orchids. Therefore, in this study more field samplings were conducted throughout the UNIMAS campus focusing on the developed areas to unveil the potential of UNIMAS-developed areas as a growth ground for orchids. To date, 37 orchid species have been recorded from these areas; mainly found on the planted trees at the roadside and landscaped areas surrounding the academic buildings, while the terrestrial species were found to inhabit different types of disturbed habitat. Among them, Dendrobium pensile was identified as a new record to Sarawak while Dendrobium pseudostriatellum and Pinalia biglandulosa were endemic to Borneo. This study provides an insight into the orchid resiliency towards habitat alteration, landscape phorophytes species that can host orchids, and management of species in a developed landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taliwas River Conservation Area (TRCA) is a lowland dipterocarp forest located 36km from Lahad Datu town. The area was logged in the 1970s by forest concessions and was treated with silvicultural practices for restoring ecosystems and conserving biodiversity. TRCA is one of the earliest logged forest that been treated with silvicultural activities and enriched with dipterocarps trees. This study was aimed to evaluate the species diversity of orchids in treated logged-over forest of TRCA. Convenience sampling was conducted due to the orchids' sporadic distribution pattern. The orchids were photographed and all morphological features were documented for further identification. A total of 45 species were identified to their respective genera, with 16 genera recognised as epiphytic orchids, three as terrestrial, one as lithophyte and one as climber. From this study, orchid species was shown to be remarkably resilient in logged forest, through their advance morphological features such as pseudobulb, seed dormancy and epiphytic growth habit. The results from this study can be used as baseline data to support conservation and development plan of the Taliwas logged-over forest area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seventy-two morphological characters and three ecological characteristics were measured to assess variation and phylogenetic relationships among twelve species and three infraspecific taxa of the genus Spathoglottis from Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo. The morphological analyses divided Spathoglottis into two main groups based on the colours of the flower: Purple-Flowered Spathoglottis and Yellow-Flowered Spathoglottis. Species within the two groupings were further classified based on the size of the plants (Large/Dwarf Purple Spathoglottis and Large/Dwarf Yellow Spathoglottis) and the shapes of the labellum (spathulate, bilobulate or narrow/thread–like). The selected morphological characters appeared to support the taxonomic boundaries between two mostly debated taxa in the genus, S. aurea and S. microchilina. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessment of the leaf anatomy among Vanilla griffithii, Vanilla kinabaluensis, Vanilla sanguineovenosa and Vanilla sp. 1 from Perak showed generic characterization of the epidermal layer and leaf lamina, suggesting the genus to possess plesiomorphic characters from its progenitor except for the leaf margin outlines. The species were found to differ interspecifically and acknowledged to possess taxonomic value. Leaf margin among the species showed similarity in tapering outline but distinguished in the overall shape and apical curve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]