Projek Etnobotani Kinabalu: the making of a Dusun Ethnoflora

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9PEOPLE AND PLANTS WORKING PAPER - FEBRUARY 2002

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G.J. Martin, A. Lee Agama, J.H. Beaman and J. Nais

The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this publication do not implythe expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of anycountry, territory, city, or area of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers orboundaries. The opinions expressed in this paper are entirely those of the authors and do not commitany Organization.

Photos: Gary Martin, Michael Doolittle, Robert Höft

Published in 2002 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization7, place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris Cedex 07 SP, FRANCEPrinted by UNESCO on chlorine-free recycled paper

Edited by Martin WaltersDesign: Ivette FabbriLayout: Martina Höft

© UNESCO / G. Martin et al. 2002

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Recommended citation: Martin, G.J., Lee Agama, A., Beaman, J.H & Nais, J. 2002. Projek EtnobotaniKinabalu. The making of a Dusun Ethnoflora (Sabah, Malaysia). People and Plants working paper 9.UNESCO, Paris.

An electronic version of this document can be downloaded from http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/peopleplants/wp/wp9/index.html

Authors’ addresses:

Gary J. MartinThe Global Diversity FoundationB.P. 262 Marrakesh-MedinaMorocco<[email protected]>

Agnes Lee AgamaWWF MalaysiaP.O. Box 1439388850 Kota KinabaluSabahMalaysia<[email protected]>

John H. BeamanThe HerbariumRoyal Botanic Gardens KewRichmond, Surrey TW9 3ABUnited Kingdom<[email protected]>

Jamili NaisSabah ParksP.O. Box 1062688806 Kota KinabaluMalaysia<[email protected]>

http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/peopleplants/wp/wp9/index.html

IntroductionMount Kinabalu, famous among botanists for itsremarkable floristic richness and high level ofplant endemism, is located in the Malaysian stateof Sabah in northern Borneo. It is one of 234 sitesdesignated as primary centres of plant diversityin the world (Davis et al. 1995). Centrally locat-ed in the Flora Malesiana region, it rises to 4094m above sea level, and is the highest mountainbetween the Himalayas and New Guinea. It is thecenterpiece of Kinabalu Park, a 753 km2 protect-ed area created in 1964, renamed as a State Parkin 1984 and designated a World Natural HeritageSite in 2000.

This working paper provides some of theresults of a community-based inventory of usefulplants carried out from 1992-1998 that was at theheart of the Projek Etnobotani Kinabalu, an eth-nobotanical research and training project atMount Kinabalu. Over this period of six years,seventeen local collectors from nine communi-ties (or kampungs) made more than 9,000uniquely numbered plant collections at morethan 500 sites around Kinabalu Park, and record-ed ethnobotanical data from fellow villagers. Thecommunity participants obtained specimensfrom a broad range of natural and anthropogenicvegetation types around their communities.

Through this research, we have partially ful-filled our goal of carrying out ethnobotanicalresearch with a team of local people, Park per-sonnel and visiting researchers who study pat-terns of Dusun knowledge of plants. In additionwe have contributed to the conservation of pris-tine areas by developing the ability of Park per-sonnel to assess locally-used botanical resourcesand by strengthening links between the Parkresearch staff and Dusun communities. Duringthe project, we have provided research and capac-ity-building opportunities for students fromMalaysia and other Asian countries, particularlythrough a series of certificate training courses.

As the PEK continues, we are searching forways to reinforce ethnobotanical research atKinabalu Park and enrich interpretive programsand exhibits - particularly through the productionof written and photographic materials on localplant use - for the more than 200,000 people whovisit the Park every year. Of equal importance areefforts to return the results of the floristic inven-tory to local communities in the form of a Dusun

Ethnoflora. We hope these preliminary steps willprovide a continuing incentive to local communi-ties to manage unprotected forests in buffer zonesaround Kinabalu Park and to promotwe the via-bility of Dusun ecological knowledge.

Chapter 1 of this working paper describesMount Kinabalu, and the floristic and ethnob-otanical projects carried out there. Chapter 2 pro-vides a general comparison between the diversi-ty of the PEK specimens and those collected bylocal and visiting botanists from 1857 to the pre-sent, providing evidence for the efficacy of com-munity-based collecting. Chapter 3 discusses theproposed production of a Dusun Ethnoflora, andother future developments of the PEK. Chapter 4focuses on the palms of Mount Kinabalu, provid-ing baseline data for an ethnofloristic treatmentof this key botanical family, a first step towardsa complete Dusun Ethnoflora.

PEOPLE AND PLANTS WORKING PAPER 9, FEBRUARY 2002PROJEK ETNOBOTANI KINABALU

G.J. MARTIN, A. LEE AGAMA, J.H. BEAMAN & J. NAIS

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PROJEK ETNOBOTANI KINABALU THE MAKING OF A DUSUN ETHNOFLORA

(SABAH, MALAYSIA)

Fredoline, soil surveyor with the Projek EthnobotaniKinabalu, demonstrating the measurement of various hori-zons in a soil profile near Bundu Tuhan, Sabah, Malaysia.

PEOPLE AND PLANTS WORKING PAPER 9, FEBRUARY 2002PROJEK ETNOBOTANI KINABALUG.J. MARTIN, A. LEE AGAMA, J.H. BEAMAN & J. NAIS

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Contents

1 Introduction 2 Contents

3 Floristic and ethnobotanical projects at Mount Kinabalu3 Documenting a centre of plant diversity: Mount Kinabalu4 Making a floristic inventory: the Flora of Mount Kinabalu Project5 Conducting a community-based ethnofloristic inventory:Projek Etnobotani Kinabalu6 Sharing the methodology:the certificate training course in applied ethnobotany6 Returning results to the community: Dusun medicinal plants manual

11 Productivity of community-based botanical inventories11 Studying a region of high botanical diversity: the flora of Mount Kinabalu12 Conducting a preliminary comparison: the palms of Mount Kinabalu13 Broadening the analysis: the monocotyledons of Mount Kinabalu15 Completing the analysis: the dicotyledons of Mount Kinabalu15 Interpreting the results: complete floristic inventories

20 The making of a Dusun Ethnoflora22 Discerning patterns of classification: the structure of Dusun classification22 Characterizing Dusun resource management patterns: the cultivation status of plants24 Documenting local and scientific vegetation types: plant resource distribution26 Mapping distribution and access to plant resources: GIS and numerical applications26 Correlating elevation and use of plant resources: ecological ethnobotany27 Establishing one hectare plots: quantitative ethnobotany approaches28 Assessing conservation status: criteria for assessing vulnerability29 Understanding the social context of forest access: transformation of Dusun use

and management of plant resources29 Drawing upon the literature: the contribution of bibliographic sources29 Summarizing the results: the ethnoPEK database

34 The palms of Mount Kinabalu (Sabah, Malaysia)35 A note on local classification of palms36 I. Areca39 II. Arenga41 III. Calamus49 IV. Caryota50 V. Ceratolobus51 VI. Cocos51 VII. Daemonorops56 VIII. Dypsis57 IX. Elaeis57 X. Eugeissona

71 Ethnobiological inventories, biodiversity loss and erosion of local knowledge71 The call for a global biodiversity inventory72 Local benefits from resource inventories72 Integrating gloabal and local perspectives74 Revisioning participatory approaches to biodiversity inventory75 Further reading

78 Acknowledgements

79 References

57 XI. Korthalsia61 XII. Licuala62 XIII. Metroxylon62 XIV. Nenga63 XV. Oncosperma63 XVI. Pinanga66 XVII. Plectocomia67 XVIII. Plectocomiopsis68 XIX. Salacca69 XX. Nypa



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Documenting a centre of plantdiversity: Mount Kinabalu

Mount Kinabalu has arguably the richest flora inthe world. This contention is supported by a data-base developed by John Beaman and his col-leagues that includes nearly 5,000 plant speciesthat occur in an area of about 1,600 km2.Kinabalu Park provides protection for about halfthe total area, whereas the other half outside thePark has been transformed by the agriculturaland forestry activities of local Dusun people.Because most plants are very restricted in occur-rence, deforestation endangers many plant popu-lations and has probably already caused theextinction of some species.

Mount Kinabalu is one of the youngestmountains in the world, and its flora includeslarge numbers of closely related species thatappear to be neo-endemics. The extremely highspecies diversity of Mount Kinabalu apparentlyresults from a combination of factors, amongwhich the most important are: 1. great altitudinal and climatic range from

tropical rain forests near sea level to freez-ing alpine conditions at the summit;

2. precipitous topography causing effectivegeographic and reproductive isolation ofspecies over short distances;

3. the geological history of the MalayArchipelago involving movement of sever-al tectonic plates;

4. a diverse geology with many localizededaphic conditions, particularly the serpen-tine or ultramafic substrates;

5. frequent climatic oscillations influenced byEl Niño events; and

6. environmental instability resulting fromsuch causes as landslides, droughts, riverflooding and glaciation. Landslides are a particularly prominent fea-

ture of the Kinabalu landscape. New ones occurfrequently and provide open habitats for plantcolonization. Likewise, droughts are frequentevents, probably occurring every four years onaverage; the most recent, extremely serious onewas in 1998 (Kitayama et al. 1999; Kudo andKitayama 1999). A substantial part of the highspecies diversity has probably resulted from cat-

astrophic selection of adapted genotypes bydroughts on ultramafic substrates(Beaman and Beaman 1990). Generain three different groups (tree ferns,orchids, dicots) already have beenexamined using morphologicaland molecular data that indicatethat high-elevation endemicshave been derived from morewidely distributed taxa at lowerelevations.

The geology of MountKinabalu has been rather thor-oughly investigated over the pasthalf century (Collenette 1958;Jacobson 1970). The lower slopes of themountain have thick layers of late Cretaceous toTertiary sandstones and shales of the Trusmadi

and Crocker Formations. The core of the moun-tain is a pluton of mainly hornblende and(granitic) adamellite emplaced diapirically intothe complex of older rocks. It is part of a largebatholith underlying the area. The central part ofthe batholith was uplifted in the Pleistocene,forming the present mountain, and making it oneof the youngest major mountains in the world.Pleistocene glaciation produced the present ice-carved topography of the summit area. Intrusiveultramafic (serpentine) rocks were uplifted withthe core and appear rather like a collar around themountain at lower and middle elevations.

The area around the Park is a complex patch-work of forest reserves, agricultural lands pri-vately owned by local people and outsiders, com-munal territory and, as yet, unclaimed state prop-erty. For many centuries, the region aroundMount Kinabalu has been inhabited by theDusun, Sabah's largest ethnic minority. Today,many of these people continue to gather forestproducts, practise slash-and-burn hill rice culti-

Floristic and ethnobotanical projectsat Mount Kinabalu

There is no other place in the worldthat supplies in so short a journey such

a stupendous transect of plant-ife.…Iconclude that, if ever there was a nexus

of natural phenomena demanding bio-logical research, it is around Kinabalu.

E. J. H. Corner (1964)

vation and tend agroforestry plots, even as theyparticipate in commercial horticulture, tourismand other economic activities.

The traditional use of cultivated and forestplants is a highly valued practice in these com-munities; local residents have identified suchskills and knowledge as a critical component oftheir cultural heritage that continues to guidedaily activities in their villages. However, as theencroaching market economy begins to dictatethe needs of these communities, the continuity oftraditional ethnobotanical knowledge and skillsis being increasingly threatened. Traditional useand management of plant resources is becomingless important compared with community partic-ipation in the market economy.

In most Dusun communities, there areforested reserves that form the buffer zone ofKinabalu Park. As protectors of water qualityand soil fertility, and repositories of a wide rangeof medicinal, edible and other useful plant andanimal species, these forests are now comingunder increasing pressure from logging as well asfrom permanent and shifting agriculture. A trendtowards privatization, as a way of securingaccess to land, is decreasing communal manage-ment of some forest areas. Non-Dusun residentscontrol many large-scale commercial activities -including timber operations, development ofrecreation areas and mining - which are threaten-ing many rich habitats adjacent to Kinabalu Park.

Although the forests within the Park bound-aries are strictly protected by law, there havebeen incidents of logging and the collection ofnon-timber forest products (principally rattan,cinnamon bark, gaharu and ornamental orchids)in some areas. Recent surveying of the Parkboundary has virtually stopped illegal incursioninto the Park on the part of loggers and has led toa clearer understanding between the Park andDusun communities on the boundaries of the pro-tected area. Selected communities have beengiven limited powers of enforcement by the ParkWarden to stop illegal entry into the Park.Whereas the cutting of any timber for commer-cial or personal use is strictly forbidden, there isleniency towards not only the collection of non-timber forest products for household use but alsothe hunting of game for subsistence needs. Thesepolicies appear to be promoting a spirit of co-operation between Park Rangers and communitymembers.

Making a floristic inventory:the Flora of Mount KinabaluProjectAs part of the Flora of Mount Kinabalu (FMK)project, taxonomic databases, accessible on theInternet, are being developed for all vascular

plants in the flora of Mount Kinabalu. The spec-imen database now includes almost 40,000 spec-imens that have been examined by John Beamanand his collaborators. Enumerations - in a seriesof volumes on the Plants of Mount Kinabalu(PMK) - have been completed for about 70% ofthe flora, and the documentation of the remaining30% of the flora is projected to be finished by2002. Ten years ago, John Beaman thought theflora of Mount Kinabalu included about 4,000species of vascular plants. A few years later thatfigure was revised to about 4,500 species, andnow he believes the total could go to 5,000species or even more. This extraordinary diversi-ty occurs in an area of only 1,600 km2. Barthlottet al. (1996) made an analysis of the global dis-tribution of species diversity and included theKinabalu area as one of the six highest globaldiversity centres in the world, with more than5,000 species per 10,000 km2. The new data sug-gests that some 5,000 species may occur in anarea of less than 20% that size.

In the current enumeration, there are approxi-mately 210 families, 1,134 genera and 4,690recorded species of vascular plants in the lowland,montane and high altitude forests in and aroundKinabalu Park (Table 1).The data being assem-bled should contribute to Malaysian and interna-tional efforts to preserve endangered species andexceptionally rich and unique plant communities.

The basic concept of this project, as a speci-men-based database, was described by Beamanand Regalado (1989), where the data model anddata structure are outlined. Additional details ondatabase methodology are provided in Wood etal. (1993). Diversity and distribution patterns inthe flora were discussed by Beaman and Beaman(1990) during the first Flora Malesiana sympo-sium in Leiden in 1989. An enumeration of thepteridophytes was published by Parris et al.(1992), and enumerations of the orchids (Woodet al., 1993) and gymnosperms and non-orchidmonocotyledons (Beaman and Beaman 1998)have also been published.

In the enumeration of the Kinabalu pterido-phytes, 30 of the 621 taxa listed lacked publishednames. The orchid enumeration, which included711 taxa, provided descriptions of ten new taxaand eight more were described almost simultane-ously in a different publication. Seven of the 121genera in the Kinabalu orchid flora were reportedfrom Borneo for the first time. In spite of theintensive work that has been devoted to theKinabalu orchids in recent years, there is still aresidual accumulation of specimens that has notyet been determined. Among the approximately450 taxa recognized in the non-orchid mono-cotyledon enumeration, 22 had conditional names,nine were listed without specific epithets, and 21genera included one or more of the 105 undeter-


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Table 1. Number of taxa, specimen records, and collections in the Kinabalu flora.

Families Genera Species and No. of specimen No. of intraspecific taxa records collections

Pteridophytes 30 145 621 4,423 3,549Gymnosperms 4 9 28 716 464Orchids 1 121 711 4,988 4,040Non-orchid monocots 34 163 449 4,660 3,307Studied dicots 125 500 1,777 19,122 13,165Indet. dicots 16 196 1,104 5,673 5,437Total 194* 938* 3,586* 39,582 29,962*excluding indets

mined specimens. The number of undescribedtaxa and undetermined specimens of dicots hasnot yet been determined, but probably will be con-siderably higher than for the other groups.

Conducting a community-based ethnofloristic inventory:Projek Etnobotani KinabaluIn 1992, we began a community-based eth-nofloristic inventory called Projek EthnobotaniKinabalu (PEK) that complements this floristicinventory. This long-term research and trainingproject - based at Kinabalu Park - began as a col-laboration between the WWF-UNESCO-KewPeople and Plants Initiative, Sabah Parks andcolleagues from the Universiti KebangsaanMalaysia, many of whom later transferred to theUniversiti Malaysia Sarawak.

The PEK has four primary objectives:

1. ethnobotanical research, focused on build-ing a team of local Dusun people, Park per-sonnel and visiting researchers who studypatterns of Dusun classification, manage-ment and use of plants;

2. conservation of pristine areas, by develop-ing the ability of Park personnel to assessthe ecological, cultural and economicimportance of locally-used botanicalresources and by strengthening linksbetween the Park research staff and Dusuncommunities;

3. environmental education, by providingresearch and training opportunities for stu-dents from Malaysia and other Asian coun-tries and by enriching interpretive pro-grammes and exhibits for the more than200,000 people who visit the Park everyyear; and

4. community development, through improv-ing the management of unprotected forestsin buffer zones around Kinabalu Park and

promoting the viability of Dusun ecologi-cal knowledge. The PEK was launched through a training

workshop held in Park headquarters in July 1992,which brought together members of Dusun com-munities, Park personnel (including the Parkecologist and naturalists who are from Dusuncommunities around the Park), and outsideresearchers with expertise in ethnobotany, palmsand the general flora of the region. After theworkshop, a group of Dusun collectors from sixcommunities around the Park (Bundu Tuhan,Kiau, Poring, Sayap, Serinsim and Takutan)began to collect useful plants and record dataabout their local names, distribution, use andmanagement. These collectors were reunited in aseries of additional training workshop over sub-sequent years.

The community participants collected atmore than 500 locally named sites aroundKinabalu Park (Beaman et al. 1996) and record-ed ethnobotanical data from more than 20 Dusunkinsmen and women. They obtained specimensfrom a broad range of natural and anthropogenicvegetation types around their communities.Following PEK guidelines, they focused on col-lecting plants named or used by Dusun people,but they made general floristic collections aswell. Initially, the PEK focused on palms, but wesoon expanded the projects to include any plantsnamed or used by Dusun people, and even gen-eral floristic collections. The local collectorswere given an incentive to collect palms - a fam-ily of particular economic and conservationimportance - but were dissuaded from collectingorchids, which are sometimes illegally harvestedfrom Kinabalu Park. Sabah Parks granted thempermission to collect specimens inside KinabaluPark only in 1995, and their access to many high-elevation areas above 1,800 m was restricted dur-ing the first years of the PEK. The Dusun rarelywent to these upper slopes even prior to theestablishment of Kinabalu Park, because they aretraditionally considered the resting place of the

deceased and thus taboo to the living (Regis1996). In addition, higher elevations are resourcescarce compared to the lowlands: the Dusun cul-tivate or gather most of their plant resources inthe species rich zone under 1,800 m.

In 1995, the project was expanded to threeadditional communities (Melangkap Tomis,Menggis and Nalumad), and collectors wereappointed to make general and ethnobotanicalcollections around their villages on the north sideof the mountain. The work of Lorence Lugasaround Melangkap Tomis and Daim Andau inthe region of Nalumad has been particularly pro-ductive, with nearly 3,500 collections byLorence and 1,000 by Daim.

The local collectors tried to prepare sixduplicate specimens of each collection, althoughthat number could not in all cases be secured.Although collections of visiting botanists areclustered around the southern portion of MountKinabalu, those made during the PEK come fromsites that form a virtual ring around the massif,giving a relatively complete picture of the localdistribution of plants at elevations of up to 2,000m. This geographical coverage is particularlycritical for understanding phytogeographical pat-terns at sites like Mount Kinabalu, where a highpercentage of plants have highly restricted distri-butions, and more than a third of all plant speciesare known from a single collection.

Sets of the collections are deposited in theherbaria of Sabah Parks, the Royal BotanicGardens, Kew, and several other herbaria spe-cializing in South-East Asian floras, includingthe herbaria of the Sabah Forest Department,Sandakan, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, theNational University of Malaysia, Bangi, and theForest Research Institute, Kepong. The collec-tions are being processed by the research staff ofSabah Parks. John Beaman and a team of spe-cialists at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew andother institutions are identifying the collectionsas part of the Flora of Mount Kinabalu project.

Sharing the methodology:the certificate training course inapplied ethnobotanyDrawing in part upon the PEK experience, weconducted a series of Certificate TrainingCourses in Applied Ethnobotany fromSeptember 1997 to July 1998 to provide a broadintroduction to the theory, concepts and fieldmethods in ethnobotany, as applied to conserva-tion and development, for a group of young col-leagues from South-East Asia and the Pacific.The training courses were designed to:

1. build capacity in a group of people who areworking on issues of plant resource man-agement, particularly associated with pro-tected areas;

2. develop additional training materials andapproaches; and

3. raise awareness within institutions and pro-tected area agencies of the importance of amulti-disciplinary approach to applied eth-nobotany. Participants in the course included govern-

ment officers, protected area staff, representa-tives of environmentally concerned commercialenterprises, NGO members, universityresearchers and students. Two of the three partsof the course - a two week session on qualitativemethods and a two week session on applyingresults, preceded by a one week workshop onethnobiological and scientific classification ofSouth-East Asian plants and animals - were heldat Kinabalu Park. The participants interactedwith members of local communities during prac-tical sessions.

The workshop on scientific and ethnobiolog-ical classification was designed to give partici-pants in the Certificate Training Course inApplied Ethnobotany a basic understanding ofplant and animal identification, categorizationand naming, and their application to ethnob-otany. Held at the Kinabalu Conservation Centre,the workshop combined lectures, hands-ondemonstrations, field exercises and practicalassignments. The facilitators and participantsaddressed the following objectives:

1. understand the practice of scientific classifi-cation of plants by: (a) studying key morpho-logical characters used in identification; (b)identifying plants in the field (c) collectingplant specimens to 'voucher' plant identifica-tions and (d) using herbaria to verify plantidentifications;

2. gain an overview of principles of ethnobio-logical classification, including categoriza-tion and nomenclature, and apply them toanalyzing Dusun classification of plants; and

3. acquire a basic understanding of scientificand Dusun classification of animals.

Returning results to the community: Dusun medicinalplants manualIn January 1998 Agnes Lee Agama - a local co-ordinator of the People and Plants Initiative -worked with Sabah Parks, WWF Malaysia andPeople and Plants in South-East Asia to initiate asix month project on the development of com-munity educational materials. The main focus ofthis joint project was the compilation of a plantbooklet cataloguing some of the commonly usedplants amongst the Dusun people who livearound Kinabalu Park, to be achieved through aprocess of constant consultation with local com-munity members. By adopting this participatory


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research process, it was possible to understandthe needs and concerns of local communitiesregarding the conservation of local knowledgesystems and the management of key plantresources.

The booklet, entitled Wakau, Kayu OmSakot: Tubat Tinungkusan SinakagonKadazandusun has been distributed to Dusuncommunities according to a protocol devised bycommunity representatives. The expectation isthat community education and awareness ofexisting and potential forest resources will con-tribute to initiating a grassroots momentum inbiodiversity conservation and promoting the con-tinuity of traditional plant use.

The projectdrew upon ethnob-otanical data accu-mulated by PEKcommunity collec-tors over the previ-ous six years. Theprocess involvedclose consultationwith 15 communi-ties in informationsharing, data gather-ing, compilation andediting phases of themanual. Through ap a r t i c i p a t o r yappraisal, communi-ty members ex-pressed their con-cern that traditionalknowledge is beinglost due to a varietyof factors including:

1. lack of commu-nication betweenelders and youths, especially in the form ofchildren spending less time with their par-ents in the fields leading to less exposure toplants;

2. influence of schools leading to less timelearning about medicinal plants, which arenot included in the national curriculum;

3. lack of interest by young people, who tendto migrate away from villages;

4. easy accessibility of hospitals and pharma-ceutical medicines, replacing medicinalplants;

5 forgetting by village elders because theyare not using traditional medicines any-more;

6. disappearance of apprenticeship systems oftransmitting knowledge;

7. discouraging of medicinal plant use by newreligions, particularly because of taboosand magic associated with the practice oftraditional medicine;

8. loss of confidence in traditional medicine; 9. reduction of forested areas; and 10. interest of people in ‘modernization’.

The participants suggested a number ofways of protecting and promoting traditionalknowledge. They agreed that parents and eldersshould take responsibility for educating theyounger generation through practical teachingon the use, processing and application of medic-inal plants. In part, this training could take placein medicinal plant gardens and reserves estab-lished in villages for educational purposes. Theyadvocated documenting knowledge in publica-tions, such as useful plants manuals, posters andaudio-visual materials. They suggested that

these materials be included in the school cur-riculum, and that teaching be conducted in col-laboration with local communities to ensure thatlessons are oriented towards maintaining localtraditions. In addition, they suggested a comple-mentary educational programme for adults in theform of seminars, workshops and exhibitions. Inacting on the suggestion to document localknowledge in publications, representatives fromthe communities collectively selected 40 plantsand identified the uses to be described in a med-icinal plants manual.

The process began with a series of commu-nity workshops that were conducted from 2 - 12February 1998, involving 167 participants from15 Dusun villages around Kinabalu Park. Theworkshops were intended to inform communitymembers of the development of the plant book-let, and to invite local input. In particular, partic-ipants were asked to list the commonly usedplants that they would like to have included in



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Community members participating in a workshop on herbarium techniques at Bundu Tuhan, February 1995.

the booklet, accordingto Dusun name, use,parts used and methodof preparation. Eachworkshop also estab-lished a VillageCommittee with fiveelected representa-

tives from each participating village at that work-shop. Village Committees functioned as the maincontact point for future consultation throughoutthis project. Participants also decided thatVillage Committees should act as the centralisedbody that governs the circulation, use and moni-toring of this plant booklet. From the 15 villagesinvolved, 167 participants (51 women, 116 men)attended the workshops. Participants rangedfrom 16 to over 80 years of age. Among thesewere village headmen/women, chairmen ofVillage Safety and Development Committees(JKKKs), farmers, government employees,teachers, mountain and tour guides, housewivesand students. The workshops resulted in a freelist of 254 individual plant items, encompassingmedicinal, construction, dietary, handicraft andornamental uses. Of particular interest were the126 medicinal plants and the eleven medicinalplant recipes covering a wide scope of treat-ments.

In March, Agnes Lee Agama and PEK stafffrom Sabah Parks visited all 20 village commit-tee members and met with village headmen andPEK plant collectors. A short report of the work-shop was provided to Village Committee mem-bers, describing the plants that had been short-listed, and requesting that they collect samplespecimens for each of these plants. This involveda demonstration of plant pressing and dryingtechniques, as well as detailed instructions onhow to record accompanying ethnobotanical dataon each plant. On a subsequent trip the speci-mens were collected, and variations in plantnames and detailed descriptions of plant useswere documented through interviews withVillage Committee members.

As production of the manual drew to a close,it became necessary to draft an agreement thatwould define the conditions of use, distributionand access to the manual, as agreed by all copy-right holders. Villagers expressed some con-cerns regarding the use of information containedin the manual. Above all, they were worried thatoutsiders might make commercial use of theplants without informing, asking permission of,or sharing benefits with, the communities.Furthermore, they were concerned that othersmight publish books based on the information in


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Matamin Rumutum plays the sompoton, a traditional Dusun instrument, as his son Haniflooks on. Transmission of cultural knowledgeabout plants from one generation to the nextis one of the concerns that can be addressedby a community-based ethnobotanical inven-

tory. Photo credit: Gary J. Martin.

9

the manual, and that traditional knowledgemight be used in inappropriate ways, such asencouraging outsiders to take the medicineimproperly. Other participants felt that the book-let might encourage people to come into the vil-lages to collect plants without the permission ofthe community, or that people might over-har-vest the medicinal plants.

In July 1998, a workshop was organized tofinalize the production of the plant manual,allowing representatives from each participatingcommunity to provide input on the final draft ofthe manual. More significantly, participantsexplored and discussed the distribution, accessand use of the plant manual. To formalize theirrole in future activities surrounding the plantmanual, representatives decided to form a volun-teer community organization. The organizationcalled Tinimungan Momogompi GoutonKinabalu (TMGK; Kinabalu Association ofForest Conservationists) would be the centralbody representing the interests of theKadazandusun communities participating in thisresearch. After the workshops, representativesreturned home to continue these discussions withtheir own village members.

During a workshop on community researchagreements organized by People and Plants inSouth-East Asia (WWF Malaysia) and SabahParks from 15-17 September 1998, representativesreconvened to draft a consensual research agree-ment between the copyright holders of the manual.In a process facilitated by Sarah Laird and JannieLasimbang, they designed an agreement thatdefined conditions for the distribution, access anduse of the manual, and generated model guidelinesfor any future follow-up research involving themanual and/or communities that participated inthis process. As a result of this meeting (and a fol-low-up workshop on environmental educationfrom 7-10 October 1998), an application form andguidelines were adopted (see Box 1).

In addition to contributing to understandingand promoting the ethnobotany of local Dusunpeople around Mount Kinabalu, and sharing themethodology with other researchers in South-East Asia, we predicted that the PEK ethnofloris-tic inventory would enhance the Flora of MountKinabalu (FMK). Chapter 2 presents the resultsof a preliminary analysis of the contribution oflocal collectors to our knowledge of the flora ofthis unique region.




10

Box 1.Structure of the application form for the Dusun medicinalplants manual.

Representatives of the following kampungs designed an application form for people wishing to receive the medicinal plants manual: Kiau Bersatu, Kiau Nuluh,Kiau Toburi, Mantanau, Melangkap Baru, Melangkap Kapa, Melangkap Nariou, Melangkap Tiong, Melangkap Tomis, Monggis, Nalumad, Pinawantai, Takutan,Toruntungon, Ulu Kukut.

They requested that WWF Malaysia provide TMGK rubber stamps for 14 villages, and a sticker label that contained the details of the distribution regulations forthe manuals. Each copy of the manual was stamped with the TMGK stamp on the title page (which contains the WWF and Sabah Parks logos), contents page,and one additional page. Each TMGK member was responsible for ensuring that every recipient understood the regulations stated within the sticker label. Thedetails of each recipient were recorded in a record book provided to each TMGK member for that village. The participants established that penalty guidelineswere to be mutually determined by the three copyright holders (WWF Malaysia, Sabah Parks and the TMGK) according to the type of offense, on a case-by-case basis. Furthermore, it was agreed that any copies of the manual not distributed would be kept by the TMGK member under the condition that the safety ofthe manuals be guaranteed. For villages that required more copies of the manual than originally supplied, the TMGK member for that village could apply toSabah Parks or WWF Malaysia.

The following application guidelines were agreed upon:

(1) Applicants must be local residents (Kadazandusun) only and living in Sabah;(2) Applicants are required to complete the application form that can be obtained from the TMGK member in that village;(3) Application forms must be purchased at RM2.00 (this money will be kept by the TMGK member in that village to be used for photocopying the form and tocover transportation);(4) The village headman and Chairman of the Village Safety and Development Committee (JKKK) has the mandate to represent his/her villagers when applyingfor the manual, with the condition that each applicant being represented must complete an application form;(5) Each family is only allowed to apply for one copy of the manual;(6) The TMGK member in that village has been given the mandate and good faith to evaluate each application received by him/her;(7) In the event of controversial applications, the TMGK member must consult with TMGK members from neighboring or nearby villages;(8) Each successful application must be endorsed by the village headman and/or the JKKK Chairman who must sign the application form to acknowledge theendorsement;(9) Applicants who have been rejected are not permitted to reapply, even to other TMGK members in other villages; (10) All application forms (successful and rejected ones) must be inserted in the record book that has been provided to each TMGK member for that village;(11) Successful applicants are bound by the distribution protocol that has been drafted by the TMGK in collaboration with Sabah Parks and WWF Malaysia.

Application Form for the Plant Manual Wakau, Kayu Om Sakot: Tubat Tinungkusan Sinakagon Kadazandusun

Terms and conditions:· Applicants must be local residents (Kadazandusun) only and living in Sabah;· Each family is allowed to apply for one copy of the manual only;· Application forms must be purchased at RM2.00;· The village headman and Chairman of the Village Safety and Development Committee (JKKK) has the mandate to represent his/her villagers when applyingfor the manual, with the condition that each applicant being represented must complete an application form;· Successful applicants are bound by the protocol document that has been drafted.

Name: ____________________________________________________________________________.

IC Number: __________________________. Sex: ______________.

Date of birth: ______/_______/19________. Age: _______________.

Race: ______________________________. Nationality: __________________________.

Village (full address): ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________.

Date of application: _____/_____/_____.

Reasons for applying:___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________.

I ____________________________________ hereby declare that the above information is true and correct.

_____________________Signature of applicantDate___________________________________________________________________________________FOR THE USE OF TMGK ONLY

Approved by:

____________________ _____________________Signature and stamp of the TMGK member Signature of village headman/Date JKKK Chairman

Date



11

Previous to the PEK, the flora of MountKinabalu was known through more than 15,000uniquely numbered plant collections made bysome 200 individuals over a period of 140 years,mostly from primary and secondary forest at rel-atively high elevations on Mount Kinabalu. Aswe analyzed the results just from the palm col-lections, we were surprised to find a large num-ber of species and genera that had never beenrecorded from the Mount Kinabalu region duringthe years of botanical activity that preceded ourcommunity-based ethnofloristic project.

This led us to reflect on the potential contri-bution of local collectors to an all species inven-tory, a goal that is re-emerging as a priority forbiological systematists and conservationists(Kelly 2000). Various colleagues have arguedthere is an urgent need to accelerate the comple-tion of a global biodiversity inventory, givingparticular attention to organisms that are eco-nomically valuable, ecologically important andthreatened by human activities (Heywood 1995).

Of the estimated 1.8 million speciesof living organisms that have beendescribed and given binomial names inthe scientific literature, some 270,000 areplants. Although vascular plants andbryophytes are relatively well knownwhen compared to other groups of organ-isms, there is broad recognition that theglobal floristic inventory is far from com-plete (Wilson 1992). Biologists estimatethat anywhere between 30,000 to 230,000species in the plant kingdom remainunknown to science (Kelly 2000).

Achieving a more comprehensive anddetailed survey of plants and animals entailsidentifying all species, understanding their geo-graphical distribution and documenting how theyare used and classified by people (Martin 1995).Of the described plant species, many are knownby name only. We lack even preliminary data ontheir conservation status, distribution and impor-tance to human welfare. This limits our ability todevise conservation action plans, ascertain sus-tainable harvesting rates for economically impor-tant species and promote the involvement oflocal people in resource management.

The threat of potential species extinctionsunderscores the urgency of completing theinventory rapidly (Gentry 1996; Lugo 1988).

Based on estimated extinction rates in closedtropical forest, it is expected that the equilibriumnumber of biological species will be reduced byat least 4% to 8% of the current total over thenext quarter century (Reid 1992). The WorldConservation Monitoring Centre calculates that26,106 plant species (9.6% of the total currentlydescribed) are threatened, including 11,485 thatare classified according to IUCN categories asRare, 5,687 as Vulnerable, 5,302 asIndeterminate and 3,632 as Endangered.

Studying a region of high botanical diversity: the flora ofMount KinabaluEvaluations of small scale biological inventoriesin areas of high biodiversity can provide data onthe feasibility of these global efforts to recordliving organisms (Dennis and Ruggiero 1996).Comparative analysis of floristic and ethnob-

otanical collections on Mount Kinabalu revealsthat community-based collectors increasedrecorded palm taxa by 66.7%, monocotyledonsin general by 28.1% and a sample of dicot fami-lies by 16.3% in six years. This demonstrates thatone efficient way of achieving relatively com-plete botanical inventories is to involve scientistsand members of local communities in a collabo-rative collecting programme. Community-basedcollecting - advocated variously by researchersinterested in ethnobiological classification(Berlin 1984), biodiversity inventories (Naisbitt2000), bioprospecting (Janzen et al. 1993) andpromotion of local ecological knowledge (Martinand Pimbert 1993) - has not previously beencompared quantitatively with conventional waysof conducting botanical surveys.

Productivity of community-based botanical inventories

The clear message from the conserva-tion community is that in order to

conserve and use sustainably thespecies diversity of the world, there is

an urgent need to accelerate rather thandiminish the taxonomic initiative

during the current century.Professor Sir Ghillean Prance (2000)

The estimates of floristic richness of theMount Kinabalu region are based on a computer-ized database of approximately 30,000 voucherspecimens housed in major herbaria of Asia andEurope being studied as part of the Flora ofMount Kinabalu or FMK project (Beaman andBeaman 1993; Paris et al. 1992; Wood et al.1993). The collections were obtained fromaround Mount Kinabalu over a period of 147years (1851-1998) by two distinct groups of col-lectors:

1. visiting botanists, including over 200 indi-viduals each of whom remained on themassif for a period ranging from severaldays to several years to collect specimensof the flora of Mount Kinabalu (Beamanand Regalado 1989), and

2. local people who have participated in theProjek Etnobotani Kinabalu or PEK(Martin 1994, Martin and Idrus 1998).

Conducting a preliminary comparison: the palms ofMount KinabaluIn order to compare the efficacy of these twogroups of collectors, we initially characterized thenumber and diversity of palms they collected, asreflected by specimen records in the FMK data-base. The visiting botanists sought specimens of abroad range of species represented in the nativeflora. They obtained more than 15,000 uniquelynumbered plant collections over a period of 145years, mostly from primary and secondary forestat relatively high elevations on Mount Kinabalu.These include 372 palms, collected between 1856(Stapf 1894) and 1992, that belong to ten generaand 48 species and infraspecific taxa.

The PEK collectors, members of Dusun eth-nic communities around the Park, began a sys-tematic ethnobotanical inventory in July 1992.Whereas plant collecting was the full-time occu-pation of visiting botanists while on MountKinabalu, PEK collectors worked part-time,engaging in other commercial and subsistenceactivities. Over a period of 6 years, 17 local col-lectors in nine communities made more than9,000 uniquely numbered plant collections thatare being processed by the research staff ofSabah Parks. They include 404 palms acces-sioned in the Herbarium of The Royal BotanicGardens, Kew, which belong to 19 genera and 74species and infraspecific taxa.

Together, the FMK and PEK collectionshave yielded 776 palm records that correspond toa total of 81 species and infraspecific taxa in 19genera (Table 2). Forty-one species were record-ed in both sets of collections, while seven specieswere detected only in the floristic inventory and33 were documented only in the ethnobotanical

collections. Thus, botanists were successful indocumenting 59% of the currently known total ofspecific and infraspecific palm taxa in 136 years,less than the 91% detected by local collectors in4.5 years (Figure 2.). Seen from another perspec-tive, community-based collectors - in merely 3.3%of the time period in which FMK collectors wereactive - have been able to increase known palmgenera by 90%, species and infraspecific taxa by54.2% and collections by 108.6%.

In addition to new taxonomic records, theethnobotanical inventory has enriched ourknowledge of local classification, use and distri-bution of palms on Mount Kinabalu. The PEKcollectors registered local names, uses or both for394 collections (98% of the total) and 69 species(85.1%) of palms included in the ethnobotanicalinventory. Even though many general floristicexpeditions included Dusun helpers who couldhave given ethnobotanical information, visitingbotanists recorded names and uses for just twospecies (4.2% of the total number of species theycollected) and three collections (about 1% of thetotal collected) of palms. Collections of visitingbotanists come largely from the southern parts ofMount Kinabalu, above 1,500 m elevation, andmany come from within the Kinabalu Parkboundary. Those made by PEK collectors arefrom sites at lower elevations that form a virtualring around the massif, giving a relatively com-plete picture of the local distribution of palms(Figure 1). This geographical coverage is partic-ularly critical for understanding phytogeographi-cal patterns at Mount Kinabalu, where a highpercentage of plants have restricted distributionsand many plant species are known from a singlecollection (Beaman and Beaman 1990).

Are palms better represented than other plantfamilies in the PEK collections or more poorlyrepresented in the FMK collections, leading to anoverestimation of the productivity of local col-lectors? Four arguments can be advanced to sup-port this claim, but none led us to conclude thatlocal collectors have been less effective at sam-pling the diversity of many other plant familiesthat fit the PEK collecting guidelines.

First, palms are more abundant at the lowerelevations where local collectors have focusedtheir efforts than at the higher elevations wherevisiting botanists have tended to collect. Yet highdiversity at lower elevations is a characteristic ofmany other plant families. Preliminary analysisof other monocotyledonous families, pterido-phytes, dicotyledonous families A - L and evenconifers (which tend to grow at high elevations inthe tropics) shows that many genera and speciesaround Mount Kinabalu are found between 300 m to 1,600 m asl, within the area where localcollectors have made plant collections.

Second, palms are distinctive in both theirmorphology and utility, making them particular-


12

13

ly noticeable to local people (Johnson 1991). Butpalm categories make up a relatively small partof the ethnobiological classification system ofDusun people, who recognize a broad range ofother useful and morphologically salient plants.

Third, because palms tend to be massive,thorny and time-consuming to collect, they aresometimes deficient in herbarium collections whencompared to other groups of plants (Balick 1982).However, botanists have not neglected the palmsof Mount Kinabalu. One Arecaceae specialist(Dransfield 1984) collected 34 palms within theKinabalu Park boundary during a ten-day visit in1979, and Joseph Clemens and Mary StrongClemens, two generalist collectors who stayed onthe mountain for two years in the early 1930s, arealone responsible for 170 palm collections.

Fourth, the local Dusun collectors, employedby Sabah Parks, were paid more for palm speci-mens than for collections of other plant groups,encouraging a particularly complete set ofArecaceae. Nevertheless, palms represent about5.2% of the total number of collections madeduring the six years of the PEK.

Broadening the analysis: themonocotyledons of Mount KinabaluWe expected that analysis of the full set of eth-nobotanical collections would confirm theadvantage of community-based inventories inincreasing our knowledge of not only the totalnumber of plant species on Mount Kinabalu butalso their distribution and utility. Corroborationof this viewpoint is provided by the analysis ofcollections of 33 additional monocotyledonousfamilies represented in the flora of MountKinabalu. The set of PEK collections of mono-cotyledons, excluding orchids but includingpalms, has yielded new records of seven families,28 genera and 99 species. This corresponds toincreases of 25.9% in known families, 20.7% inknown genera and 28% in known species andinfraspecific taxa (Table 3). Low elevation, use-ful and morphologically salient monocotyledonsare, in general well represented in the PEK col-lections, whereas high elevation, inconspicuousplants not known to the Dusun are relatively defi-



Table 2. Comparison of palm taxa in Mount Kinabalu floristic and ethnobotanical collections.

Genus FMK collections PEK collections Combined PEK and FMK(1856 - 1992) (1992-1996) collections (1856 - 1996)

Areca 1 3 3Arenga 2 4 4Calamus* 16 20 22Caryota 2 2 2Ceratolobus 0 1 1Cocos 0 1 1Daemonorops 10 12 12Dypsis# 0 1 1Elaeis# 0 1 1Eugeissona 0 1 1Korthalsia 3 9 9Licuala 0 3 3Metroxylon 0 1 1Nenga 0 1 1Oncosperma 0 1 1Pinanga 9 6 10Plectocomia§ 1 2 2Plectocomiopsis 2 2 2Salacca† 2 3 3Total 48 74 81Comparison of the number of species and infraspecific taxa of 19 palm genera recorded in FMK floristic andPEK ethnobotanical collections on Mount Kinabalu, based on determined specimens accessioned in Kew(K), Leiden (L), Natural History Museum, London (BM) and other herbaria. [*An additional species ofCalamus (C. scipionum) has been sighted but not collected on Mount Kinabalu. Two varieties of Calamuslaevigatus are included as distinct infraspecific taxa in this summation; #Introduced recently to the MountKinabalu area; §One incompletely determined FMK collection of Plectocomia might be a distinct species;†One incompletely determined PEK collection of Salacca might be a distinct species].

cient. A family-by-family comparison of thePEK and FMK monocot collections is given inTable 4. The Orchidaceae are excluded from thisanalysis, because Sabah Parks dissuaded PEKcollectors from collecting orchids. Nevertheless,PEK collectors made a total of 147 collections of

Orchidaceae, which included 41 genera and 87species. Of these, one genus and 14 species werepreviously uncollected at Mount Kinabalu. Thecomplete total of new records in PEK collectionsof all 35 monocotyledonous families currentlyknown from Mount Kinabalu are thus seven fam-


14

Figure 1. Topographic map of Mount Kinabalu, showing the approximate locations of palm collections made by botanists carryingout general surveys from 1856 to 1992, and by Dusun collectors participating in the Projek Etnobotani Kinabalu from 1992 to 1996.Over a period of 136 years, more than 30 visiting botanists collected palms at generally high elevations, ranging from approximately400-3,400 m elevation, along the southern slopes of Mount Kinabalu, both inside and outside the current boundary of KinabaluPark. During the six years of the PEK, 17 Dusun collectors surveyed plants at relatively low elevations, between 300 and 1,600 melevation, mostly outside the Kinabalu Park boundary. They collected in various microenvironments near the nine communitiesnamed on the map, accessing diverse localities around the Kinabalu massif, and made occasional expeditions to higher slopes onthe mountain.

N

S

W E

500- 999 1000-1499 1500-1999 2000-2499 2500-29993000-34993500-4101

Elevation [m]

0 10 km5

Ethnobotanicalcollection sites

Approximate locations ofpalm collections 1856-1992

Mount Kinabalu

Sabah

Sarawak

Kalimantan

Borne

o

South ChinaSea

Mount Kinabalu National Park

Sayap

Melangkap Tomis

Nalumad

Tekutan

Menggis

Serinsim

KiauNuluh

BunduTuhan

Poring



15

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

1850 1860 1870 1880 1890 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000

Years A.D.

PEK

FMKPe

rcen

tage

of k

nown

spe

cies

and

intra

spec

ific

taxa

Figure 2. Cumulative percent-age of currently known MountKinabalu palms (species andinfraspecific taxa) representedin FMK floristic collectionsmade over 136 years (circles)and in PEK ethnobotanicalcollections made during thefirst 4.5 years of the Projek Etnobotani Kinabalu(squares). The number of newpalm records in the FMK col-lections was counted by five-year periods from 1850 to1990, and then yearly until1992. The number of new palmrecords in the PEK collectionswas counted yearly from 1992to 1996.

ilies, 29 genera and 112 species. We expectedthat analysis on the Mount Kinabalu dicots willfurther confirm these trends.

Completing the analysis: thedicotyledons of Mount KinabaluJohn Beaman and his colleagues have now fin-ished the first of two volumes on the dicotyledonsof Mount Kinabalu, allowing us further insightinto the contribution of local collectors. The vol-ume covers the Acanthaceae through Lythraceae,referred to as dicots A-L. A fifth volume in thePlants of Mount Kinabalu series will include fam-ilies Magnoliaceae through Winteraceae. A fullcomparison of the PEK collections with FMKcollections will be carried out once the entire florais completed, probably in 2002.

One interesting perspective on the contribu-tion of local PEK collectors is provided by com-paring the total numbers of dicots A - L collect-ed by various teams from 1851, when Hugh Lowmade the first collections, to 2000. John Beamanhas placed the collectors into five groups:

1. Joseph and Mary Strong Clemens, 2. Sabah Forest Department collectors, 3. members of the Royal Society Expeditions

of 1961 and 1964, 4 the PEK collectors, and 5. all other collectors.

An analysis of the collections of these fivegroups is provided in Table 5.

Preliminary analysis of the PEK collectionsfrom dicot families A-L (Table 6) reveal threepreviously unrecorded families, and 252 previ-ously unknown species; the newly recorded gen-era have yet to be counted. This corresponds to a

16.1% increase in known species of dicots inthese families. The local collectors were able todocument 47.3% of currently known species inthese families in a period of six years. There weresignificant increases in the Amaranthaceae,Apiaceae, Cucurbitaceae and Lamiaceae, proba-bly because local collectors documented weedyand cultivated species that had previously goneuncollected by visiting botanists. Increases in theknown species of other families - such as theAcanthaceae, Euphorbiaceae and Fabaceae - areprobably linked to collection of species of limit-ed distribution. In addition, there were surprisingdiscoveries in families of important forest treesthat have been well-collected and studied,including the Clusiaceae, Dipterocarpaceae andLauraceae. Although not as striking as theincreases noted in the monocotyledons, thesedata confirm the valuable contribution that localcollectors can make to a floristic inventory(Table 6).

Interpreting the results: complete floristic inventoriesWe attribute the productivity of the PEK collect-ing of palms and other plants to Dusun peoples'intimate knowledge of living organisms, locali-ties and microenvironments around MountKinabalu, their ability to collect at a variety oflocations year-round and their tendency to collecta range of cultivated, semi-cultivated and wildspecies. Most visiting botanists came from theUnited States, Europe or Peninsular Malaysiaand were often unfamiliar with the plants, ecolo-gy and geography of Mount Kinabalu. Many ofthem collected palms and other plants alongestablished trails in accessible primary and

mature secondary forest of the Kinabalu massifand focused on documenting wild species. Theirsuccess in finding a diversity of plants can beattributed in part to collaboration with the Dusunassistants who accompanied them to the forestand aided them in making plant collections. Forexample, the label data on palm specimensobtained by the Clemenses indicate that Dusun

collaborators made 19 collections cor-responding to ten species.

Although local collectorshave been more productive

than visiting botanists inthe overall rate of makingpalm collections and inthe number of palm taxarecorded, our data sug-gest that the most com-plete floristic inventories

will be achieved by com-bining community-based

collecting with general floris-tic surveys, particularly if the

sets of collections:

1. are from vegetation types across a wide ele-vational gradient;

2. include the broadest possible variety ofplants-useful and not, cultivated and wild,native and introduced; and

3. are obtained through plant collecting pro-grammes carried out in collaboration withlocal institutions and international herbaria.In the case of PEK, we hypothesize that acomprehensive collection could be achievedif local collectors are encouraged to obtainspecimens of the flora at higher elevations,and if they increased the scope of their col-

lecting to include species regardless ofwhether or not they are named or used byDusun people.The implication of our comparative analysis

of plant collecting programmes reaches beyondthe achievement of a more complete global sur-vey of floristic diversity. A wide range of peoplenow recognize the value of traditional ecologicallore (Johnson 1992), and many are looking forways to protect the intellectual property rights ofthe bearers of such knowledge and to compensatethem when commercial use is made of ethnob-otanical data (Greaves 1994; Martin et al. 1996,The Crucible Group 1994). A prerequisite fordesigning appropriate policy measures is a betterunderstanding of the local uses, distribution andvalues of biological resources, a goal which canbe achieved by collaborative biodiversity inven-tories.

The benefits of working with local collectorsgo beyond simply cataloguing more speciesrecords. Local people are aware of the distribu-tion of plant resources within the microenviron-ments of their own lands and in neighboringcommunities. They also have a detailed knowl-edge of how to harvest, prepare and use hundredsof plant resources. In addition, they are aware ofwhich plant resources are becoming scarce, andhow to judge the quality and utility of remainingstands. Local people are also perceptive of theecological aspects of plants in their immediateenvironment, such as which species can be left inagricultural fields. Finally, they know the localvalue of economically important species sold inmarketplaces or used by small scale industries.We will elaborate on some of these themes in thenext chapter of this working paper.


16

Table 3. Comparison of monocotyledons in Mount Kinabalu floristic andethnobotanical collections

FMK collections PEK collections Combined Newrecords PercentageFMK and PEK in PEK collections increase

collections due to PEK‡

Families* 27 27 34 7 25.9%Genera 134 116 163 28 20.7%Species/infraspecific taxa† 353 241 449 99 28.0%

Comparison of the contribution of FMK and PEK collections to current knowledge of the genera, species and infraspecific taxa of 34monocotyledonous plant families found on Mount Kinabalu, including the Arecaceae. [*The Orchidaceae are excluded from this analy-sis; † The Plants of Mount Kinabalu enumeration includes some incompletely determined specimens. When the expression ‘cf.’ sep-arates a generic name and specific epithet, the specimens so identified might be a particular species but the identification is uncer-tain. When the expression ‘aff.’ separates a generic name and specific epithet, the taxon so identified is not the one named, but isallied to it. The expression ‘sp.’ is used for incompletely identified specimens thought to be different from other taxa in the list, and ‘sp.nov.’ for species thought to be new to science. For the purposes of comparing FMK and PEK collections, ‘aff.’, ‘sp.’ and ‘sp. nov.’ deter-minations are considered to represent distinct species, whereas specimens with cf. determinations are included in the species to whichthey have been tentatively attributed. ‡ Percentage increase is calculated by dividing the number of new PEK records of monocotyle-donous families, genera or species and infraspecific taxa on Mount Kinabalu by the total number of records of these taxa in the FMKcollections].



17

Table 4. Comparison of monocotyledonous families in Mount Kinabalu floristic and ethnobotanical collections

Family FMK collections PEK collections Combined Percentage increase Percentage increasePEK and FMK in known genera in known species

collections due to PEK and infraspecific taxadue to PEK

G S G S G SAcoraceae 0 0 1 1 1 1 Previously unrep. Previously unrep.Agavaceae 0 0 1 1 1 1 Previously unrep. Previously unrep.Alliaceae 0 0 1 1 1 1 Previously unrep. Previously unrep.Amaryllidaceae 0 0 1 1 1 1 Previously unrep. Previously unrep.Araceae 14 38 12 14 14 41 0% 7.9%Arecaceae 10 48 19 75 19 80 90% 66.7%Burmanniaceae 3 6 0 0 3 6 0% 0%Cannaceae 0 0 1 1 1 1 Previously unrep. Previously unrep.Centrolepidaceae 1 1 0 0 1 1 0% 0%Commelinaceae 7 14 7 10 8 17 14.3% 21.4%Convallariaceae 2 2 1 1 2 2 0% 0%Costaceae 1 3 1 2 1 4 0% 33.3%Cyperaceae 21 60 14 28 22 76 4.8% 26.7%Dioscoreaceae 1 9 1 6 1 12 0% 33.3%Dracaenaceae 1 3 1 3 1 3 0% 0%Eriocaulaceae 1 2 0 0 1 2 0% 0%Flagellariaceae 1 1 1 1 1 1 0% 0%Hanguanaceae 1 1 1 2 1 2 0% 100%Hypoxidaceae 1 2 1 2 1 3 0% 50%Iridaceae 1 1 0 0 1 1 0% 0%Joinvilleaceae 1 1 1 1 1 1 0% 0%Juncaceae 1 3 0 0 1 3 0% 0%Limnocharitaceae 0 0 1 1 1 1 Previously unrep. Previously unrep.Lowiaceae 0 0 1 1 1 1 Previously unrep. Previously unrep.Marantaceae 4 5 4 6 4 6 0% 20%Melanthiaceae 2 2 0 0 2 2 0% 0%Musaceae 1 2 1 1 1 3 0% 50%Pandanaceae 2 15 2 8 2 18 0% 20%Phormiaceae 1 2 1 1 1 2 0% 0%Poaceae 42 70 32 44 52 92 23.8% 31.4%Smilacaceae 1 8 1 5 1 8 0% 0%Taccaceae 1 2 1 1 1 2 0% 0%Triuridaceae 1 4 0 0 1 4 0% 0%Zingiberaceae 11 47 8 23 11 52 0% 10.6%Totals 134 352 117 241 162 451 20.9% 28.1%Comparison of the contribution of FMK and PEK collectors to current knowledge of the genera, species and infraspecific taxa of 34 monocotyledonous plant fam-ilies found on Mount Kinabalu (note: the Orchidaceae are excluded from this analysis, because PEK collectors were dissuaded from collecting orchids by SabahParks). G=Genera, S= Species.

Table 5. Collections and taxa of Dicotyledon families A-L obtained by five major groups of collectors on Mount Kinabalu.

Group No. of Collectors No. of Specimens No. of Collections No. of Taxa

J. & M. S. Clemens 21 7506 3319 813Sabah Forest Department ~143 3889 2512 859Royal Society 32 1783 956 441PEK 17 2554 25543 790Additional collectors ~90 3782 2771 716Totals 254 19,514 12,112 -4

1M. S. Clemens in 1915; J. & M. S. Clemens in 1931-1934.; 2Chew, Corner & Stainton in 1961; Chew & Corner and Chai & Ilias in 1964; 3The number of speci-mens and collections is equal for the PEK material. The first set of these collections is in the Sabah Parks Herbarium on Mount Kinabalu and has not beenexamined for this project. Duplicate specimens have been distributed to several other herbaria, including K, where most of the determinations have been made;4The column cannot be totaled because the various collectors obtained many of the same taxa.


18

Table 6. Preliminary comparison of dicotyledonousfamilies in Mount Kinabalu floristic and ethnobotanical collections

Family PEK FMK Both Total Increase in % of floraknown species collected by

due to PEK PEK

Acanthaceae 11 16 10 37 29.7 56.8Aceraceae 0 1 0 1 0.0 0.0Actinidiaceae 1 5 11 17 5.9 70.6Alangiaceae 0 6 2 8 0.0 25.0Amaranthaceae 8 1 2 11 72.7 90.9Anacardiaceae 4 13 10 27 14.8 51.9Annonaceae 15 42 30 87 17.2 51.7Apiaceae 4 3 1 8 50.0 62.5Apocynaceae 6 26 17 49 12.2 46.9Aquifoliaceae 1 10 5 16 6.3 37.5Araliaceae 8 25 6 39 20.5 35.9Aralidiaceae 0 1 0 1 0.0 0.0Aristolochiaceae 1 2 1 4 25.0 50.0Asclepiadaceae 4 15 5 24 16.7 37.5Asteraceae 8 19 16 43 18.6 55.8Balanophoraceae 0 2 1 3 0.0 33.3Balsaminaceae 3 0 1 4 75.0 100.0Begoniaceae 0 17 2 19 0.0 10.5Bignoniaceae 1 0 2 3 33.3 100.0Bixaceae 1 0 0 1 New family 100.0Bombacaceae 2 2 3 7 28.6 71.4Boraginaceae 0 3 3 6 0.0 50.0Brassicaceae 0 1 0 1 0.0 0.0Buddlejaceae 0 0 1 1 0.0 100.0Burseraceae 3 12 6 21 14.3 42.9Buxaceae 0 0 1 1 0.0 100.0Campanulaceae 0 4 0 4 0.0 0.0Capparaceae 2 2 2 6 33.3 66.7Caprifoliaceae 0 4 1 5 0.0 20.0Caricaceae 1 0 0 1 New family 100.0Casuarinaceae 0 1 1 2 0.0 50.0Cecropiaceae 0 5 0 5 0.0 0.0Celastraceae 2 10 7 19 10.5 47.4Chloranthaceae 0 1 2 3 0.0 66.7Chrysobalanaceae 0 1 2 3 0.0 66.7Clethraceae 0 1 2 3 0.0 66.7Clusiaceae 5 21 14 40 12.5 47.5Combretaceae 1 2 1 4 25.0 50.0Connaraceae 2 3 3 8 25.0 62.5Convolvulaceae 7 11 8 26 26.9 57.7



19

Table 6. continued

Family PEK FMK Both Total Increase in % of floraknown species collected

due to PEK by PEK

Cornaceae 0 5 0 5 0.0 0.0Crassulaceae 2 0 0 2 New family 100.0Crypteroniaceae 0 1 0 1 0.0 0.0Ctenolophonaceae 0 1 0 1 0.0 0.0Cucurbitaceae 15 10 6 31 48.4 67.7Cunoniaceae 0 2 1 3 0.0 33.3Daphniphyllaceae 0 1 2 3 0.0 66.7Dichapetalaceae 0 0 2 2 0.0 100.0Dilleniaceae 2 0 5 7 28.6 100.0Dipterocarpaceae 7 32 14 53 13.2 39.6Droseraceae 0 1 0 1 0.0 0.0Ebenaceae 6 10 11 27 22.2 63.0Elaeocarpaceae 2 35 9 46 4.3 23.9Epacridaceae 0 2 1 3 0.0 33.3Ericaceae 0 87 10 97 0.0 10.3Escalloniaceae 0 10 3 13 0.0 23.1Euphorbiaceae 39 57 94 190 20.5 70.0Fabaceae 47 30 39 116 40.5 74.1Fagaceae 1 46 14 61 1.6 24.6Flacourtiaceae 8 14 8 30 26.7 53.3Gentianaceae 0 4 0 4 0.0 0.0Gesneriaceae 1 53 14 68 1.5 22.1Goodeniaceae 0 3 0 3 0.0 0.0Gunneraceae 0 1 0 1 0.0 0.0Haloragaceae 0 1 0 1 0.0 0.0Hamamelidaceae 0 1 0 1 0.0 0.0Hernandiaceae 0 1 1 2 0.0 50.0Hydrangeaceae 0 0 1 1 0.0 100.0Icacinaceae 0 16 7 23 0.0 30.4Illiciaceae 0 1 1 2 0.0 50.0Ixonanthaceae 0 0 2 2 0.0 100.0Juglandaceae 0 6 1 7 0.0 14.3Lamiaceae 8 5 4 17 47.1 70.6Lauraceae 9 69 40 118 7.6 41.5Lecythidaceae 0 0 2 2 0.0 100.0Leeaceae 0 0 3 3 0.0 100.0Lentibulariaceae 0 1 0 1 0.0 0.0Linaceae 0 1 1 2 0.0 50.0Loganiaceae 2 11 11 24 8.3 54.2Loranthaceae 0 21 3 24 0.0 12.5Lythraceae 2 0 1 3 66.7 100.0Total 252 827 490 1569 16.1 47.3

In the course of the PEK (1992-1998) over 9,000collections of plants have been made by Dusunvillagers around Kinabalu Park, primarily in ninecommunities. Comparative analysis of floristiccollections from the Flora of Mount Kinabaluinventory and ethnobotanical collections fromthe PEK has revealed how community-based col-lectors have increased our knowledge of this cen-tre of plant diversity. A booklet on medicinalplants has been published in the local languageand distributed to Dusun communities aroundMount Kinabalu according to a protocoldesigned by them.

During this same period, Sabah Parks hasgreatly increased the research infrastructure andscientific staff of Kinabalu Park. The KinabaluConservation Centre - which includes scientificlaboratories, biological collections, exhibit spaceand administrative offices - was inaugurated in1995. The Research and Education Sectionemploys a botanist, a zoologist and an entomolo-gist and several research assistants, all coordinat-ed by Jamili Nais, Assistant Director of SabahParks. It is hoped that a post of anthropologistwill be filled in the future. The PEK has con-

tributed to this capacity- and facility-building byproviding funds for the expansion of the herbari-um, the purchase of computers and GIS software,and the employment of an ethnobotanical co-ordinator and research assistants. Members ofnine Dusun communities have collaborated withthe Conservation Centre staff. Ethnobotanicaldata were entered into a PEK database, and aduplicate of each collection is being integratedinto the Sabah Parks herbarium at the Centre.

After reviewing the achievements of thePEK, we are now reflecting on how the projectshould develop in the future. We propose that thecurrent priorities of the PEK should be to finalizethe curation and analysis of the ethnobotanicalcollections, and to produce a Dusun Ethnoflorathat will complete the task of returning the resultsof the study to Dusun community members and

researchers in local institutions. This will set thefoundation for additional research, conservationand community activities which include an eth-nobotanical approach. Our specific recommenda-tions to Sabah Parks and its collaborators are to:1. Identify to species all remaining collec-

tions. At the time of writing this WorkingPaper, almost all of the 9,000 PEK collec-tions have been sorted to family, abouttwo-thirds have been placed in a genus, andone-third (3,100) have been identified tospecies. As part of the taxonomic enumera-tion, John Beaman and his colleagues willidentify the remaining collections tospecies as far as is possible.

2. Document the correspondence betweenDusun and scientific classification ofplants, and the biogeographic distributionof plant resources. A new database,‘EthnoPEK’ will allow elucidation of thegeneral structure of Dusun botanical classi-fication according to general principles ofethnobiological classification (Berlin 1992)and standard methods set out in theEthnobotany Methods Manual (Martin1995). The total number of Dusun genericand specific botanical categories, and theiraffiliation with various Dusun life-forms(including kayu ‘tree’, tangau or wakau‘vine’, saket ‘grasses and herbs’, and tuai‘rattans’) will be ascertained by document-ing the patterns of correspondence betweenthe scientific name, plant family, Dusunname and Dusun life-form.

3. Groundtruth Dusun ethnobotanical knowl-edge. Although the PEK collections havebeen made in nine communities around themountain, there is still inadequate docu-mentation of the geographical distributionof useful plants and the variation in thenaming and use of plants in various vil-lages. Systematic and comparable datashould be gathered by working with keyinformants from selected villages duringworkshops at Kinabalu Park headquartersand in community sessions. Specifically,Sabah Parks staff, accompanied by collab-orating researchers, should travel to com-munities with sets of plant collections thatcorrespond to specific Dusun plant cate-gories for which we need to clarify namingpatterns, distribution and use. The key


20

The making of a Dusun Ethnoflora

If we discovered life on another planet,the first thing we would do is conduct a

systematic inventory of that planet'slife. This is something we have never

done on our planet.Kevin Kelley (2000)



21

informants in each community would beasked to verify information on the name,use and local occurrence of these plants.Additional ethnobotanical techniques -such as pile-sorting, pairwise comparison,and triads comparison - could be used togather empirical data on specific Dusunplant categories that require specific clarifi-cation. Workshops should be held atKinabalu Park headquarters, bringingtogether the key informants to review sec-tions of the completed manuscript.

4. Document plant distribution. In the taxo-nomic enumerations, distributions arerecorded in two ways: (1) in terms of thegeneral elevations and vegetation zoneswhere the species is found, characterized asLowlands, Hill Forest, Lower MontaneForest, Upper Montane Forest, SummitAreas, Ultramafic, Wet Habitats andDisturbed Areas and (2) through the specif-ic localities listed in the specimen citations.Although these characterizations will beuseful for the Dusun Ethnoflora, local clas-sification of the landscape adds a third keyelement: the ecological categories used todescribe the successional stage of the vege-tation where plant resources are harvested.Dusun ecological classification includesseven essential categories: timbaan (prima-ry forest with large trees), puru or talun(primary forest); temulek (secondary forestor earlier successional stages that originatefrom fallowed cultivated fields); geuten(dense, relatively impenetrable secondaryvegetation best characterized as a thicket);butur (grassy area, in pasture or near ahousehold); tume (cultivated fields, some-times with trees); natad or liwan (homegarden). The EthnoPEK database has afield that identifies the Dusun vegetationcategory for the vast majority of the PEKcollections. To further enrich our under-standing of Dusun ethnobotany, localitieswhere plants are harvested by local peopleshould be documented with GPS receivers,topographic maps and satellite images.

5. Publish the results of this ethnobotanicalsurvey in a way that provides communitiesand researchers access to the results of thePEK. The results of the Flora of MountKinabalu project (FMK) are being pub-lished in a series of books entitled Plants ofMount Kinabalu, including volumes 1.Ferns and Fern Allies, 2. Orchids, 3.Monocotyledons, 4. Dicotyledon familiesA-L and a final volume on Dicotyledonfamilies M-Z. Sabah Parks and its collabo-rators should publish a 2-volume work onDusun classification of the flora that wouldcomplement this series, the first volume on

gymnosperms, monocots, ferns and fernallies, and the second volume on dicots.Information on the scientific name, localname, general use, distribution and othercharacteristics would be included in bothEnglish and Dusun for each species. Thebook would be illustrated by color pho-tographs of some plants, and by line draw-ings from Jusimin Duaneh, a gifted illustra-tor who has worked with the PEK since itsinception.

6. Distribute the Dusun Ethnoflora withoutcompromising Dusun intellectual propertyrights. Distribution of the Ethnoflora willhopefully enhance local interest in the richflora of Mount Kinabalu, and stimulatecontinuity in local ethnobotanical knowl-edge. Precise details of how to protectDusun intellectual property rights will bediscussed with community members, fol-lowing the initial steps set out by AgnesLee Agama for the Dusun medicinal plantsbooklet. Some particulars on how to useand prepare unique plants would be leftout, if so requested by local people. Plantsthat are considered of special religious orritual significance would not be included.Intellectual property rights would be fur-ther protected by requiring formal requestsfor permission for any commercial use ofthe information.Over the course of the PEK, the research

team has grown to include a co-ordinator, com-munity collectors, field supervisors and herbari-um staff. Now that the data and plant collectionphase has been finished, the PEK team will bereduced to include only core researchers (JamiliNais and Gary Martin), consultants to identifyplant collections (John Beaman and Max VanBalgooy), a co-ordinator (Benedict Busin), fieldresearchers (Jusimin Duaneh, Ansow Gunsalamand Alim Biun), and a network of key communi-ty participants.

The community participants would reviewthe results of the analysis of Dusun plant classi-fication, provide missing data and make collec-tions as needed. The Sabah Parks herbarium staffshould handle accessioning of the PEK collec-tions. A consultant linguist - Rita Lasimbang ofthe Kadazan Dusun Language Foundation (KLF)- would review the transcription and meaning ofDusun terms. In a related project, Agnes LeeAgama, former local co-ordinator of the Peopleand Plants Initiative and doctoral candidate at theUniversity of Kent at Canterbury, will finish herdoctoral research on the variation in ethnobotan-ical knowledge among the Dusun of Kiau, one ofthe communities that has been involved since thebeginning of the PEK.

Producing a Dusun Ethnoflora will require acoordinated effort by this multidisciplinary team.

The data already collected and analyzed can beenriched by a variety of approaches described inthe following sections.

Discerning patterns of classification: the structure ofDusun classificationThe Dusun language has a series of expressionsfor plant life-forms that have been used on thespecimen labels of the PEK collections. The wordsaket means herb, although it can also mean weed,and is applied to grasses and sedges as well as thetypes of herbs that would be designated forb inEnglish life-form expressions. The word kayumeans tree, whether large or small, and sometimeswhat a botanist would consider a large herb isreferred to as a kayu. There is some variation inthe life-form terms from one community to anoth-er. For example, in Poring, Nalumad, and Tekutana climber or liana is called tangau and a rattan iswakau. In Bundu Tuhan, Kiau, Melangkap Tomis,and Serinsim a climber is called wakau and rattanis tuai. A general word for bamboo is tuluh(Bundu Tuhan, Kiau, Melangkap Tomis andSerinsim) or wuluh (Poring, Nalumad, Tekutan).Poring is used for a few large bamboos, particu-larly Gigantochloa levis, and is the basis for theplace name Poring. The Malay word rumpunmeans a cluster, and is used sometimes forclumped grasses such as Sorghum and some bam-boos as well as certain pandans such as Pandanusrusticus. Parai is a commonly used term, referringexclusively to rice. Parai-parai or marai-parai,however, mean life-forms resembling rice. TheMalay life-form term syrub (apparently borrowedfrom English shrub) is occasionally used in Dusunplant classification. Other general botanical termsthat have been borrowed include okid (orchid),bambu and palma from English and sayur fromMalay, meaning vegetable.

Of the 3,100 ethnobotanical collections thathave been identified to species, a majority corre-

spond to trees, grass/herbs (a combined life-formin Dusun) and vines (Table 7). Other minor life-forms - such as orchids, palms and bamboos -account for a small amount of collections. LocalDusun collaborators did not indicate the life-form of some 300 collections (about 10% of thecollections), which may correspond to unaffiliat-ed generics or simply plants of low cultural sig-nificance and biological salience for Dusunspeakers of the Mount Kinabalu region. A fulllist of Dusun plant generic terms and their life-form affiliation will be verified in the ‘ethnob-otanical groundtruthing’ described above. Asadditional collections are identified, we will beable to understand the relationship betweenDusun and Western plant classification, particu-larly the correspondence between Dusun plantgenerics and scientific species.

Characterizing Dusun resourcemanagement patterns: the cultivation status of plantsIn floristic treatments, cultivated and weedyspecies are sometimes excluded. The Plants ofMount Kinabalu volumes seek to provide a com-prehensive record of the present state of the floraof Mount Kinabalu, and therefore cultivated andinvasive species are included, including forexample 117 species in dicot families A-L(Table 8). Before the initiation of ProjekEtnobotani Kinabalu in 1992, few cultivatedplants had been collected on Mount Kinabalu.According to the PEK guidelines the collectorswere to focus on plants named or used by theDusun people, and also to make general floristiccollections, on community lands and later with-in Kinabalu Park. On the basis of the large num-ber of cultivated plants represented in their col-lections, knowledge of what plants are beingcultivated around the mountain is now signifi-cantly improved.

At the beginning of the project, we did nothave a clear understanding of the Dusun conceptsand practices of ‘cultivating’, ‘protecting’ and‘tolerating’ plant resources. We did not fullyinstruct the collectors to note how a particularspecimen is managed (e.g. ‘grown in a pot’, ‘cul-tivated in a garden within a house compound'’,'’planted in a cultivated field within or adjacentto the kampung’) or cultivated (e.g. enrichmentplanting of coffee in secondary vegetation or insmall clearings in primary forest). Although it isnot always clear from data recorded by the col-lectors how a plant was managed, sometimessuch an inference can be made from the collec-tion notes. For example, if the data includes astatement such as ‘within a house compound’ thespecimen was likely cultivated. The term liar, aborrowed Malay word for wild, is used for anywild relatives of cultivated species (for examplePandanus).

22

Table 7. The distribution of identifiedPEK collections among the Dusun lifeform categories.

Dusun life form Number of collections

Tree (kayu) 1450Grass/herb (saket) 825Vine (wakau/tangau/tuai) 496Orchid (okid) 15Palm (palma) 12Bamboo (bambu/poring) 11Unaffiliated generics? (lifeform not specified) ~300Total ~3100




23

Table 8. Cultivated native and non-native, and weedy dicotyledons (familiesAcanthaceae-Lythraceae) on Mount Kinabalu.

Family # Species

Acanthaceae 3 (Justicia betonica, J. gendarussa, Strobilanthes cf. isophyllus)Amaranthaceae 10 (Achyranthes bidentata, Alternanthera sessilis, A. tenella, Amaranthus hybridus,

A. spinosus, A. viridis, A. tricolor, Celosia argentea, Cyathula prostrata, Gomphrena globosa)Anacardiaceae 2 (Anacardium occidentale, Mangifera indica)Annonaceae 3 (Annona muricata, Cananga odorata, Rollinia mucosa)Apiaceae 3 (Apium graveolens, Centella asiatica, Eryngium foetidum)Asclepiadaceae 1 (Asclepias curassavica)Asteraceae 20 (Ageratum conyzoides, Bidens pilosa, Chromolaena odorata, Chrysanthemum indicum,

Conyza leucantha, Crassocephalum crepidioides, Eclipta prostrata, Elephantopus mollis, Emilia sonchifolia, Erechtites hieraciifolia, E. valerilanifolia, Eupatorium capillifolium, Hypochaeris radicata, Mikania micrantha, Sonchus oleraceus, Sphagneticola trilobata, Synedrella nodiflora, Tagetes erecta, Youngia japonica, Zinnia elegans)

Balsaminaceae 2 (Impatiens balsamina, Impatiens sp.)Begoniaceae 1 (Begonia cucullata)Bixaceae 1 (Bixa orellana)Bombacaceae 2 (Ceiba pentandra, Durio zibethinus)Campanulaceae 1 (Laurentia longiflora)Capparaceae 1 (Cleome rutidosperma)Caprifoliaceae 1 (Lonicera sumatrana)Caricaceae 1 (Carica papaya)Clusiaceae 1 (Garcinia mangostana) Convolvulaceae 6 (Cuscuta campestris, Ipomoea aquatica, I. batatas, I. fistulosa, I. quamoclit, I. triloba)Crassulaceae 2 (Bryophyllum pinnatum, Kalanchoe crenata)Cucurbitaceae 9 (Benincasa hispida, Cucumis melo, C. sativus, Cucurbita maxima, Lagenaria siceraria,

Luffa cylindrica, Momordica charantia, M. cochinchinensis, Trichosanthes cucumerina)Euphorbiaceae 15 (Acalypha wilkesiana, Codiaeum variegatum, Croton tiglium, Euphorbia hirta,

E. pulcherrima, E. thymifolia, Hevea brasiliensis, Jatropha curcas, J. gossypiifolia,Manihot esculenta, M. glaziovii, Pedilanthus tithymaloides, Phyllanthus amarus, P. urinaria, Ricinus communis

Fabaceae 23 (Acacia mangium, Aeschynomene americana, Caesalpinia pulcherrima, Calliandra portoricensis, C. surinamensis, Canavalia gladiata, Centrosema plumieri, Crotalaria pallida, C. verrucosa, Erythrina variegata, Gliricidia sepium, Mimosa pudica, Phaseolus lunatus, Samanea saman, Senna alata, S. obtusifolia, S. occidentalis, S. siamea, S. spectabilis, S. tora, Tamarindus indica, Vigna indet.)

Flacourtiaceae 2 (Flacourtia indica, F. rukam)Lamiaceae 5 Hyptis brevipes, H. capitata, H. suaveolens, Ocimum basilicum, O. citriodorum)Lythraceae 2 (Cuphea hyssopifolia, Lagerstroemia indica)

In discussing ecological associations of theKinabalu monocotyledons, Beaman and Beaman(1998) defined some of the terms used in theDusun language to designate the habitat. Several ofthe habitat terms suggest, or fairly clearly indicate,that a particular plant was cultivated. Thus, buturmeans grassy area, and may be either a pasture orwithin a house compound. When this expression isused it is likely that the species has been affectedby human influence, and is either a weed or a culti-gen. Liwan (in Bundu Tuhan and Serinsim) andnatad are equivalent words for home gardens,which indicates an even greater likelihood that aplant is cultivated. Temulek is the most problemat-ical habitat term with respect to ascertaining wildversus cultivated status. It means secondary vege-

tation, usually secondary forest, but can imply dis-turbed areas in successional stages prior to whatcould be thought of as forest. Temulek implies thatthe secondary vegetation originated from aban-doned land that was once cultivated. Disturbedareas along roadsides are often referred to astemulek. Many of the specimens recorded as occur-ring in temulek were not being cultivated in thestrictest sense, but were under some form of man-agement, thus the cultivation status is ambiguous.

In the Dusun Ethnoflora, we will attempt toclarify the cultivation status of plant resources,providing data on management practices such asenrichment planting in secondary forest and theintroduction of plants in home gardens and othercultivated areas.

Documenting local and scientificvegetation types: plant resource distributionThe EthnoPEK database has a field that identifiesthe Dusun vegetation category for the vast major-ity of the 3,100 PEK collections identified tospecies (Table 9). There are nearly 1,300 collec-tions that come from primary forests (timbaan,puru or talun) and a similar number from sec-ondary vegetation (temulek or geuten). Morethan 150 collections are from pastures, and asimilar number from cultivated areas (fields orhome gardens).

Although this provides a starting point, wepropose four ways to further refine our docu-mentation of plant distribution and its inclusionin the complete Dusun Ethnoflora. First, Agnes

Lee Agama, as part of a doctoral study furtherdiscussed below, will carry out comparativeethnographic work at Kiau to gain a detailedunderstanding of the definition of the Dusun sys-tem of vegetation classification, of which ourunderstanding is currently limited. Her researchand thesis will focus on how the conceptualiza-tion of ecological categories and the knowledgeof dominant or key plant resources vary accord-ing to age, gender, geographical location, level ofacculturation and other characteristics of a sam-ple of informants from Kiau. This will includeclarification of the relationship between Dusunand scientific vegetation types at various eleva-tions on the mountain, as shown schematically inTable 10.

This research will be divided into severalphases. Initially, Agnes Lee Agama will workwith a team of Dusun speakers from Kiau tocharacterize the Dusun vegetation types in termsof dominant and key plant resources, elevation,location in the community, land use and resourcemanagement. The team will draw an initial com-munity map indicating the distribution of thevegetation types in the community. They willcarry out a community census, and select a strat-ified random sample of 30 informants. Each ofthese 30 participants will be given a disposablecamera with which to take 36 pictures that showthe exposure, physiognomy, location and keyresources of each vegetation type. Discussion ofthe photos with the informants will allow devel-opment of a detailed description of the KiauDusun concepts of timbaan, puru, temulek andthe other vegetation types. In addition, eachinformant will make an individual list of


24

Table 9. The distribution of PEK collectionsamong the Dusun vegetation types.

Dusun vegetation type Number of collections

Primary forest with large trees (timbaan) 203Primary forest (puru or talun) 1093Secondary forest (temulek) 786Thicket (geuten) 513Grassy area (butur) 159Home garden (natad or liwan) 109Cultivated field (tume) 59

Table 10. The inter-relationship between Dusun vegetation categories employed in the ProjekEtnobotani Kinabalu and the scientific vegetation types employed in the Plants ofMount Kinabalu project. The shaded boxes indicate areas where particular Dusun typesof vegetation do not exist (e.g. because of lack of forests or human activity at certain elevations).

Scientific Dusun vegetation categoriesvegetationtypes timbaan puru temulek geuten tume butur natad

or talun or liwan‘primary forest ‘primary forest’ ‘secondary ‘thicket’ ‘cultivated ‘grassy area’ ‘home garden’

with large trees’ vegetation’ fields’

Summit area>3,400 mUpper montane forest2,200 to 3,400 mLower montane forest1,200 to 2,200 mHill forest600 to 1,200 mLowlands0 to 600 m

toponyms in Kiau, and will then indicate the veg-etation type of each. With this list of toponyms inhand, several members of the communities willvisit these sites to record the elevation (using analtimeter), the coordinates (using a GPS receiv-er), the key plant resources and the dominantform of land use. They will take photographs andconfirm the vegetation type - in Dusun terms - ofeach site. In the final phase of this research, atrail will be set out through a set of sites that rep-resent the diversity of vegetation and key plantresources of the community. Informants will betaken along this trail one by one, and will beinterviewed on their understanding of the vegeta-tion, land use and resource management at each

site. In addition, they will be asked to provide thename, life-form and use of key plant resources.The resulting data and interviews will allow aqualitative and quantitative analysis of the vari-ability of knowledge of landscapes, vegetationand plant resources in the community.

A second way to refine our documentation ofplant distribution will be through field visits andworkshops carried out by the PEK team. As partof these activities, we will verify the correlationbetween a broad range of Dusun plant categoriesand the Dusun-defined vegetation zones wherethey are found, extending the analysis, alreadycarried out in a detailed way, at Kiau to otherlocations on the mountain.

Third, we will document the patterns of plantdistribution around Mount Kinabalu in both geo-graphical and vegetational terms, drawing uponthe locality information for collections includedin the published and future volumes of the Plantsof Mount Kinabalu. In the third volume of thePlants of Mount Kinabalu, John and ReedBeaman documented the ecological associationsof well-collected non-orchid monocotyledons. Inaddition, the second volume of the Plants ofMount Kinabalu included an initial assessmentof the similarity of the orchid flora at various key

localities, using the Jaccard similarity coeffi-cient. We will expand upon this systematic doc-umentation of plant distribution by characteriz-ing the floristic elements of scientific and Dusunvegetation types around the mountain. In addi-tion, we will assess the similarity between theflora of various sectors of the Mount Kinabalu,based on the presence and absence in the follow-ing 90° quadrants (Table 11): NW (Sayap,Melangkap Tomis), SW (Kiau and BunduTuhan), SE (Nalumad, Tekutan and Poring) andNE (Serinsim, Menggis). Apart from providing ageneral picture of plant distributions and associ-ations on Mount Kinabalu, this will providebaseline data for a future analysis of Dusun com-

munity access to key plant resources and ofDusun preference for various habitats when plantresources are typically harvested.

Finally, we will refine available data on theelevational range and specific localities whereparticular plant resources are found. In the Plantsof Mount Kinabalu volumes, elevation data aresummarized for all taxa for which these datawere available on specimen labels. The elevationrange indicated for each taxon is based on thelowest and highest elevations recorded (whetherin feet or metres) for specimens of that taxon androunded to the nearest 100 m. The elevationranges pertain only to collections from MountKinabalu, not to any other part of the distributionof the species. In various taxa, some specimenshave elevation data while others do not. It may beapparent from the locality data that a particulartaxon must occur at lower or higher elevationsthan indicated by the elevation printed. JohnBeaman and his colleagues did not attempt toprovide elevation ranges for taxa when the spec-imen labels do not provide this information, withthe result that the elevations stated are not neces-sarily complete for a particular taxon.

The collections from the PEK project areparticularly problematical in this respect,



25

Table 11. The four geographical sectors of Mount Kinabalu used for an initial analysisof the distribution of palms.

Sector Communities Latitude Longitude Elevational Primaryand peaks Range Range Range [m asl] vegetation types

Northwest Melangkap Tomis 6°05'N to 6°16'N 116°23'E to 116°34'E 100m - 4,000+m Tropical montane rain forest;and Sayap Tropical lowland rain forest

Northeast Serinsim, Menggis 6°05'N to 6°16'N 116°34'E to 116°45'E 200m - 4000+m Tropical montane rain forest; and Mount Tambayukon Forest on ultrabasic soils

Southwest Bundu Tuhan, Kiau 5°54'N to 6°05'N 116°23'E to 116°34'E 400m - 4000+ m Tropical montane rain forest; Nuluh and Mount Kinabalu Forest on ultrabasic soils

Southeast Poring, Tekutan 5°54'N to 6°05'N 116°34'E to 116°45'E 200m - 4000+m Tropical lowland rain forest;and Nalumad Forest on ultrabasic soils

because the PEK collectors have not had accessto altimeters or detailed maps. They have, how-ever, recorded precise locality data that appearon the labels as ‘toponyms’ (place names for spe-cific sites, such as local terms for settlements andspecific topographical features of the landscape).Eventual publication of a list of PEK toponymswith latitude-longitude coordinates and eleva-tions determined by GPS and altimeters is envi-sioned, giving further insight into the distributionof key plant resources.

Mapping distribution and accessto plant resources: GIS andnumerical applicationsAs part of the Flora of Mount Kinabalu project,Reed Beaman and his colleagues have devel-oped a geographical information system (GIS)that is being used to produce a color topo-graphic map of Mount Kinabalu. The map willdocument locations where all specimens havebeen collected and show the names of rivers,streams, other landforms, and settlements.Satellite imagery and global positioning system(GPS) data have made it possible to show thelocations of major and minor roads. Theimagery will be used to interpret the occurrenceof ultramafic substrates, vegetation types, pri-mary and secondary forests, and vegetationassociated with human activities. Surface mod-elling techniques will be used to predict wheretaxa occur in unexplored areas, based on thetopographic and edaphic characteristics ofwhere they are known to occur. The GIS isintended to help integrate taxonomic and eth-nobotanical data in Kinabalu Park managementactivities and to help in monitoring suchaspects as ecotourism development and illegalharvesting activities. This technology will beextended to determine the sources of plantsused by local people and, in particular, tounderstand if communities have access to allthe forest resources they were using before thecreation of Kinabalu Park.

The Kinabalu GIS, along with data on plantdistribution around Mount Kinabalu, will allowus to create distribution maps for the DusunEthnoflora. These maps will show the principalindigenous communities around the mountain,with shaded areas of predicted and known distri-bution of key plant resources. A key tool will bethe list of Dusun place names (Beaman et al.1996), the toponym maps that John and ReedBeaman have developed, and the eventual list ofPEK toponyms with latitude-longitude coordi-nates and elevations. In addition, the locationmap produced from the GIS will be essential inrecording plant distributions and mapping vege-tational zones as defined by scientists and theDusun.

A broader biogeographic analysis for theKinabalu flora and ethnoflora could be devel-oped based on the methodology employed byBarkman et al. (1998) to elucidate orchid distrib-ution and the GIS technology used by Beamanand Beaman (1997) to understand distributionand diversity patterns of pteridophytes. Barkmanet al. (1988) delimited regions of homogenousgeology within a defined elevational range,shown in Table 12. They recorded 466 taxa oforchids from these regions, and derived a clado-gram based on their distribution. AlthoughBarkman and his colleagues used these data toanalyze the divergence of the present-day orchidflora, this approach could be adopted to under-stand similarities in the access of Dusun commu-nities to plant resources around Mount Kinabalu.

As a further refinement to documenting andportraying plant distributions, we plan to drawupon the methodological advances of ReedBeaman for the interpolation mapping of taxondistributions. He is creating an automatedapproach and prototype for mapping the geo-graphical distribution of biological specimensthat would parse label data and generate proba-bilistic surfaces of taxon distributions, abandon-ing the traditional techniques of manual dot-mapping. He defines an interpolation map as a'spatially visualized measurement of confidence'based on where a group of specimens was actu-ally collected. He is currently working on a testcase, the Urticaceae of the Flora Malesianaregion, to generate data for distribution patternsof species of this family on Mount Kinabalu.More importantly, his innovative approach - orthe alternative specimen-occurrence predictionalgorithms already in use - could be used toenhance estimations of the distributions of keyplant resources, and their proximity to Dusuncommunities. This baseline data would permit afuture analytical and quantitative study of com-munity access to, and preference for, plantresources.

Correlating elevation and use ofplant resources: ecological ethnobotanyWe pointed out in chapter 1 that the majority ofcollections made by PEK collectors are from rel-atively low elevations around Mount Kinabalu,typically under 1,800 m asl. This is in part a relictof our method as (1) we asked collectors toinventory, primarily, useful plants around theircommunities, and (2) Sabah Parks only gave per-mission in 1995 for village participants to collectat higher elevations within the Park. Yet wespeculate that the concentration of collections atlower elevations also reflects the relatively rich-er flora of the lowlands, hill forest and lowermontane forest around Mount Kinabalu. As can


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be seen in Figure 3, the highest diversity ofKinabalu dicotyledon species occurs at around1,500 m, where 543 taxa are recorded. Thisgraph closely resembles the one for Kinabaluorchids (Wood et al. 1993), but not that for thenon-orchid monocots (Beaman and Beaman1998), which include many families that general-ly occur at low elevations. Figure 3 shows that atlower elevations, species diversity rapidlyincreases with increase in elevation in hill forest;from 238 taxa at 700 m to 422 taxa at 1,200 m.The greatest diversity is in the next higher zone,lower montane forest, which has 529 species at1,300 m decreasing to 213 species at 2,100 m.Upper montane forest has relatively fewerspecies, with 177 recorded at 2,200 m and only64 at 3,100 m. The summit area at the 3,200 mlevel also has 64 taxa, with the number decreas-ing to only 12 at the highest elevation.

The Dusun people clearly have more plantsto choose from at lower elevations, but it appearsthat they also use a higher percentage of the floraat lower than higher elevations. As Salick et al.(1999) observed,

“One of the striking trends observed from theinitial data generated in this project is that mostof the useful plants collected are close to humansettlement. Very few useful plants have been col-lected from high elevations or from ultramaficsoils where people tend not to live and whichpeople tend not to cultivate. Potential explana-tions of this trend include (1) people frequent andtherefore use plants close to human settlement,(2) the habitats close to human settlements con-tain more useful plants, and/or (3) people settlenear habitats where there are more usefulplants”.

In order to test the feasibility of thesehypotheses, Jan Salick and her colleaguesemployed an approach adopted fromecological ethnobotany. They drewupon the ecological research ofKanehiro Kitayama (1991, 1992),who sampled and defined 16 naturalvegetation types, including six zonalvegetation types along an elevationalgradient from tropical lowland rainforest, through montane rain forest,subalpine conifer and broad-leavedforests, to alpine scrub forest. 168plant species in 56 families and 99genera were identified by Kitayamaas being either dominant or indicatorspecies in these various vegetationtypes.

Salick collected data on theDusun use of these common andcharacteristic species, based on inter-views with a single knowledgeableinformant, Alim Diun, a Dusun natu-ralist from Sabah Parks. In order to

test the relationship between overall biodiversityand plant resources, the richness of dominantsand indicator species was correlated with thenumber of useful species in the six zonal vegeta-tion types. They determined that biodiversity isthe major identifiable ecological correlate of use-ful plant diversity - that is, higher percentages ofplants are used in areas of high biodiversity thanin areas of lower biodiversity. Salick et al. sug-gest a number of questions that might beanswered by PEK in the future to follow up onthis research:

• Is the Dusun knowledge base limited tonearby plants because of experience, his-torical loss of knowledge, and/or becauseof cultural taboos associated with MountKinabalu?

• When complete inventories of plant biodi-versity are analyzed, is the direct associa-tion with use retained?

• Are plants on nutrient poor soils reallyunused?

• How does disturbance, and in particularfire, affect access to useful plants?

• How closely defined is the Dusun sense ofplace and how does Mount Kinabalu, homeof the spirits, affect this sense of place?

Establishing one hectare plots:quantitative ethnobotanyapproachesIn the 1980s, Ghillean Prance and his colleaguesstarted to combine ecological and ethnobotanicalapproaches by carrying out systematic interviewswith Amazonian Indians in one-hectare plots oftropical forests (Prance et al. 1987). After demar-

Table 12. Regions of homogenous geology within a definedelevational range defined by Barkman et al. (1998).

Standard locality Elevation (m) Substrate

Hempuen Hill 500 - 1000 UltramaficDallas 500 - 1000 SedimentaryPoring 500 - 1000 Sedimentary-graniticPenataran River 1300 - 1500 UltramaficPeniguppan Ridge 1600 - 2000 UltramaficMarai Parai 1000 - 2000 UltramaficPinosuk Plateau 1000 - 2000 Quaternary gravelLower Gurulau 1800 - 2400 SedimentarySummit Trail 2000 - 2300 SedimentaryPig Hill 2000 - 3200 UltramaficUpper Marai Parai 2600 - 3000 GraniticKinabalu Lipson 3100 - 4094 UltramaficSummit Area 500 - 1000 Granitic

cating the plots, the researchers collected andidentified every species of tree of 10 cm or morein diameter at breast height. Once this forestinventory was done, they asked different groupsof informants the use of each species.

Termed ‘quantitative ethnobotany’, thismethodological approach revealed that indige-nous people were capable of identifying between48-95% of the individual trees in the one-hectareplot, and that they use many more species thanwas previously documented.

PEK participants gained some experience inthis technique when setting up a one-hectare ploton Bukit Lugas near the community ofHimbaan, guided by Balu Perumal of WWFMalaysia. After delimiting the plot, they triedtheir hand at recording the names, diversity, fre-quency, density and uses of forest resources.This allowed Kinabalu Park staff to carry out apreliminary assessment of the cultural impor-tance and conservation status of some palms, anapproach that could be expanded and made morerigorous to provide quantitative data for somespecies included in the Dusun Ethnoflora.Ideally, more permanent one-hectare plots inprimary and secondary forests at various eleva-tions would be set up according to the cross-cut-ting Dusun vegetation zones noted in Table 9.This would allow researchers to monitor theimpact of local resource management and toassess the continuity of Dusun knowledge ofplant resources.

Assessing conservation status: criteria for assessing vulnerabilityJohn Dransfield and Dennis Johnson (1991)drew upon information from the WorldConservation Monitoring Centre and the herbar-ium of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew to assessthe conservation status of 131 species of Sabahpalms. For 113 species, they found that the con-servation status was unknown, a situation that isprobably similar for most plant species in Sabah.They have the following to say about palmsfound in the Kinabalu area,

“The conservation status of Sabah palms ishardly known… As far as can be determined, themost threatened palms are Salacca lophospatha(Extinct/Endangered) and S. clemensiana(Endangered). The first is an endemic speciesand has been given the same world classifica-tion. The second also occurs in the Philippines,its world classification is Unknown Classified asRare in Sabah and worldwide is the endemic rat-tan Calamus laevigatus var. serpentina and thesalak palm Salacca dolicholepsis. Caryota no,which also occurs in Kalimantan and Sarawak,is classified as Indeterminate in Sabah, butVulnerable on a world scale. Arenga retroflo-rescens, an endemic species, has been classifiedas Indeterminate, but is probably Endangered.Only ten palms in Sabah are classified as NotThreatened.”


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Figure 3. Elevational distribution of dicotyledons in families A-L on Mount Kinabalu.

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

0 500 1,000 1,500 2,000 2,500 3,000 3,500 4,000

SpeciesGeneraNu

mbe

r of t

axa

Elevation [m]

Despite continued use of the palms and destruc-tion of their habitat, none of the 81 species detect-ed in the PEK and FMK collections is truly in dan-ger of disappearing from the Kinabalu Park area.In some cases, such as the robust rattan Calamusornatus, there are significant populations protect-ed within Kinabalu Park, safe from the danger ofover-harvesting from the wild. Apart from its usein making baskets, this rattan is in high demandfor furniture making. Other valuable palms, suchas Calamus caesius, are cultivated by local com-munities or in plantations. Having been broughtinto cultivation, continued use of the palm for usessuch as traditional baskets can remain a part ofsubsistence production. As collections continue,palms formerly considered as narrow endemics,such as Arenga retroflorescens, are now known tobe more widespread. Whether through protectionin conservation areas or management by people,we find that potentially vulnerable plant speciesare being protected.

If little information about plants is availableon a state level, how can we assess the conserva-tion status of palms and other useful plantsaround a small area such as Mount Kinabalu? Wepropose that studying a series of indicators wouldallow us to identify vulnerable species (Box 2).

Understanding the social context of forest access: transformation of Dusun useand management of plantresourcesA community-based inventory such as the PEKprovides a broad but shallow understanding ofthe patterns of plant resource use and manage-ment. One of the goals of subsequent ethno-graphic research is to flesh out this ethnobotani-cal sketch with information gathered throughparticipant observation, interaction with infor-mants and structured interviewing techniques.

An example of this approach is found in thedoctoral research of Agnes Lee Agama, spon-sored in part by the People and Plants Initiativeand related to the Projek Etnotbotani Kinabalu. APhD candidate in the Anthropology Departmentof the University of Kent at Canterbury, Agamais preparing a thesis entitled Outside of ParkBoundaries: Examining patterns of forest accessof the Kiau Dusun in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo(Box 3). Her research will allow us to understandthe social context of plant resource use in thecommunity of Kiau, one of the original villagesinvolved in the PEK, an analysis that can beextended to other communities in the region.

Drawing upon the literature:the contribution of bibliographic sourcesThe rich history of botanical expeditions toMount Kinabalu and other areas in Borneo (andSouth-East Asia in general) has produced awealth of information on the ethnobotany ofplant resources, as well as reference works on thedistribution, reproductive biology and taxonomyof these species.

Odoardo Beccari’s (1996 [1904])Wanderings in the Great Forests of Borneo is anexcellent case in point. In April 1865, OdoardoBeccari, an Italian botanist from Florence, sailedfrom Southampton, England to Kuching on theisland of Borneo, where he arrived in June of thesame year. For the next two and a half years,Beccari collected some 4,000 species of plants inthe current Malaysian state of Sarawak. Excerptsfrom his writings on palms (Box 4, page 33),from Wanderings in the Great Forests of Borneo,show Beccari’s inquisitive mind and attention todetail, which led him to discover many newspecies of plants, and to record insights abouttheir local classification, use and management.Beccari’s writing - as well as other historicalsources - allow us a unique perspective on thecontinuity of local ethnobotanical practices.Much of what he recorded about the local knowl-edge of palms is still valid today, although someof the uses are no longer current in all areas ofthe island. Although Beccari did not collectaround the Kinabalu area, including informationfrom his writings (and others of the same period)will provide an historical perspective to theDusun Ethnoflora.

Summarizing the results: theethnoPEK databaseThe EthnoPEK database, referred to in severalsections of this chapter, includes baseline data onsome of the key parameters of Dusun ethnob-otany. In order to link this specimen-based data-base with those developed for the Flora of MountKinabalu project, each record has fields for thecollector and collection number (and suffix,where appropriate). Fields for botanical family,species and infraspecific name (where appropri-ate) are updated regularly as John Beaman andhis colleagues make progress on the identifica-tion of PEK collections as part of their generalfloristic study.

For the time being, only basic ethnobotanicalinformation is recorded. To assist in the analysisof ethnobiological classification, there are fields



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Box 2. Indicators of vulnerability of Kinabalu palms.

Studying a combination of biological, social and economic indicators allows identification of a preliminary list of vulnerable plant resources. As a testcase, we plan to construct a matrix for the 14 indicators discussed below for the 81 species of palms included in the PEK collections. We list eachindicator, discuss its relevance to the conservation status of palms and give the range of possible character states in brackets. This analysis mixesindicators which affect the vulnerability of the palms at the local (Mount Kinabalu) level as well as throughout their geographical range. Weighting ofthe relative importance of these indicators would be artificial, so the overall assessment would be based on detecting patterns of vulnerability - acombination of indicators that predisposes a species to over-harvesting.

(1) Plant habit {thicket-forming, clustering, sometimes clustering, solitary}: Solitary palms - which have a single stem - are more vulnerable than clus-tering palms, which have several stems which grow from the same individual. When the stems of solitary palms are cut, the whole plant dies. Whenthe stems of a clustering palm are cut, other stems can sprout from the base of the plant. Clustering palms that form thickets are the most resilientto over-harvesting.

(2) Stem diameter {massive, robust, moderate, slender, very slender}: In general, the massive and robust species - which have a large cane diam-eter - require more time to grow to maturity than moderate, slender and very slender palms, and are thus more vulnerable to over-harvesting. Palmsof various stem diameter classes are of commercial value or local importance, depending on the quality of the cane.

(3) Stem length {stemless to 150 m}: Palms with long stems are more vulnerable than short-stemmed or stemless palms, because of two factors:they typically require a longer time to grow and tend to be in greater demand for subsistence and commercial uses.

(4) Distribution {South-East Asian, Borneo endemic, East Malaysian endemic, Sabah endemic, Kinabalu endemic}: An understanding of the distrib-ution of the palm species contributes to assessing their general conservation status. Those with relatively broad ranges, including species foundthrough South-East Asia or Borneo are less likely to become threatened than narrow endemics (such as species found only in Sabah or on MountKinabalu).

(5) Local frequency {all sectors, 3 sectors, 2 sectors, 1 sector}: Frequency is a measure of presence or absence of a species in a series of grid,quadrats or sectors. Based on ethnobotanical and floristic collections, we have assessed the frequency of palms in southeast, southwest, northeastand northwest sectors of Mount Kinabalu. Species found around the mountain are less likely to be threatened than those found in one, two or eventhree sectors.

(6) Preferred vegetation zone {primary forest, old secondary forest, highly disturbed forest, cultivated vegetation}: Because of the increasing defor-estation of areas outside the Kinabalu Park boundaries, species restricted to primary forest, such as Calamus ornatus, are more vulnerable thanCalamus acuminatus and other species which grow in secondary forest and other disturbed sites. Some species, including Areca catechu andMetroxylon sagu, tend to be found in cultivated sites such as home gardens and agroforests, and are the least threatened.

(7) Density in Sabah {abundant, common, frequent, occasional, scarce, rare}: Density, the number of individuals of a species per unit area, can beassessed quantitatively in measured plots or qualitatively over a defined range such as the state of Sabah. Vulnerability to overuse increases asdensity decreases.

(8) Presence inside Park {present, absent}: Palms inside the Kinabalu Park boundary are protected by law; currently, local residents accept theserestrictions on harvesting. Thus, species represented inside the Park are less vulnerable than those found exclusively outside the protected area.

(9) Commercialization {international, regional, local, none}: Tendency to over-harvesting increases along with the scope of commercialization.Although most species are not sold, some are marketed locally (in rural marketplaces) or regionally (in urban areas such as Kota Kinabalu). Calamuscaesius has a recognized international value.

(10) Quality and preference {none, low, medium, high}: Palms which are recognized as the best in their use-class are more intensively harvestedthan second class or substitute species (e.g. Areca catechu gives a better betel nut than wild species of Areca or Pinanga; Calamus caesius is pre-ferred over other rattans for basket-making; the quality of palm cabbage varies from one species to another).

(11) Cultivation status {domesticated, cultivated, managed, wild}: Vulnerability to overuse decreases as local management of the species increas-es; domesticated, cultivated and managed plants are less impacted by heavy harvesting than wild plants. Some palms, such as Areca catechu arecultivated whereas others such as Eugeissona utilis are maintained in semi-cultivated states. Wild species - including the majority of rattans - arethe most vulnerable to over-exploitation, particularly when no attempt is made to protect their habitat or stimulate their regeneration after harvest-ing.

(12) Harvesting impact {plant fatal, stem fatal, non-fatal}: Many methods of palm harvesting involve cutting the main stem or stems. This destroysindividual solitary palms and kills one or more stems of clustering palms, and thus has a potentially high impact on the species. Harvesting of theleaves, flowers, fruits and seeds is non-fatal and typically has a low impact.

(13) Local perceived scarcity {not scarce, scarce}: Local impressions of scarcity can be an accurate guide to current levels of availability.

(14) General conservation status {unknown, not threatened, indeterminate, rare, vulnerable, endangered, extinct}: Specialist assessment of the sta-tus of palms - though lacking for most species - can guide classification at a local level.



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Box 3. A synopsis of Outside of Park Boundaries, by A.L. Agama

Outside of Park Boundaries: Examining patterns of forest access of the Kiau Dusun in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo treats access to forestresources in terms of the knowledge and actual use of forest resources. Knowledge encompasses memory and basic recognition, perceptions,classification, mythology, geographic aspects such as location, distribution and density, taboos and specialized knowledge. The actual use ofresources refers to the practices and skills involved in navigating the landscape, harvesting and collecting, domesticating, consuming, storage,taboos, and specialized acts or rituals. In addition to plant resources, Agama includes in forest resources anything in the forest that is or wassignificant to people's livelihoods - landscape and topography, weather, land, forest, water, soil, animals, insects, fish and so on.

The primary research questions in the thesis are: (1) Are people accessing forest resources (what do they know and what are they using)?; (2)What are the general categories of these resources (and how are they being applied in daily life)?; (3) How do people perceive the forest (andare these perceptions changing)?; and (4) Are there correlations between access to forest resources and people's involvement in Kinabalu Park,perceptions of rural development in Kiau, and general ideas about forest conservation? The practical goals of the thesis are to predict - basedon the patterns of access to forest resources - the impact of access or non-access to forest resources on the natural and cultural ecology, andthe future role of Kiau's forests as part of a buffer zone to Kinabalu Park.

In order to understand which components of the Kiau Dusun are becoming less dependant on forest resources - and if this influences the con-dition of the forest around them - Agama is using a variety of research methods. By mapping toponyms, carrying out freelisting of resources andinterviewing people along a tree trail, she is documenting what people currently know. A photo study, interviews with specialists on crafts andmedicinal plants and studies of harvesting practices will clarify how people actually manage and use resources. Participant observation providesinformation on the transformation of the role of the forest in community life, affecting uses for households (work, recreation and subsistenceeconomy), food and medicine (agriculture, edible and medicinal plants from the forest); markets (such as commercial non-timber forest prod-ucts); and foreigners (through the tourist boom).

Grounded in leading theories of political ecology, the thesis begins with a discussion of research conducted in similar geographic circumstances,including studies on Kiau and other Dusun communities, and a brief overview of the work conducted by local and external researchers on otherethnic groups in Sabah. This research addresses themes such as the relationship between swidden communities and the market economy, thedynamics of the people and park interface, and the impact of urbanization on rural communities. Through this literature review, she is seekingto understand if the local community is becoming less self-reliant and more dependant on government (and relevant outside agencies) to pro-vide for their welfare.

Much of the thesis is based on anthropological research that Agama is carrying out in Kiau, one of the first villages involved in the PEK. Shedocuments the history of the village and the surrounding area, drawing upon four main sources: anthropological publications and documents ofthe Chartered Company, interviews with informants in Kiau and in Kota Kinabalu, archival documentation from the Sabah Musuem collections,and field notes from botanical and zoological expeditions to Mt Kinabalu from 1885 to the 1930s. These historical sources are compared withthe present day in Kiau. Agama describes - based on participant observation and interviews with informants - current living arrangements, socialand economic variables such as land tenure, agriculture, hunting, fishing, livestock, non-timber forest resources, community health, wealth, edu-cation, employment, religion, rituals and social transformation. She focuses in particular on practices that involve interaction with the forest insome way, such as land clearance, management of domesticated and semi-domesticated crops, and access to plant resources.

Agama seeks to place these changing practices within the larger context of state and national development in Sabah and Malaysia. The empha-sis is on three main forces that place pressure upon and influence traditional lifestyles in Kiau. First, she uses comparative data from twentyDusun communities to address the significance of Mt Kinabalu to the people who live around it, and the importance of the biodiversity of themountain to local government and research bodies. She discusses the establishment of Kinabalu National Park (1972) and its subsequentimpact on local communities, especially at Kiau.

Second, she focuses economic and political developments in Sabah after independence in 1963. A key element in this discussion is the politicsof Kadazandusunism (and later deviations of it), because it represents a major factor that has determined national and state policy on rural devel-opment, and the movement of the [Kadazan] Dusun people to the forefront of employment, educational opportunities and economic power.

Third, she provides a brief section on the international conservation agenda, including a description of the application of the Convention onBiological Diversity and Agenda 21 by the local government and other local actors. She takes a critical look at whether people in Kiau are gen-uinely concerned about access to, and the fate of, forest resources, or if this is in fact an artefact of outside intervention.

In a summary chapter, Agama will discuss how the patterns of forest access are linked to developments over the last thirty years in the Kinabaluarea, and throughout Sabah in general. She will also seek to relate how these developments have transformed the social and economic pres-sures faced by people in Kiau and in turn, have impacted forest conservation. She will critically examine the factions within the Kiau communi-ty and consider the politics of resource ownership and use vis-à-vis the relationship to a protected area. She will rethink the way in which fac-tors such as Kinabalu National Park, the mandate and direction of state rural development policies, and international pressure to involve localpeople in forest conservation can have a positive impact on the situation in Kiau, by citing examples of collaborative forest management, buffer-zone management, and local participation in sustainable forest utilization.


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for Dusun lifeform andname. The locality wherethe specimen was collect-ed is documented by botha Dusun toponym (pla-cename) and the stan-dardized locality. Thevegetational zone isdescribed according tothe local classificationsystem in the Dusunvegetation type field.Plant utility is current-ly described by indicat-ing if the plant is usedfor medicine, food, con-struction, fuel, orna-ment, crafts or other pur-poses.

In the course of mak-ing the Dusun Ethnoflora,the EthnoPEK will become arelational database comprisinga specimen-based componentand a species-based component,related by species name. The currentspecimen-based component will beexpanded to include additional data andmemoranda fields, including the following:• elevation range and latitude-longitude

coordinates, drawing upon the list of Dusuntoponyms documented through thegroundtruthing process;

• vegetation types as classified by the Floraof Mount Kinabalu project (lowlands, hillforest, lower montane forest, etc.)The new species-based component will

include following information in data and mem-oranda fields:• detailed descriptions of the use and man-

agement of the species, in Dusun commu-nities and elsewhere in Borneo and otherparts of South-East Asia;

• general distribution, around MountKinabalu (drawing upon the inventorydata) and throughout the range of thespecies;

• cultivation status,based on the ethno-

botanical ground-truthing described

above, includinginterviews withlocal people andobservat ionsb yresearchers,and the liter-ature;• ecologicalinformationon density,dominanceand fre-q u e n c y ,derived fromthe literatureor the one-

hectare plotse s t a b l i s h e d

around MountKinabalu;

• conserva-tion status, drawing

upon the literature,documents from the

World ConservationMonitoring Centre and

analysis of indicators of vulner-ability, as discussed above;

• excerpts of bibliographic sources that pro-vides insights and comparative data on thehistory of plant resource classification,management and use;The latitude-longitude coordinates will

allow the specimen-based database to be inte-grated into the Kinabalu GIS developed by ReedBeaman and his colleagues. This GIS will becapable of generating distribution maps for spe-cific plant resources, as described above.

In the next section, we draw upon the inven-tory of palms of Mount Kinabalu - the originalfocus of the Projek Etnobotani Kinabalu - to pro-vide an example of how the information from theEthnoPEK database can be extracted and writtenup in a form that can be further developed in theDusun Ethnoflora.

Radiah Yadong, a Dusun craftswoman fromPoring (Sabah, Malaysia) making a basketfrom stems of rattan (Calamus ornatus Bl.)

and fern (Lygodium sp.). If materials are sus-tainably harvested, production and sale of

handicrafts can provide a sustainable incomefor community members. Photo credit:

Michael J. Doolittle



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Box 4. Excerpts from Odoardo Beccari’s Wanderings in the Great Forests of Borneo

ARECA CATECHU: MANAGEMENT AND USE OF A PALM RESOURCE

"The Areca catechu, or 'pinang', is perhaps in strict parlance not a fruit-tree, because its nuts are not eaten, but merely chewed, as all know. Itis to the Malay what the camel is to the Arab: it has followed him in all his wanderings. It may be safely asserted that there is not a Malay hutnear which at least one of these most elegant of palms is not seen growing. Like the mangosteen, it belongs to that series of cultivated plantswhose origins is a mystery. But there can be no doubt that the habit of chewing it, together with siri, or betel leaves, and lime, has spread fromtropical Asia to the Indian Archipelago, and thence eastwards across Melanesia to Polynesia. In Borneo the pinang nuts have a part in variousrites and ceremonies of the Malays and Dayaks." (Ibid:27)

ARENGA BREVIPES: ANTHROPOGENIC AND NATURAL DISPERSION OF PLANTS

"Although I can have no doubt as to the primeval condition of the Mattang forest, yet on the spot where I had built my house were indicationsthat at some time it may have been the abode of man. I was led to think this by the large bamboos I found growing there. Cultivated bamboosdo not grow and multiply spontaneously in the primeval forests of Borneo. They are reproduced by division of the root, and perhaps sometimesby cuttings, but they rarely blossom and still more rarely produce seed … At this spot there was quite an accumulation of beautiful plants, nodoubt brought about by the many seeds and fruits carried thither from all parts of the mountain by the waters of the stream. Amongst them I maymention a new and magnificent palm (Arenga brevipes) …" (Ibid:110).

ARENGA UNDULATIFOLIA: MULTIPLE USE OF PLANT RESOURCES

To start a fire "...they now prefer the usual flint and steel, using as tinder the lulup, a soft cottony down which clothes the dilated base of theyoung fronds in some palms, on the inner part, towards the center of the bud. The best quality of lulup is produced by a species of wild Arengapalm (Arenga undulatifolia Becc.), but the common Arenga, the Coco, and other palms, also yield it." (Ibid:237) "The wood of A. undulatifolia ishard externally, but soft and rich in fecula within, so that it yields a species of sago. The central bud, or cabbage, is excellent eating, and fromthe hard cortical layer of the midrib, which splits easily longitudinally, the Kayans make their sumpitan darts or arrows." (Ibid:284)

CALAMUS SPECIES: COLLECTION OF GOOD QUALITY HERBARIUM SPECIMENS

"In this same locality, I collected at least twenty species of rotangs (Calamus) and hence I named it the "Rotang Valley". Many a time I lacerat-ed my skin and tore my clothes in making herbarium specimens of these plants, some of which have stems as thick as the wrist and a coupleof hundred feet in length, and are defended by a formidable array of thorns.

On account of the difficulty in collecting and in preserving these plants botanists usually content themselves with very imperfect specimens whichenable these rampant climbers to ascend and hold on to trees; nor do they preserve the leaf-sheaths which envelop the stem and are the partsmost covered with these thorns. Yet these are precisely the parts which it is most essential to have and to study for they present the characterson which specific distinctions are principally based, and by which the species of the genus Calamus can be distinguished." (Ibid:114)

CALAMUS SPECIES: EDIBLE PLANTS AND THEIR PROTECTION AGAINST HERBIVORY

"It must be laid down as a general rule that when plants are provided with spines or thorns they possess nutritive qualities, and are sought afterby animals. The Calami, and other thorny palms, have a central bud or 'cabbage' (umbut) - a most delicate morsel, much relished by many ani-mals, monkeys amongst others; and if this most essential portion of the plant were not well defended, it would be easily damaged or destroyed"(Ibid:114)

CALAMUS JAVENSIS AND RELATED SPECIES: DISTRIBUTION OF A PLANT RESOURCE

"The Singhi Dyaks occasionally, though rarely, ascend the mountain in search of very slender rotangs which grow nowhere else in these parts,and which they apply to various uses. We also found them abundant here, and collected a quantity; the Malays call them 'rotang rawat': i.e.brass-wire rotangs, or 'rotang tikus', i.e. mouse rotangs, to denote their diminutive size. Some of them when cleaned are hardly more than one-fifteenth of an inch in diameter, the stoutest being one-fifth of an inch. They belong to a variety of Calamus javensis, or a very closely alliedspecies." (Ibid:71)

CARYOTA NO: TOLERANCE AND MANAGEMENT OF PLANT RESOURCES IN HOME GARDENS

"On the Singhi hill I also met with a splendid, and at the same time more or less useful, palm, which is in general allowed to grow near the hous-es. One might almost imagine it a cultivated species, yet it produces itself naturally by seed. I am alluding to the magnificent Caryota, which theSinghi Dyaks call 'kayuno' and the Malays call 'baroch'. In the rich soil around the houses this palm shows an extremely powerful growth, itsstems attaining a height of forty to fifty feet... The Kayu No is by the Singhi Dyaks only used for certain long black fibres, known to them as 'tal-ionus', which they obtain through maceration from the midribs of the leaves, and use for fishing lines. These same fibres, woven with strips ofthe aerial roots of Eugeissona, and of rotangs, are used to make cylindrical baskets called tambuk, and for similar kind of work." (Ibid:231)

EUGEISSONA UTILIS: PROTECTION OF KEY PLANT RESOURCES IN SWIDDEN FIELDS

"...is a wild species which produces sago of good quality, and this explains its abundance in cultivated localities, for had it been useless it wouldhave been destroyed with the rest of the forest." (Ibid:249).

Source: Beccari, O. 1996 [1904] Wanderings in the Great Forests of Borneo. Singapore, Oxford University Press.

When the Italian botanist Odoardo Beccariset foot in Borneo in 1865, palms loomed largeon the horizon. In Wandering in the GreatForests of Borneo, he writes of his arrival to theSarawak River on the eastern side of what is nowthe Malaysian part of Borneo:

“Within the river mouth the scenery is at firsthighly picturesque ... Both banks are covereddown to the water’s edge with the vegetationpeculiar to these tropical estuaries... Largetracts are entirely covered with the Nipa palm[Nypa fruticans], whose leaves are very like

those of the coconut. Beautiful as they are,they become extremely monotonous after atime, packed closely together and withoutvariation either in appearance or height.More elegant are the Nibong palms[Oncosperma filamentosa], also veryabundant, with straight and slender stems,crowned with a tuft of delicate fronds fine-ly divided and drooping in gracefulcurves.”

By the turn of the century when thesememoirs were published, 25 genera and130 species of Bornean palms were known,most of them described by Beccari fromcollections he made during his sojourn ofnearly three years on the island. Now morethan 135 years after Beccari began hisexplorations, some 270 species in 28 gen-era have been described in Borneo.

In Borneo and other parts of South-East Asia, palms are not only diverse butalso ecologically dominant and economi-cally important, a fact reflected byBeccari’s observation that, on a walkthrough the tropical forest, rotans (rattans)“... of a great variety of species alsoabounded, rendering progress through thejungle extremely difficult, though theycompensate for this by their many usefulqualities”.

Because of their ecological and ethno-botanical importance, the palms are the sub-

ject of the first section of the Dusun Ethnoflorathat we are developing. After some notes on theclassification, distribution and completeness ofthe survey of palms, we provide descriptions ofthe 81 species - distributed in 19 genera - foundaround Mount Kinabalu. Each description con-tains the following information, when available:• Complete scientific name, as identified by

John Dransfield for the PEK and FMK• Dusun name(s) as noted on ethnobotanical

vouchers and in groundtruthing exercises;• Dusun uses and management, as noted on

ethnobotanical vouchers and during inter-views with community members aroundthe Park;


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The palms of Mount Kinabalu (Sabah, Malaysia)

Lorin Lugas, a Projek Ethnobotani Kinabalu collector fromMelangkap Tomis (Sabah, Malaysia), cleans an edible palmheart from Arenga undulatifolia Becc. This palm is often left

growing when secondary forest is cleared for gardens. Photo credit: Michael J. Doolittle

Amongst the vegetable forms ofa markedly tropical type which

greatly predominate in Borneo,the palms are conspicuous.

Odoardo Beccari

• Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia, derived from theliterature cited;

• Botanical description and distributiondrawn from the botanical literature;

• Conservation status, based on preliminaryappraisal of the various indicators of vul-nerability as discussed in Box 3.1 and onthe literature cited.

A note on local classification ofpalmsAlthough most plants are included in one of themajor Dusun life-forms kayu (tree), sakit-sakit(herbs and grasses), wakau (woody vines, inmany communities) and tangau (herbaceousvines in many communities), palms have anexceptional position in Dusun botanical classifi-cation. All rattan palms with vining stems areincluded in the life-form tuai in most Dusuncommunities around the perimeter of KinabaluPark - such as Kiau, Melangkap, Serinsim,Sayap, Bundu Tuhan - but are considered wakauin Nalumad, Poring and Takutan. The bush ortree-like palms, including species in diverse gen-era such as Arenga, Areca, Caryota, Licuala,Salacca and others, are simply referred to aspalma, a life-form term which is a loan word,probably from English. Traditionally, the variousfolk generics that correspond to these non-viningpalms were probably unaffiliated to any life-form. Over time, acculturated Dusun speakershave borrowed the term palma as a life-formwhich groups these species.

Many of the 13 genera and 33 species ofnon-rattan palms collected by PEK participantshave distinct names and there are relatively clear

patterns of consensus on naming between com-munities (Table 13).

Of the 48 species of rattans, distributed in 6genera, only a few which are very distinct mor-phologically, common, or of high economicimportance appear to have standard names (Table14). Some common names are used for a range ofspecies. For example, borit is used for some slen-der rattans such as Calamus elopurensis, C. gibb-sianus and C. laevigatus var. laevigatus. Anothername for slender rattans is logong; it is applied toC. blumei, C. gonospermus and other species. Thename lambat is typically used for stemless orshort-stemmed rattans such as Daemonoropsmicrostachys and Calamus tenompokensis andmay even be applied to the non-rattan Salaccaclemensiana, but is also used for vining rattanssuch as Daemonorops longipes which often formlow thickets. While there does appear to be alogic to the naming of rattans, additional researchis needed to clarify these nomenclatural patterns.

DISTRIBUTION

For the purposes of analyzing the distribu-tion of the palm collections, the Mount Kinabaluarea was split into four geographical sectors,each measuring approximately 20 km by 20 km(400 sq km), as described in Table 15. Using apreliminary inventory of palms (before the com-plete inventory was finished), we counted thenumber of palm collections and species by sec-tor. The variation in species recorded probablyreflects the differing numbers of collectionsbetween sectors, and not the true distribution ofpalms. This pre-test of patterns of distributionindicates that additional collections of the palmflora need to be made before similarity coeffi-cient analysis could be carried out on these data.



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Table 13. A comparison of Dusun names for non-rattan palms in five communitiesaround Mount Kinabalu (names in parentheses indicate presence of thename, but absence of the palm).

Palm species Bundu Tuhan Kiau Poring Sorinsim Takutan

Areca catechu lugus lugus lugus lugus lugusArenga brevipes / karumbohoko karumbohoko / karumbohokoArenga undulatifolia (polod) (polod) polod polod polodCaryota mitis betu betu betu --?-- betuCaryota no toyon toyon / giman giman/[toyon]Cocos nucifera piasau piasau piasau piasau piasauEugeissona utilis (luba') (luba') luba' luba' (luba')Licuala spp. (silad) / silad / siladMetroxylon saga rumbiyoh rumbiyoh rumbiyoh rumbiyoh rumbiyohOncosperma horridum (telibung) (telibung) melugus melugus telibungPinanga spp., Areca bumburing bumburing bumburing bumburing bumburing

kinabaluensisSalacca spp terintid torintid begung begung begung

Alternatively, ethnobotanical groundtruthing(asking about the presence or absence of specificpalms in communities, along with field visits toattest for the presence of some palms), alongwith application of GIS distribution estimationalgorithms, could provide the missing data.

COMPLETENESS OF THE PALM SURVEY

In the second chapter of this working paper,we discussed the role of community collectors incompleting the floristic survey of Mount Kinabalu.In the case of palms, PEK collectors were able torecord 74 of the 81 known species. What can besaid about the palms that were missed by local col-lectors? The explanations provided in Table 16indicate that eleven species of very localized distri-bution (often at higher elevations inside KinabaluPark or in other areas not covered by local collec-tors) and limited utility were not recorded in theoriginal PEK survey. Five of the species have nowbeen collected, as they were targeted by the SabahParks PEK team in order to complete the collectionof ethnobotanical data, or detected once determina-tions were completed by John Dransfield.

I. Areca

1. ARECA CATECHU L.

Dusun name(s): lugus in all communities. Thereare apparently no named varieties. Dusun uses and management: The species iscultivated in home gardens and other cultivatedareas in villages. The seeds are sometimes inten-tionally planted but trees also sprout voluntarilyfrom fallen fruits. Betel nuts are harvested fromthe beginning of October until January, fadingout in February. They can become scarce as earlyas May with little supply until October. There aresome years of particular scarcity. For example, in1992 fruits cost up to 50 sen each, whereas theusual price is 20-30 seeds for a rinngit. Fruits arepreserved by burying them in the soil or keepingthem moist in a plastic bag or in a basket. Theyoften sprout but are still edible in this condition.They are consumed with sirih (Piper betel) as inother parts of South-East Asia. The young palmheart, available throughout the year, can becooked with meat and eaten in a stew. The thick-


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Table 14. Some Mount Kinabalu rattan palms known by widely accepted Dusun names

Scientific name Dusun name Features

Calamus acuminatus, C. javensis peles typically unarmed, slender rattans used for tyingC. amplijugus sumempuun, menempuun widespread, thorny, excellent cane for tyingC. caesius sege high-quality, commercially important, moderate rattan used for

weaving and bindingC. ornatus lesun robust ratttan used for furniture and basket-makingC. pogonacanthus sumiliu moderate rattan with broad, concave spines; produces a relatively

good quality caneC. zonatus, C. muricatus paket slender to moderate rattan with wavy ridges along its stemsDaemonorops sabut sulak, salapangan moderate rattan with distinctive, spiny collared ant galleries along its

stemKorthalsia hispida, K. robusta lasas rattans which house abundant, noisy antsPlectocomia mulleri sareh, mangkawaian robust, high-climbing rattan with dense whorls of spinesPlectocomiopsis geminiflora temberuah moderate to robust rattan with edible palm cabbages

Table 15. A preliminary count of the number of collections and species from the ethnobotanical and general floristic survey in four geographical sectors ofMount Kinabalu.

Sector Collections SpeciesPEK FMK Combined PEK FMK Combined

Northwest 42 2 44 27 2 29Northeast 41 18 59 25 10 32Southwest 82 180 262 38 28 44Southeast 256 128 384 46 41 64Total 421 328 749 71 49 77

ened leaf veins are used to make brooms,although coconut is much more commonly usedfor this purpose. The veins are cut from the leafstem and the leaf blades are removed. The veinsare tied in bundles and used as a whisk broom.The stem can be split into four sections and usedunderneath bamboo for flooring in houses, as it issaid to strengthen the floor and make the bamboolast a longer time. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: The betel nut is oneof the most widely used palms in South-East Asia,and is cultivated throughout the region. The seedsare sliced and combined with lime and betel pep-per (Piper betel) and other ingredients to form achewing-wad which is said to relieve hunger,fatigue and various illnesses. The juice of thechewing-wad causes the saliva, teeth and lips toturn red. Mogea (1991:40) reports that inIndonesia the leaves are used as thatch, the leafsheaths as containers and the trunks for wood. Theseeds, in addition to their use as a masticatory, areemployed in veterinary medicine and as a sourceof dye. According to Kiew (1991:105-106), thebetel nut plays an important part in Malay tradi-tions and ceremonies. However, she notes thatcigarette smoking is displacing the custom ofchewing betel. Pearce (1991:155-156) recordsceremonial use of various parts of the palm by theIbans, Bidayuhs and Malays of Sarawak. She alsonotes that the Ibans use the spathe of the inflores-cence as a container to carry food when they trav-el. Madulid (1991:187-188, 245), in an update ofBrown & Merril’s (1919) work on the utilizationof Philippine palms, provides an indication of thewealth of minor uses and virtues attributed to thebetel nut. The leaf sheaths are used to wrap pack-ages, are made into hats by the Manobos, serve asinner soles of slippers and as a device for crackingnuts. The husks of the fruits are used as tooth-brushes. The fruit is taken internally as a stimulantand tonic and is used externally as an astringent.When young it is a purgative and when mature, avermifuge. Although a potential source of excel-lent palm cabbage - used raw in salad or cookedin the Philippines - the betel nut is apparentlynever used for this purpose in Indonesia, while inSarawak it is never felled intentionally to harvestthe cabbage. The fruits are sold in local marketsthroughout the region. Madulid (1991) reportsthat since the 1950s, betel nuts have been export-ed from the Philippines to China, Japan, HongKong, Pakistan, India and Europe. CommonEnglish names are betel nut or areca nut, and theMalay refer to the species as pinang or pokokpinang.Botanical description and distribution: Amoderately robust solitary palm which grows upto 10 m tall. The slender stem is grey with dis-tinct rings. The leaf sheaths form a well-definedcrownshaft. The leaves are arching and grow up

to 3 m long, with narrow, closely-arrangedleaflets. The inflorescences are produced belowthe crownshaft. The ovoid fruits are green whenimmature, ripening to a bright orange. Althoughunknown in the wild, betel nut is cultivated inplantations, village orchards and home gardensthroughout India, South Asia and South-EastAsia. It is cultivated as a commercial crop in thecoastal plains of the mainland of India, on a num-ber of India’s islands (Basu 1991:13) and inmany other parts of Asia. It may occasionallybecome naturalized in the forest, especially atsites previously occupied by people. Betel nutsgrow best in open forest vegetation or cultivatedareas ranging from sea level to 700 m asl typi-cally in the lowlands or areas of hill forest, butthey can be found growing up to 1,500 m eleva-tion. They may be monocropped or mixed withannual or perennial crops.Conservation status: Neither rare nor threat-ened as a species, but the status of many varietiesand cultivars unknown. The species is wide-spread and cultivated and is in no danger of beingoverexploited or endangered by habitat loss.However, the fruits are extensively sold in localmarkets and exported from some countries;apparently little research has been carried out onthe impact of this trade on local varieties and cul-tivars or on the closest wild relatives (such as A.concinna of Sri Lanka), some of which may beendangered. Madulid (1991:209) lists twoPhilippine endemic varieties which are classifiedas threatened: A. catechu var. batanensis and A.catechu var. sylvatica. No detailed studies havebeen carried out on the varieties of betel nutaround Kinabalu Park.

2. ARECA KINABALUENSIS FURTADO

Dusun name(s): bumburing is a probable namein all communities, verified in Poring andTakutan with a voucher specimen and in BunduTuhan with field collections. Residents ofSerinsim speculate that this species is a type ofbumburing, suggesting that they are not familiarwith it because it grows at higher elevations. It issaid to look like A. catechu, but is distinguishedby its smaller size.Dusun uses and management: The ripe fruitsare used as a substitute for A. catechu, eaten withsirih (the Dusun name for Piper betle used inbetel nut chewing). This is a relatively commonuse in several communities, including BunduTuhan and Takutan. The fruits may be availableearlier than those of betel nut [DS 257, collectedin June, and DS 330, collected in late July, hasimmature fruits], allowing a harvest in time ofbetel nut scarcity. In the lowlands where this isnot available, the inner bark or cambium ofArtocarpus sp. is used as a substitute. In uplands,the cambium of Ficus sp., called bulana, is alsoused as a substitute. The palm heart (called



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umbut in Malay and temulek in Dusun - referringto the young growth) may be used as a vegetable,typically prepared in soup although this useappears to be uncommon. Mature and straighttrunks can be used to make handles for spears.These were formerly used for hunting big ani-mals such as wild boar, barking deer and sambardeer, but are now made only as ornamentalobjects, if at all. A good length pole (approxi-mately 1 to 1.5 m) is cut to give balance andweight to the spear.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Pearce (1991:134)notes that native Areca species are little used inSarawak, and A. kinabaluensis is one of 13species which have no recorded uses in her list.No additional information has been recorded forSabah or Kalimantan.Botanical description and distribution: Aslender, solitary palm which grows up to 5 mtall. The stem is brown, but green towards thetop. The crownshaft is well-developed, up to 60cm long. The leaves bear up to 18 pairs of nar-row leaflets and a broad terminal leaflet. Thefruits are pale white when young, ripening to red.An endemic species of Borneo, it is widespreadbut locally scarce, the populations often consist-ing only of a few individuals. It grows in prima-ry or well-developed secondary lower montaneforests from 1,200-1,800 m asl around MountKinabalu, where it is occasional to common insome localities. Ethnobotanical vouchers werecollected on hillsides in primary forest.Conservation status: Vulnerable. Although notheavily utilized and probably somewhat protect-ed by its habitat (because more highland vegeta-tion is included in Kinabalu Park than lowlandforests), it is a solitary palm, not very commonand endemic to Borneo. In time of betel nutscarcity this species may be harvested moreintensively, but never excessively. Pearce(1991:157) considers the species vulnerable inSarawak if causal factors continue.

3. ARECA RHEOPHYTICA J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): bumburing, probably in allcommunities where it grows. Identity was con-firmed by voucher specimen in Poring, and bycollection in Takutan. This is considered the pro-totypical bumburing in Serinsim. There areapparently few named varieties of bumburing,but people referred to Areca rheophytica andPinanga spp. as bumburing puru meaning wildbumburing. Dusun uses and management: The stems areuse as the handles of spears formerly used inhunting. Straight and rigid stems are cut and thendried in the sun. The fruits are eaten as a substi-tute for A. catechu in Serinsim.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: No informationavailable.

Table 16. Nine palms

Species name

Calamus kiahii (now collected)

Calamus mesilauensis

Calamus optimus

Calamus scipionum

Caryota no (now collected)

Pinanga angustisecta

Pinanga aristata

Pinanga brevipes

Plectocomia elongata (now collected)

Plectocomiopsis mira

Salacca lophospatha

Botanical description and distribution: Aslender, solitary, undergrowth palm with stemsreaching 2 m, but usually less. The stem is palebrown, but green near the crownshaft, and hasconspicuous ringed leaf scars. The crownshaft ispale green and up to 25 cm long. The crownbears about 8 finely divided leaves, these withclosely arranged, dark green leaflets. The leafletsare narrow and single-ribbed, except for the ter-minal pair and sometimes the apical pair, whichare 2-3 ribbed. The fruits are green when imma-ture and turn red upon ripening. Grows as arheophyte on the banks of fast-flowing rivers andstreams in areas of ultramafic rock in the low-lands, extending up to approximately 400 m asl;only collected at Nalumad and Takutan aroundMount Kinabalu. Endemic to Sabah, it is local-ized and rather rare.Conservation status: Probably vulnerable.Although not heavily utilized and probablysomewhat protected by its habitat (because somevegetation is often left along stream banks wherethe palm grows), it is a solitary palm, foundwithin rather narrow ecological limits.


II. Arenga

1. ARENGA BREVIPES BECC.

Dusun name(s): lihuan in Bundu Tuhan. karum-bohoko in Kiau, and karumohoko in Poring,Takutan and Serinsim. Dusun uses and management: The leaves wereformerly used as a thatching material for smallhuts (sinurambi in Dusun or pondok in Malay).The leaflets are bent over the rachis, which isthen hung on the side or roof of the hut. The palmcabbage, which is said to be sweet, can be eatenraw in the forest or can be brought home to becooked in combination with chicken. Sago isapparently not eaten in Bundu Tuhan, or in othercommunities around the Park, but people areaware that this could be an emergency source offood. Some residents of Bundu Tuhan speculatethat it may have been used during the invasion ofthe Japanese in World War II. It is reported togrow high in the hills, and is not cultivated butmay be intentionally protected.Classification, uses and management elsewherein South-East Asia: Dransfield (1984:54) notesthat the leaves are used for thatch by Penans in thevicinity of Gunung Mulu National Park in

Sarawak. He suggests that the palm may be asource of sago. Pearce (1991:134) suggests thatthe edible palm cabbage - said to be sweet, softand fine-grained - is among those marketedthroughout the year in the Kuching Sunday mar-ket. Dransfield (1984b) mentions that the leavesare used as thatch. Iban names for the palm areaping and bo; the latter along with bohok used bythe Punan of Sarawak are possibly cognate withthe Dusun terms karumbohoko and karumohoko.Botanical description and distribution: Arobust, short-stemmed palm, with large leavesthat reach up to 8 m long. The leaf sheaths beartough, black fibres. The leaflets are parallel-sided, with toothed, rather blunt tips, oftenarranged in groups of 2 or 3. They are dark greenabove and cream below. The inflorescences aremassive, the male flowers smelling musty. Thefruits are light green. Common in steep-sidedvalley bottoms in upland areas of primary mixeddipterocarp forest. Widespread throughoutBorneo and in some mountainous areas ofSumatra. Also found on Palawan Island in thePhilippines. Found in hill and lowland montaneforests in communities on the western side ofKinabalu Park, growing on hillsides and valleybottoms, from 900-1,500 m asl (thus reaching



39

detected only in floristic collections, with possible explanations of why they were not detected in the ethnofloristic survey.

Explanation of absence in ethnofloristic inventory

Although abundant in valley bottoms of mid-montane forest on Mount Kinabalu, all known locations are within Kinabalu Park. This is a relatively short-stemmed, slender to moderate rattan that has no known use.

An endemic species restricted to the Liwagu and Mesilau rivers and the Pinosuk Plateau, areas within the Park not yet visited by local collectors. A relatively short-stemmed, slender rattan that has no known use.

A relatively uncommon species known from only one locality around Mount Kinabalu, where it has not been collected since the 1930s. A highly-prized rattan that is easily mistaken for C. caesius, which has been recorded in Nalumad and Takutan by local collectors.

Spotted at Poring Hot Springs by John Dransfield, but never collected by botanists; assumed to be rare around Kount Kinabalu and likely confused with Calamus ornatus.

An immense fish-tail palm that is quite rare around Mount Kinabalu. The only known record is a Kew photograph of an individual growing at Poring (taken by John Dransfield in 199?)

A squat, undergrowth, stemless palm known from one locality on Mount Kinabalu within the Park; possibly among the 13 unidentified ethnobotanical collections of Pinanga.

A slender undergrowth palm known from 2 localities around Mount Kinabalu; possibly among the 13 unidentified ethnobotanical collections of Pinanga.

A squat, undergrowth, stemless palm known from one locality on Mount Kinabalu within the Park; possibly among the 13 unidentified ethnobotanical collections of Pinanga.

A robust high-climbing rattan known in Sabah from 2 collections above 1200 m on Mount Kinabalu; no uses reported. Much rarer than the widespread P. mulleri, a useful species that is found from lowlands up to 1400 m and has been recorded by local collectors in 3 communities.

A robust high-climbing rattan with no known uses that has been collected from a single locality at Mount Kinabalu, within a generally deforested area not visited by local collectors. Less abundant than P. geminiflora, a useful species recorded by local collectors in Poring.

An endemic, stemless, very spiny palm with edible fruit collected only once, in 1936. Thought to be a synonym of S. clemensiana, a useful species recorded by collectors in Bundu Tuhan and Takutan.

higher elevations than A. undulatifolia).Conservation status: Insufficiently known butprobably not threatened. It is a widespread abun-dant clustering palm found in upland dipterocarpforests, which are less disturbed than lowlandforests; commercialization localized. However,two common uses - for sago and palm cabbage -destroy the entire stem and could affect somepopulations of the palm.

2. ARENGA SP. ‘DISTINCTA’ MOGEA(INED.)

Dusun name(s): Apparently unnamed in DusunDusun uses and management: None reported.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: none reported.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der, clustering rattan, this species grows to aheight of 2 m. The stem reaches a diameter of 1.5cm including the sheath, and is conspicuouslyringed with leaf scars. Leaves are up to 1 m long,and bear alternately arranged leaflets, with up to3 on each side of the rachis. The leaflets arebroad, angular-ovate in shape, with a ragged dis-tal margin, and 3 prominent veins. This species isvery similar to Arenga hastata, except that the A.hastata is paripinnate with divergent apicalleaflets, whereas A. distincta is imparipinnatewith a terminal paddle-shaped leaflet. A. sp. ‘dis-tincta’ is endemic to Borneo, where it is knownfrom Sabah, Sarawak and Kalimantan. It growsin lowland rain forest, up to an altitude of 500 masl, generally occuring on slopes and in valleybottoms. Common names which have beenrecorded in Sabah include sasa hutan, anudur,kabal pisakwau.Conservation status: Insufficiently known butprobably not threatened. Although an endemic oflowland forest of Borneo, the clustering habitand lack of apparent commercial or subsistencevalue of the species lead to low harvesting pres-sure. The main threat is habitat destruction.

3. ARENGA RETROFLORESCENS H.E.MOORE & MEIJER

Dusun name(s): wango-wango in Serinsim.People from Poring, Bundu Tuhan and Takutandid not recognize a voucher specimen and couldnot provide a name or use. In Poring, it was saidto resemble Arenga brevipes and it was suggest-ed that it may grow in wet areas, for example,near waterfalls.Dusun uses and management: An elderly manfrom Serinsim, Suin Gambud, remembers thatthe leaves were used formerly as roofing materi-al for thatched houses, but in general the leavesare considered too small for this purpose. Thestem is split into sections and used to tie thatcharound the bamboo poles, which are then placedon the roof. The whole stem is used to make fish-ing rods, which are said to withstand the weight

and pull of very large fish. The palm cabbage canbe eaten, but is considered too small to be worth-while harvesting. Residents say that there is alarge population of this species in the area. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: none reportedBotanical description and distribution: A slen-der palm of 3 m. It is often stemless, but the stemmay reach 80 cm and is prominently ringed. Thesheaths are brown with black fibrous margins.The leaves measure up to 3m long, with about 23narrow leaflets each side of the rachis. The low-est 4 or so pairs are grouped together, and theremainder are regularly arranged. The inflores-cences are erect, and emerge from among the leafbases or through the sheaths. Upon maturing, thefruits are reddish green and found in tight clus-ters, unlike the fructescence of A. undulatifoliawhich is more open. Found only in Sarawak andSabah, in secondary forests in the lowlands,where it tends to grow in wet areas, often at theedge of ponds and other bodies of water.Although found in Serinsim, it has not yet beencollected from other areas around Kinabalu Park.Conservation status: Mogea (1991:66) consid-ers it a rare species. Curiously, Pearce (1991)does not mention it in her account of Sarawakpalms. Dransfield and Johnson (1991) note thatits conservation status is indeterminate but prob-ably endangered in Sabah, where it is a verylocalized endemic. It is apparently not heavilyused. The collection from Serinsim was foundnear a swamp in secondary forest in an area thathad been accidentally burned in 1989. Very fewspecimens were found.

4. ARENGA UNDULATIFOLIA BECC.

Dusun name(s): polod, a name recognized in allcommunities, even though the palm is apparent-ly not found in Kiau and Bundu Tuhan.Dusun uses and management: The palm cab-bage is eaten, either fried or cooked in soup withfish or meat. The outer portion of the stem, whenmature and hard, was used to make the shaft andpoint of blow-gun darts. The outer portion of thestem and the veins of the leaf can be used to fash-ion a home-made musical instrument calledbubungkau (traditional Dusun instrument playedin mouth) and the dried stems are used for sem-poten (a basket) and sumpitan (blow-pipes). Softpubescence at the base of the petiole is used astinder to light fires. The fine hairs are struckbetween two stones, causing them to ignite. Theleaves can be used for thatch. The fruits are con-sidered poisonous, although in Sayap the cookedfruits are used as animal feed. The old stems,which rot on the ground, harbor edible larvae.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984b:55) notes that this species is a source ofsago for the nomadic Penan of Sarawak, who


40

also harvest the edible palm cabbage. The leavesare used as thatch and he states that the fibres ofthe leaf sheath and the ‘powder’ found on the peti-ole have a variety of uses. Blow-pipe darts may bemade from the split hard layer of the petiole, whilethe pith is used as a plug (occlusion). Pearce(1991:157) records the names jaka in Penan andaping in Iban. The palm cabbage is availablethroughout the year in the Kuching Sunday mar-ket, but is only of local commercial importance.Although not cultivated in the strict sense, there isevidence that the palm is intentionally protectedand encouraged around communities.Botanical description and distribution: A mas-sive, clustering palm with stems growing up to 3m. The leaves are dull green with regularlyarranged leaflets. These are lobed and highlyundulate, with a paler lower surface. The inflo-rescences are pendulous, the male flowers with amusty smell. The flowers are pinkish and thefruits green. Widespread and abundant in thelowlands of Borneo and also found in Sulawesi.Dransfield (1984b:55) suggests that this palm isthe same as A. ambong, which is found in thePhilippines. The species, which grows in prima-ry and secondary forests around Kinabalu Park,is considered to be common in the forests ofTakutan.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:176) classify this species as not threatenedin Sabah, and Pearce (1991:157) concurs forSarawak. The palm is heavily harvested in someareas for its cabbage and to produce sago, whichkills the stem, but the clustering habit, abundanceand semi-cultivation of the species ensure its sur-vival.

III. Calamus

1. CALAMUS ACUMINATUS BECC.

Dusun name(s): podos in Bundu Tuhan andKiau, polos in Poring. A distinction is madebetween those plants from primary forest, polospuru, and those from secondary forest, polostomulok. The names kuropit and logong werealso recorded in Poring, but these may be mis-takes. In Serinsim, the voucher specimen wassaid to be a type of logong, which appears torefer to any slender cane that has prominentnodes. No name was given in Takutan. Dusun uses and management: The stems,whole or split into 2-4 sections, are used for lash-ing and tying, particularly in the construction ofhouses, huts and other simple buildings. Thewhole stems are used as the rim in wakid basketsand hats, often tied in place by split stems of thesame species. The split stems are also used tomake bola takrew, the ball used to play sipaktakrew or Malaysian football. In Bundu Tuhan,the cirrus is used to make a trap for snaring small

birds. In Takutan, people use this as a substitutefor true peles and sege, which are much moredurable than the cane of this species. The sap canbe used medicinally for the treatment of boils,according to residents of Bundu Tuhan. It wasformerly planted in Bundu Tuhan to be used asstring in rice fields or in making scarecrows.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:140) notes that bundles of the stems, tobe used as twine, are often sold in weekly mar-kets and roadside stalls in Sabah. Two commonMalay names - rotan padas and rotan peladas -may be cognate with Dusun. More probably, theyhave been borrowed into Dusun from Malay orvice versa.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der, clustering rattan with stems climbing tomore than 10 m. The stems with sheaths measureup to 8 mm, and the cane up to 4 mm. Thesheaths are usually unarmed or may bear scat-tered spines, and have a conspicuous ochrea. Theleaves have up to 12 pairs of narrow leaflets,which are regularly arranged along the leaf axis.The terminal pair are joined for about a third oftheir length, and the basal pair are usually sweptback across the stem. The mature fruits are small,about 6 mm in diameter, and spherical. Anendemic of Sabah, widespread in the state andparticularly abundant in Tenom and Keningaudistricts in secondary forest, growing in theshade. This species is closely related to C. javen-sis, a variable and common species which isfound in Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not vulnerable. An endemic to Sabahand commercialized locally, but not likely tobecome threatened as it is widespread and formsthriving clusters in secondary forests that areincreasingly common in the state.

2. CALAMUS AMPLIJUGUS J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): sumompuun in Takutan.Recognized as pumompuun in Bundu Tuhan,but not found there. Known as monompuun orrapot in Poring, and the name rapot is also saidto be used in the nearby community of Telupid.In Serinsim, residents identified the voucherspecimen as tunamid, but say that it is calledsumompuun in dialects from higher elevationcommunities. Lungot, from Kiau, is said to be asimilar looking palm, but the species must beverified. Dusun uses and management: Long stems areused for tying and lashing in general (for exam-ple, on parang handles) and in particular to makefurniture, pens (pagar) for animals, fishtraps andhousehold instruments such as the wakid andsikutan, typical Dusun baskets. The sheaths areremoved from the stems, which can be usedwhole without further preparation.



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Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield (1984)notes that the cane, used for tying and binding, isof excellent quality.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der to moderately sized, clustering rattan, whichreaches up to 20 m high, the stem withoutsheaths measuring up to 10 mm. The sheathsbear numerous horizontal, pale green spines, andhave a well-developed knee. The leaves have upto 10 pairs of broad leaflets, which are conspicu-osly 3-nerved. The basal pair are reflexed backacross the stem, and the terminal pair are joinedtogether for over half their length. Most commonin lowland dipterocarp forest in valley bottomsand hill slopes up to 700 m asl; occasional onultramafic rock, where it is reduced in size.Widespread in the lowlands of Sabah and partic-ularly abundant in the eastern part of the state.Also found in Brunei (Dransfield 1992: 156),Sarawak and perhaps in Sumatra. This species isclosely related to C. javensis, a morphologicallyvariable and common species which is found inIndonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.Conservation status: Vulnerable. Although aclustering rattan, it grows in the much disturbedlowland dipterocarp forest and is harvested for itscane, which is commercialized. Pearce(1991:157) considers that the species is vulnera-ble in Sarawak and likely to become endangeredif current causes of degradation continue.

3. CALAMUS BLUMEI BECC.

Dusun name(s): logong, tindulong and kuropitare all names which are used in Poring.Korthalsia rigida is also called logong here, thisclassification presumably reflecting the similari-ty in leaflet shape of these two species.Apparently this species is known as potung inTelupid and also in Kiau. Dusun uses and management: The split anddried stems are used for tying and weaving inPoring and Kiau. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:136) records that the cane is of goodquality, but that it is not of commercial signifi-cance because the species is not sufficientlyabundant. Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering rattan, which climbs to 20 m. The stemwith sheaths measures to 20 mm, and the cane to12 mm. The sheaths are dull green with a finecovering of greyish and brown scales, and bearshort spines with swollen bases. The knee is con-spicuous, and the flagellum reaches 1.5 m. Theleaves are composed of 6 leaflets, which arebroad diamond-shaped with entire margins.Uncommon in Sabah. Found throughout Borneo,Sumatra, Malay Peninsula and SouthernThailand.

Conservation status: Insufficiently known butprobably not threatened because it is a wide-spread clustering rattan.

4. CALAMUS CAESIUS BLUME

Dusun name(s): sogoh in all communities. ThisDusun category probably includes Calamus opti-mus Becc. as well. Dusun uses and management: The stems areharvested and dried, then are used split or wholein the manufacture of a wide range of articles,ranging from handicrafts (such as the ball forplaying Malaysian football), to furniture.Bundles of 100 stems are sold for cash by somemembers of the communities, often in the marketin Ranau. Although the species apparently growswild in some areas around Mount Kinabalu, it iswidely cultivated in secondary forests near com-munities. The people of Poring (where it isscarce) apparently do not attempt to plant it, butknow that it is common in Takutan and can alsobe collected in nearby Lohan. In Bundu Tuhan,Alim Buin’s grandfather tried to plant C. caesiusshoots and seeds, brought from Ranau, in the late1960s. It did not grow because of the altitude butnow there is a large amount of planting in low-land areas.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Used throughout itsrange as in Dusun communities. Pearce(1987:240) records the name wee sega among theIban (Pantu subdistrict, Sri Aman, Division 2,Sarawak) and notes the species is found wild inlowland rubber plantations. It is the rattan mostused by the Iban for plaiting, lashing and fasten-ing. The rattan stems are split and dried, and usedfor making baskets and mats. Dyed black or red,they are used for making women’s rattan girdles.The Malay name is rotan sega. Pearce(1991:139) notes that it has been cultivated inSarawak by Kenyah people of Long SelatongKapit.Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering rattan of moderate size. The stems typical-ly form a dense clump, and can climb up to 100m. The stems without sheaths measure from 7-18mm diameter, and those with sheaths up to 25mm. The surface of the cane is highly polished,but the outer layer flakes easily on bending. Thesheaths have a sparse grey covering and arearmed with scattered, pale, triangular spines. Theleaf is cirrate, with about 15 pairs of leaflets.These are usually arranged in alternate pairs, andhave a pale blue-grey lower surface. This speciesis widespread in the lowlands of Sabah, andthroughout Borneo. It grows in a range of habi-tats, occurring up to 800 m asl. It is also found inSumatra, the Malay Peninsula, Palawan andsouthern Thailand. Conservation status: Although of high com-mercial value, the species is widespread, cluster-


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ing, relatively fast growing and often cultivatedaround Mount Kinabalu. Dransfield and Johnson(1991:176) consider that the status is insuffi-ciently known in Sabah, but note that it is wide-spread in the lowlands of the state. Pearce(1991:162) conisders it vulnerable in Sarawak,particularly if continuing rates of harvesting andhabitat destruction continue. Madulid (1991:210)classifies it as indeterminate, noting that it is thepreferred small diameter cane in Palawan and isoverharvested by palm collectors in thePhilippines.

5. CALAMUS COMPTUS J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): pakot in Serinsim. The name isknown in Bundu Tuhan, but no collections haveyet been made to verify the identification. Alsoknown as pakot, or as ragi-ragi, in Poring. InSerinsim, the voucher specimen was referred toas sogoh nuluh. No name is given to the speciesin Takutan, although it is found in the forests thatborder Kinabalu Park.Dusun uses and management: The canes areused for tying and lashing in house construction,particularly by poor people in villages, but it isnot a commercial or preferred type of tying mate-rial. The dried stems are used whole or split formaking baskets and other handicrafts. In Poring,lengths of whole stem are used as rope to catchbuffalo. No use reported in Takutan.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984:161) notes that although the cane is ofgood appearance, it is relatively short, limiting itseconomic value.Botanical description and distribution:Usually a solitary rattan, though very rarely clus-tered, with slender to moderate stems, measuringup to 27 mm with sheaths, and 10-18 mm with-out. The bright green sheaths are armed withscattered, broad-triangular black spines, withswollen yellow bases and hairy margins. Theknee is conspicuous. The leaves are without acirrus, and have 35-40 narrow leaflets each sideof the axis, borne close together. The young leafaxes are covered with rusty brown hairs. Themature fruit is round and covered with palescales with dark tips. The specimen collected in Serinsim is about 10m long and was found on a hilltop in secondaryforest. Endemic to Borneo; scattered in the low-lands of Sabah and Sarawak but relatively rare inKalimantan.Conservation status: Insufficiently known butpossibly vulnerable. Although not commerciallyattractive and under little harvesting pressure, thespecies is relatively infrequent in occurrence andtypically solitary in habit. As a lowland speciesendemic to Borneo, it may become increasinglyscarce locally because of deforestation.

6. CALAMUS CONVALLIUM J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): tuuh in Kiau; sumiliu nuluhanin Bundu Tuhan, where the name tuuh is used torefer to C. pogonacanthus. In Poring it was iden-tified from the voucher specimen as sumiliu, pos-sibly sumiliu himbaan (himbaan means primaryforest and plants growing here are usually morespiny than those of the secondary forest, sumiliutemulok). In Serinsim, the voucher was said to bea type of logong, which appears to refer to anyslender cane that has a ridge around the node (i.e.unlike the smooth slender canes such as podosand tunamid). Dusun uses and management: The stems, splitinto small sections, are used for tying and forweaving baskets and sikutan. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported,although Dransfield (1992:131) notes that thecane appears to be of good quality.Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering rattan which typically forms low, openthickets. The stems without sheaths measure 10-15 mm in diameter, and with sheaths up to 25mm. The sheaths are sparsely armed with black,flattened spines which are fringed with darkhairs. The leaf grows up to 1.5 m long, with 12-20 narrow leaflets along each side of the axis,arranged in pairs. Those near the leaf tip are verymuch smaller, some only 4.5 cm long. Reflexedblack spines occur along the petiole edges.Infrequent and usually confined to valley bot-toms; apparently rare on ultramafic rock andupland slopes. Although typically a lowlandspecies, it is found up to 1,400 m asl in theCrocker Range and on the slopes of MountKinabalu. Endemic to and scattered throughoutSabah and Sarawak. The specimen from Kiauwas 10 m tall and found growing in the shade ofsecondary forest (geuten).Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not vulnerable as it is a clustering rattanthat tends to produce short canes that are notintensively harvested. However, it is endemic,infrequent and typically restricted to the low-lands and some populations may be probablythreatened by deforestation.

7. CALAMUS ELOPURENSIS J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): Apparently unnamed, though itmay be referred to by names used for C. javensis. Dusun uses and management: The stems aresplit, and used for tying and binding. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984:142) reports no known uses, but suggeststhat the cane may be used as C. javensis, whichis frequently collected for use as twine.Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering, slender rattan, climbing to about 5-8 m. The



43

stems with sheaths reach 10 mm diameter, and thecane 6 mm. The sheaths are striate, covered with agrey indumentum, and are usually without spines.The rounded knee is conspicuous, and the ochrea istriangular in shape, measuring up to 7 cm. The leafis ecirrate, with 2 or occasionally 3 pairs of darkgreen leaflets, situated towarde the end of therachis. The leaflets are quite broad, to 5 cm wide,and the terminal pair are joined for most of theirlength. The petiole is covered in a dense grey indu-mentum. Found in hill forest on ultramafic sub-strate at Mount Kinabalu, but is more typical ofalluvial forest in the lowlands of eastern Sabah. Anendemic species of the state. Conservation status: Insufficiently known butprobably not threatened. Although endemic toSabah, it is a clustering rattan of little commer-cial value.

8. CALAMUS GIBBSIANUS BECC.

Dusun name(s): Only recorded in Bundu Tuhanso far, where it is called borit.Dusun uses and management: The split anddried stems are used for tying and binding.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None recorded.Botanical description and distribution: Ahighly variable, slender, clustering rattan, withstems climbing to 8 m, although rarely it is stem-less. The stems without sheaths measure 4-8 mmin diameter. The sheaths are armed with palegreen scales and occasionally whorls of spiculesare also present. The knee is well-developed. Thenarrow leaflets are regularly arranged throughoutthe leaf. The lower surface is usually coveredwith dense, short bristles, and a tuft of orange orrusty coloured hairs is always present by therachis. The inflorescences have stronglyrecurved branches with conspicuous bractsbelow the flowers. Endemic to Borneo, where itis found in lower and upper montane forests from1,200-3,400 m asl. It is only known from MountKinabalu and the Crocker Range in Sabah, andfrom the Kelabit Highlands in Sarawak. Conservation status: Insufficiently known butprobably not vulnerable. The species is cluster-ing, and significant populations are protected atrelatively high elevations in Kinabalu Park andCrocker Range Park.

9. CALAMUS GONOSPERMUS BECC.

Dusun name(s): logong in Bundu Tuhan; not thelogong nuluh of Poring, and not known inSerinsim or Takutan, judging by the reaction tothe voucher.Dusun uses and management: The maturestems are dried, split and scraped to produceweaving materials for making handicrafts.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported, butDransfield (1984:130) notes that the fruit con-tains a sweet edible sarcotesta around the seed.

Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering rattan, which climbs to 10 m. The stemsare very slender, measuring up to 12 mm diame-ter with sheaths, and to 8 mm without. The darkgreen sheaths are sometimes armed with scat-tered, short spines with swollen bases. The kneeis conspicuous. The leaves have a petiole andbear 3-4 pairs of leaflets. The leaflets are fairlynarrow, up to 3.5 cm wide and have a pro-nounced drip tip. The terminal pair are fused forup to half their length. Found in lowlands and hillforest in Sabah, where it is only known from theCrocker Range and Mount Kinabalu and inBrunei. In Sarawak it occurs in both lowlandsand uplands. Ethnobotanical voucher collectedon hillsides in primary forest around 700 m asl.Conservation status: Insufficiently known butprobably not threatened. An endemic of Sabahand Sarawak, the species is clustering and notintensively harvested.

10. CALAMUS JAVENSIS BLUME

Dusun name(s): Naming is as variable as thepalm itself. It is called tuai kuriung in BunduTuhan, although a second specimen was identi-fied as wakau podos, and morompoun was givenas an alternative name; polos is the typical namein Poring, where it is also referred to as borit,monompoon, rapot and sumompoon; in Serinsim,a voucher specimen was referred to as podos, andin Takutan as sumompoon.Dusun uses and management: The maturestems are used for tying, and also for weavingbaskets and straps. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Frequently collectedfor use as twine and an excellent cane for bind-ing (Dransfield 1992: 153). Pearce (1991:139)notes that it has been cultivated in Sarawak byBidayuh people of Padawan Kapit.Botanical description and distribution: This isan extremely variable rattan. The stems are slen-der and clustering, often forming low thickets. Thecane measures 2-6 mm in diameter. The sheaths,which are often reddish in colour, may beunarmed or armed with short spines. The youngochrea is bright red, and reaches 10 mm in length.The leaves bear 4 - 10 leaflets each side of theaxis, usually arranged in groups. The terminal pairare joined together for over half of their length,and the lowest pair are often reflexed back acrossthe stem. The ripe fruit is ovoid. Commonthroughout Sabah, and on Mount Kinabalu whereit grows from 500 to 2,000 m asl in hill and lowermontane forests, and rarely in upper montane for-est, often on ultramafic soils. It is also commonelsewhere in Borneo, and in West Java, Sumatra,southern Thailand, Malay Peninsula and onPalawan Island in the Philippines. Conservation status: Insufficiently known butprobably not threatened. A widespread, cluster-ing rattan that is sometimes cultivated.


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11. CALAMUS KIAHII FURTADO

Dusun name(s): pipit in Bundu Tuhan.Dusun uses and management: Used occasionallyfor tying and in construction.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported.Botanical description and distribution: Aslender to moderate montane rattan, climbing toabout 10 m. The stem without sheaths measuresup to 10 mm in diameter, and to 18 mm withsheaths. The sheaths are mid-green, and armedwith sparse to densely scattered, broad triangu-lar flattened spines. The leaf is cirrate, withabout 12 dark green leaflets on each side of therachis, irregularly arranged in groups of 2-4.These are lanceolate ending abruptly in a point,and distinctly folded. The inflorescence is curv-ing, grows up to 80 cm long, and bears up to 8partial inflorescences. The bracts are tubular,with a rough surface, and conspicuously hairymargins. The male branches reach up to 2 cmlong, and the female branches to 10 cm and aresomewhat zig-zag. The mature fruit are round-ed, about 2 cm diameter, and covered in 18 ver-tical rows of grey-brown scales, with darkermargins. This species is endemic to Borneo,growing in montane forest. On Mount Kinabalu,it is found in hill and lower montane forest from1,000-1,800 m asl.Conservation status: Although a Borneanendemic, it is insufficiently known but probablynot threatened. It is short-stemmed, and notintensively harvested. Significant populations areprotected inside Kinabalu Park.

12A. CALAMUS LAEVIGATUS MART. VAR.LAEVIGATUS

Dusun name(s): borit in Takutan, a name usedin other communities as well. Upon seeing thevoucher specimen, residents of Serinsim alsogave the name borit for this species, also usinglodukon or podos. The name borit may comefrom the sound made when the cane is broken, ormore likely it is related to the small size and den-sity of growth of the palms. The name boritexists in Kiau, but collections need to be made toverify the species. In Bundu Tuhan, this speciesis sometimes called tuuh, whereas borit refers toC. gibbsianus. In Bundu Tuhan, Kiau andSerinsim, C. laevigatus vars. laevigatus andmucronatus are also called sogoh nuluhon, seebelow. Dusun uses and management: After removingthe leaf sheath, the stems are scraped clean, cutand dried to make handicrafts including basketsand other ornamental objects. In Serinsim thisspecies was said to be useful for making barait(backpacks) and animal traps. In Bundu Tuhan,stems were used traditionally to make snares forbarking deer. The palm cabbage, reported to bebitter, was formerly used as emergency food inthe field to reduce thirst and hunger.

Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: The cane is of excel-lent quality, comparable to rotan sega, and canbe used for furniture making. The yield is limit-ed by the solitary habit of the species. Pearce(1991:139) notes that it has been cultivated inSarawak by Bidayuh people of Padawan.

Botanical description and distribution: A soli-tary, moderate sized rattan, which climbs to over30 m. The stem with sheaths measures up to 2cm. The sheaths are a dull or pale green, with aconspicuous knee. Usually the sheaths are armedwith sparse, triangular spines with swollen bases.The leaf has a cirrus, and about 20 narrowleaflets each side of the rachis. The lowest pairsare reflexed across the stem forming a chamber,sometimes used by ants. The upper leaflets arearranged in groups of 2-4, in which the leafletsare fanned. A very widespread species found inprimary and secondary forests on a variety of soiltypes at altitudes up to 900 m. Known from otherareas of Borneo and Malaya, though rather rarein Sumatra. On Mount Kianbalu, the subspeciesis found in lowlands to lower montane forest.Ethnobotanical vouchers found on hillsides andhilltops in primary forest. Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not vulnerable. It is abundant, wide-spread and adpated to a variety of ecological con-ditions. However, its solitary habit and excellentquality leave some populations vulnerable tooverexploitation. Another variety, Calamus lae-vigatus Mart. var. serpentinus, is considered rare.

12B. CALAMUS LAEVIGATUS MART. VAR.MUCRONATUS (BECC.) J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): sogoh nuluh in Serinsim,Bundu Tuhan and Kiau. Nuluh or nuluhon meansridge or hill, describing the habitat where thespecies is found. Dusun uses and management: After removingthe leaf sheath, the stems are split into 4, scrapedclean, cut and dried to make handicrafts (such asbaskets) or to tie on the handle of parangs, thesheath of parangs and other instruments.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der, solitary rattan which can grow to over 60 min length. The cane measures up to 4 mm indiameter, and the stem with sheaths up to 8 mm.The dark green sheaths are armed with a few,small triangular spines, often with swollen bases.The knee is well-developed. The leaves are cir-rate and have no petiole. The leaflets, about 8 oneach side of the rachis, are lanceolate with nar-row tips, often arranged in pairs, and the lower-most reflexed across the stem. Found on ultra-mafic substrates in Sabah. More widespread else-where in Borneo, often growing on poor soils onridge tops. Ethnobotanical voucher, 5-8 m long,from hilltop in secondary forest.



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Conservation status: Species is local in Sabah,apparently only on ultrabasic rock; elsewherewidespread but never very abundant. Local inSarawak; elsewhere widespread in Borneo butnever very abundant Dransfield (1992:106). Aswith C. laevigatus var. laevigatus, the solitaryhabit and excellent quality leave some popula-tions vulnerable to overexploitation.

13. CALAMUS MARGINATUS (BLUME)MART.

Dusun name(s): kopit in Kiau and BunduTuhan. Apparently also called sogoh nuluhun inKiau, but this may be an error. In Poring, it maybe considered a type of sansarabon, judgingfrom the voucher specimen, and residents ofSerinsim say that it is not kopit or pipit in theircommunity.Dusun uses and management: The maturestems are used for the rounded framework(pomolokou) woven inside carrying baskets(wakid). Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984b:161) notes that the cane, which is coarsebut durable, is used for the framework of carry-ing baskets and for walking canes.Botanical description and distribution: Amoderately robust rattan, usually with solitarystems which climb to over 15 m. The stem withsheaths reaches 35 mm diameter, and the cane18 mm. The dark green sheaths are denselyarmed with flattened, triangular black spines upto 4 cm long. Those around the leaf sheathmouth are erect and can be as long as 14 cm. Ablack indumentum covers the sheath, and theknee is swollen. The leaf petiole has a groovedupper surface and is armed with groups ofspines along the margins and a row of spines onthe lower surface. The leaflets are regularlyarranged, narrow and with slightly thickenedmargins. On the lower surface, the main veinsare armed with short bristles. The male andfemale inflorescences are very long, sometimesmore than 5 m, with pendulous branches.Widespread from sea level up to 1,800 m asl inboth primary and secondary forests in Sabahand common in other parts of Borneo, butrather rare in Sumatra. On Mount Kinabalu,found in hill forest and lower montane forest,often on ultramafic soils, from 700-2,400 masl.The specimen from Kiau was growing to aheight of 3-4 m on a hillside in secondary for-est (geuten). Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not threatened. Although of solitaryhabit, it is a widespread, common rattan that isadapted to a broad range of ecological conditionsand has poor quality, often short canes, that arenot commercialized.

14. CALAMUS MESILAUENSIS J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): Unknown, as no collectionshave been made by local collectors.Dusun uses and management: None reported.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported, butDransfield (1984:107) reports that the caneappears to be of good quality though rather short.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der, clustering rattan which climbs to about 10 m.The stems without sheaths measure about 8 mmin diameter, and with sheaths reach 15 mm. Thesheaths are armed with large, triangular, darkbrown spines with hairy margins and swollenyellowish bases. The knee is conspicuous and theflagellum short, to 5 cm. The leaf is cirrate andbears about 10 leaflets on each side of the leafaxis, arranged in four groups of 2 or 3. These arearmed with a few black bristles at the tip. Knownonly from lower montane forest on MountKinabalu, from 1,200-1,700 m asl. Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not threatened. Although an endemicrestricted to lower montane forest, the species isclustering and has short canes that are of littlecommercial value.

15. CALAMUS MURICATUS BECC.

Dusun name(s): pakot in Poring and Takutan.Dusun uses and management: None reportedClassification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reportedBotanical description and distribution: This is asolitary and slender rattan, which reaches up to 10m tall. The stem sheaths are bright green anddensely armed with wavy circular ridges whichbear minute prickles and broad triangular spines.On drying, the sheaths become a dull brown witha reddish cast. The knee is similarly armed andconspicuous. The leaf does not bear a cirrus andgrows up to 1.1 m long. The petiole is conspicu-ous and armed with spines and ridges near thebase. The leaflets, up to 30 on each side of therachis, are regularly arranged. They are linear,dark green with bristles along the main veins, andon drying become a dull brown/red colour. Theinflorescences grow up to 3 m and bear about 4partial inflorescences. These bear many crowdedbranches, appearing congested. The mature fruitare rounded and covered in vertical rows of palebrown scales. The seed’s endosperm is deeplyruminate. This rattan is endemic to Sabah, whereit grows in hill dipterocarp forest, and reported inlowlands around Mount Kinabalu. Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not threatened. Scattered localitiesthroughout Sarawak. Elsewhere in Sabah, Bruneiand Kalimantan. Endemic to Borneo and of soli-tary habit, the species has short canes of littlesubsistence or commerical value (Dransfield1992:176).


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16. CALAMUS OPTIMUS BECC.

Dusun name(s): Probably considered a type ofsogoh, but not yet collected by Dusun collectors.Dusun uses and management: None reported.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Highly sought afterrattan, producing a good quality cane, slightlylarger in diameter than that of C. caesius. Pearce(1991:139) notes that Kelabit people of Pa Tik,Sarawak are experimenting with the cultivationof this species for production of cane.Botanical description and distribution: Amoderately robust rattan, this species grows toover 50 m. The stem diameter is 15 mm withoutsheaths, and to 30 mm including the sheaths.These are dark green and are scattered with large,convex-based, triangular, black-tipped spines,and abundant black scales. The knee is veryprominent. The leaf is cirrate, the cirrus reaching1.5 m, with a short petiole, usually of less than 5cm. There are up to 8 leaflets on each side of therachis, arranged in groups of 2 or 3. These arelarge, stiff and either narrow-ovate or spathe-shaped and hooded. The upper surface is dark-green with conspicuous transverse veinlets, and apale indumentum covers the lower surface. Theleaflet margins are armed with short, black bris-tles. The ripe fruit is ovoid and covered in 15 ver-tical rows of pale yellowish-brown scales. Thisspecies is endemic to Borneo. It is known fromscattered localities throughout the island, but isalways rare. It grows in lowland dipterocarp for-est, alluvial forest and also in forest transitionalbetween kerangas and lowland dipterocarp for-est. Found in lowlands and hill forests on MountKinabalu, from 600-1,100 m asl.Conservation status: Vulnerable, as it is a val-ued species that is widespread but rare, andapparently not cultivated.

17. CALAMUS ORNATUS BLUME

Dusun name(s): losun in Takutan and Poring.This rattan is also known as kowiten kusai inPoring, particularly among the older generation;(kowiten ‘to pull’ and kusai ‘man’ - is said to bederived from the observation that women are notstrong enough to pull the vine out of the canopy);in groundtruthing exercises in Poring, communi-ty members identified this rattan as losun orkowiton, smaller individuals are called losungobup (gobup meaning monkey). In Serinsim,the name bontai was given by a group of menwho reviewed a good quality herbarium speci-men; they asserted specifically that it was notlosun. It is called mangkawayan in Bundu Tuhan,although in Kiau this name refers to Plectocomiamulleri. Dusun uses and management: In Bundu Tuhan,the cane is split and used as the framework ofbaskets that are sold in markets and roadsidestalls. The leaves are used as thatching material

for houses. In Takutan, the dried but unsplitstems are used to make tables, chairs and walk-ing sticks, and formerly were used as spear han-dles and hammers. The fruits may be cookedtogether with fish, giving a sour taste. They mayalso be eaten raw, and are compared in flavor andtexture to torintid (Salacca). The palm cabbage,roasted in the fire, is good for stomach ache andin the treatment of high blood pressure, but issaid to be bitter. The palm cabbage is eaten as acooked vegetable. The sap of the vegetativeshoot is tapped to make bajar, a fermented drink- the tip of the vine is bent over into a receptacleand the shoot is cut, causing the sap to drip out.This bajar is considered to be of lower qualitythan that made from the sap of Plectocomia. Thestore keeper of Serinsim, a woman, noted that thefruits are edible but some men said they wereeaten only by animals. All concurred that theunsplit stems could be used to make walkingsticks and spear handles, but these are apparent-ly uses of the past. There is an interesting folktale about orang-utans that grow too fat to climbtrees anymore. Apparently because of their age,they acquire some kind of a mystical power.They wear cane of this species as a kind of belt(bototut), which brings fortune and power to any-one lucky enough to find one in the forest. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: The durable, large-diameter cane is used for furniture makingthroughout the range of the species. The base ofthe flowering stem is fused to the cane, making ituneven and of reduced quality and value in com-parison to other robust rattan species. Pearce(1991:139) notes that Kelabit people of Pa Tik,Sarawak are experimenting with the cultivationof this species for the production of fruit andcane.Botanical description and distribution: Arobust, clustering rattan, which reaches heightsof over 50 m. The stem with sheaths measures upto 7 cm diameter. The cane has prominent nodes,and measures up to 4 cm. The sheaths are armedwith large, flattened, triangular, black spines,with yellow bases. The knee is conspicuous, andthe flagellum reaches over 10m in length. Theleaves bear 20-30 leaflets each side of the rachis.The largest are 80 x 8 cm, but they decrease insize towards the leaf tip, to 4 x 0.5 cm. The ripefruit is ellipsoid, and covered with dull blackscales. Common and widespread in good soils ofprimary dipterocarp forests in the lowlands inSabah; widespread in other parts of Malaysia aswell as Indonesia, Philippines, Celebes andSouthern Thailand. Found in lowlands and hillforest of Mount Kinabalu from 600 to 1,100 masl. Ethnobotanical vouchers collected on hill-sides of old forest.Conservation status: Vulnerable. Although rel-atively common and widespread, it is a solitary



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rattan of good diameter, length and quality thatmake it commercially attractive. In addition, it ishigly sensitive to habitat disturbance, growing onprime sites for swidden agriculture. A basketmaker selling her wares in the Ranau monthlymarket remarked that there is no more of the canein her kampung, apparently because of destruc-tion of the primary forest where the species isfound. She purchases it from a neighbouringcommunity in which the cane is also becomingincreasingly scarce.

18. CALAMUS POGONACANTHUS BECC.

Dusun name(s): sumiliu in Sayap, Kiau, Poring,Takutan and Bundu Tuhan. This rattan was alsoreferred to as tuai motorisu (meaning solitary rat-tan), and as tuuh in Bundu Tuhan, although thelatter name may be an error. Residents fromSerinsim, upon reviewing a specimen of C.pogonocanthus, say that it is not sumiliu but isperhaps a low quality substitute for sogoh (C.caesius or C. optimus).Dusun uses and management: Mature stems,cut to size, split into sections and then dried, areused for tying, lashing and weaving. The stemsare sewn together to make mats in Kiau and inPoring. The split stems are thinned by scrapingand then used to weave baskets (bakul), back-packs (barait) and straps. The whole stems areused for the frames of baskets, or can be tied ornailed together to make picture frames and otherhandicrafts. In Takutan, the stems, renderedstrong by drying, are used to make the frames ofnyiru (Malay, rilibu in Dusun), a pear-shapedtray employed to winnow rice. The palm cabbageis said to be bitter, but becomes palatable byroasting the upper part of the palm in the fire.Rats apparently eat the young leafy shoots of thepalms. Formerly, the shoots of this palm wereplanted in secondary forest in Bundu Tuhan toensure a suitable supply for house building, butthis practice has mostly been abandoned asequivalent materials or alternative ones can bepurchased from outside. Classification, uses and management elsewherein South-East Asia: Dransfield (1984:116) notesthat the Iban of Sarawak use this good-qualitycane as a substitute for rotan sega (C. caesius).Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering, moderate sized rattan, the stems withsheaths measuring up to 25 mm. The sheathsbear scattered spines with concave bases andblack hairy margins. The knee is conspicuous,and the flagellum small, to 30 cm. The leaf has acirrus and 20-35 leaflets each side of the rachis,often arranged in groups towards the leaf tip. Themain veins are armed with bristles on both theupper and lower surfaces. Endemic to Borneo,where it is widespread in Sabah and other areas.A variable species well adapted to a variety ofsoil and vegetation types, it is found in lowlands,hill forest and lower montane forest from 600 -

1,500 m asl on Mount Kinabalu. Said to be com-mon in Poring, Bundu Tuhan and probably in theother communities.Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not threatened. Although it is anendemic with good quality commercial cane, it isa clustering, common species that is tolerant ofhabit disturbance.

19. CALAMUS PRAETERMISSUS J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): kopit in Serinsim; pipitsansarabon in Takutan.Dusun uses and management: The stems areused for the frames of baskets and furniture, andare also said to be used in house construction. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported, butDransfield (1984:107) reports that the caneappears to be of good quality though rather short.Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering, moderately sized rattan, climbing to over25 m. The stem with sheaths measures up to 35mm diameter. The sheaths are densely armed withbrown spines, with pale green bases. Usually twosizes can be distinguished, the larger spines (up to30 mm long) scattered throughout the sheath, andthe smaller spines (to 7 mm) arranged in whorls.The knee is conspicuous. The 12-20 leaflets oneach side of the leaf axis are regularly arrangedand quite distantly spaced. They are usually lance-olate and the main veins on the lower surface arearmed with bristles. This species is abundant inthe lowland dipterocarp forests of Sabah, growingup to 900 m asl. On Mount Kinabalu, it is found inlowlands and hill forest, generally on lowerslopes. It is endemic to Borneo, where it is alsoknown from East Kalimantan. Conservation status: Although an endemic ofBorneo, insufficiently known, but probably notthreatened because it is an abundant, clusteringspecies that is of limited commercial potential.

20. CALAMUS TENOMPOKENSIS FURT.

Dusun name(s): lambat in Bundu Tuhan;sorusut in Sayap. Apparently never seen inPoring, Takutan and Serinsim, judging from thevoucher specimen.Dusun uses and management: Stems may beused for the framework of traditional baskets andwakid.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported(Dransfield (1984:107).Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering, short-stemmed rattan, the stems onlygrowing to 2 m. The stem diameter reaches 2 cmwith sheaths, and 1 cm without. The sheaths aregreen, but are covered with a brown indumentum,and are armed with numerous large, flat spineswith hairy margins. The knee is not obvious. Theochrea is well-developed, up to 15 cm long andspiny. The leaf includes a robust petiole, armed


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with long spines, and up to 20 regularly arrangedleaflets. These have a tuft of orange hairs on theundersurface next to the rachis, and the apical pairare joined for over half their length. Endemic toBorneo where it occurs in montane forest. Knownfrom Kinabalu and the Crocker Range in Sabah,and also on Gunung Mulu in Sarawak. On MountKinabalu, found in hill forest and lower montaneforest from 1,200-1,800 m asl.Conservation status: Although endemic toBorneo, insufficiently known, but probably notthreatened. It is a clustering rattan with shortstems of little commerical value.

21. CALAMUS ZONATUS BECC.

Dusun name(s): pakot in Nalumad, PoringSerinsim and Takutan. The same name is used inBundu Tuhan, although the palm is not found norused here (the reason given is that water buffalosare not used to work wet padi, which is onlyfound in lowland, flat areas).Dusun uses and management: Stems are usedfor tying in general and, in particular, to lash theplow - used in wet padi cultivation - to the waterbuffalo. Used to catch buffalos in Poring andTakutan. The stems are used unsplit to avoid chaf-ing the hide of the buffalo and are sometimeswoven into strands of three to increase the strengthof the rope. Because of its strength and durability,this is considered to be one of the best canes inlowland communities such as Takutan and Poring.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984:156) notes that the split cane is useddomestically for binding and tying. Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der or moderately sized rattan growing to 10 m.Stems can be clustered or solitary, measuring up to20 mm with sheaths, although usually less thanthis. The cane reaches up to 7 mm diameter. Thesheaths are covered with a pale brown indumen-tum, and are encircled by ridges. These bear minuteteeth and scattered triangular spines. The ochreaalso has these ridges. The knee is well-developed.The leaves have 10-25 leaflets on each side of therachis, and these are a shiny dark green. The youngleaves are pale green, not pink, as in many otherrattan species. Endemic to Borneo, but widespreadand common in Sabah as well as Sarawak, Bruneiand Kalimantan. It grows on ultramafic rock andsedimentary soils in lowland dipterocarp forests,but not in peat swamp forest. Found in lowlandsand hill forest on ultramafic substrate from 700-1,000 m asl on Mount Kinabalu. Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not threatened. Often clustering, thisrattan has canes of apparently no commercialvalue and harvesting for local use is limited.However, it is an endemic species found in asomewhat restricted ecological zone that is oftendisturbed by people.

IV. Caryota

1. CARYOTA MITIS LOUR.

Dusun name(s): botu in all communities.Dusun uses and management: The palm cab-bage is eaten cooked, accompanied by chicken orother meat. In Bundu Tuhan, Poring, Serinsimand perhaps other communities, the palm cab-bage is considered to be especially good forwomen who have given birth. Bulahuk Arum, anelder of Serinsim, explains this belief by sug-gesting that eating the cabbage increases the flowof mother’s milk. Arenga brevipes is also used inBundu Tuhan, and apparently preferred, for thismedicinal use. Leaves can be used as thatchmaterial for sulap, field houses. The long maturestems can be used as bridges to cross over smallstreams. The fruits are considered to cause skinrashes and itches, so caution is advised whenhandling them. In Serinsim, the inflorescencehairs are considered to cause intense itchingwhen placed on people or monkeys, causingthem to ‘scratch themselves to the bone’. InTakutan, there was a belief about not being ableto find this palm if one looks for it just after achild is born, as it is said to hide. It is necessaryto mark the place where it is growing before thebirth as an aid to finding it later. This palm wasformerly sought out by almost everybody, butuse is now declining. The names leuteu (Punanof Sarawak) and bato (Tagb. of Philippines) arepossibly cognate.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: The fishtail palm hasa number of local uses, but is apparently notcommercialized. Dransfield (1984:61) notes thatthe palm is a source of sago, although yields lit-tle because stems are slender. Mogea (1991:43)states that in northern Sumatra the trunk was for-merly used as a source of starch and edible heart,but only in times of food scarcity. Basu(1991:22) records the use of the pithy core as afood source and of the leaves for garlands andreligious decoration in the Andaman and NicobarIslands. Pearce (1991:142-143) notes that it is afavorite sago source of the Penan of Sarawak andthat the cabbage is edible raw or cooked, but it isbitter and slightly irritating to the throat.Seedlings are sold in Kuching nurseries, wherethey fetch a relatively low price because theyhave lost market share to exotics. Madulid(1991:189) says that Caryota mitis and otherspecies of the genus are little used in comparisonto Areca and Arenga. Madulid (1991:249), in anupdate of Brown & Merril’s (1919) work on theutilization of Philippine palms, confirms that thepalm is a source of sago and cabbage, but of rel-atively low quality. He notes that there is a mod-erate level of exploitation in Palawan, wherewild seedlings are gathered for sale in markets as



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ornamentals. The plants bring a relatively highprice in Manila markets. It is often grown as anornamental throughout its range. The name bato,one of the local names in the Philippines, is cog-nate with the Dusun term. The Punan of Sarawakrefer to it as leuteu, another possible cognate.Botanical description and distribution: Theonly clustering Caryota palm, with stems grow-ing to 15 m. The leaf sheaths are covered with adense dark-brown indumentum and form blackfibres as they disintegrate. The large leaves aretwice divided, with fish-tail shaped leaflets, alsowith a brown indumentum. The inflorescencesare pendulous and bear spirally arranged yellow-ish flowers. The fruits are rounded and containone seed, turning red and finally black on ripen-ing. Characteristic of disturbed areas in alluvialforest and in belukar in Sarawak. Widespread inundergrowth of primary and particularly sec-ondary forests, occuring throughout South-EastAsia. In general found in disturbed sites of low-lands and hill forest around 900 m asl on MountKinabalu.The specimen from Takutan was about5m tall growing on hillsides and valley bottomsin secondary forest. The specimens fromSerinsim ranged from 4-10m, found on hillsidesand valley bottoms in secondary vegetation. Conservation status: Pearce (1991:159) consid-ers it not threatened because it is a clustering palm,not a prime resource, widespread and grows indisturbed areas; the conservation status in Sabahand at Mount Kinabalu is similar. Madulid(1991:211) classifies its status as indeterminate,and notes that the populations in Palawan, inforests near streams in the lowlands, are vulnera-ble to habitat destruction caused by logging.

2. CARYOTA NO BECC.

Dusun name(s): toyon in Bundu Tuhan, Kiauand Takutan. Giman in Serinsim and alsoTakutan. In many communities giman refers tothe fibres along the base of the leaf. In Serinsim,the name toyon exists but apparently refers to aspecies that looks like a massive tolibung orOncosperma horridum, having spines and lack-ing the characteristic black hairs of giman.Dusun uses and management: The fibres arevery strong, used for the trigger string in smallanimal traps, used for rats, squirrels and possiblybirds. Four to five fibres are twisted together andused as rope in traps for barking deer. InSerinsim, the black hairs are used as fishing line.These are former uses, as giman has beenreplaced by nylon rope. The two known gimantrees have been felled, and also one in Poring.The giman is still used in more isolated commu-nities in the interior for tying the handle ofparang and snares. The palm is eaten and consid-ered of high quality. The stems are cut and splitand flattened into pieces that are 8 - 10 cm wide,one trunk yielding 10 or more pieces. It is said to

last longer (10 - 20 years) than poring bamboo(10 years or less), but the manufacture is difficultand time consuming work. Apparently not plant-ed, but some individuals found in communities,maybe planted; however, many are found inTambunan which are said not to be planted.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Pearce (1991: 142)notes that the Penans of Sarawak extract sagofrom the stems. The palm gives a good yield ofsweet-tasting flour and ranks as the most appre-ciated of all sago sources. The palm heart is eatenand considered to be of good quality, althoughthere are reports that it is bitter. The Kelabits aresaid to make leg bangles from the leaf sheathfibre, which has been reported as a source of tin-der and is made into fishing lines. Pearce statesthat the palm is neither cultivated nor commer-cialized. According to Mogea (1991:67), it is cul-tivated as an ornamental in Indonesia. The nameiman from the Penan and Punan of Sarawak isprobably a cognate of the Dusun term.Botanical description and distribution: A mas-sive palm growing to 25 m tall. The solitarystems can measure 75 cm in diameter and areconspicuously ringed with leaf scars. The leafsheaths are covered with a brown indumentum,and disintegrate into black fibres. The leaves arehuge, twice-divided and with dark-green fish-tailshaped leaflets. The purplish fruits are borne inclusters, and contain 2 seeds. Characteristic ofrelatively open sites in alluvial forest and also ontalus slopes at the foot of limestone hills. Foundscattered throughout Borneo, where it is endem-ic, and almost always rare. On Mount Kinabalu,found in lowlands and hill forest from 600-800 masl; observed at Kaung and Langanan Falls inaddition to the localities of collection (BunduTuhan, Menggis and Poring Hot Springs).Conservation status: Vulnerable. Althoughwidespread in Borneo, it is never common in anysites. It has solitary stems, and the sago collectionoccurs before flowering and fruiting, resulting indestruction before regeneration. Its habitat is par-ticularly vulnerable to deforestation; and exploita-tion or elimination of the species is relativelyintense. Dransfield (1991: 175) classifies the con-servation status of the species as indeterminate inSabah, but vulnerable on a world scale.

V. Ceratolobus

1. CERATOLOBUS CONCOLOR BLUME

Dusun name(s): lopot in Takutan; salapanganin Poring.Dusun uses and management: Used occasion-ally in construction. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der, clustering rattan which climbs to 15 m. The


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stem with sheaths measures up to 15 mm diame-ter and the cane to 8 mm. The leaf sheath isarmed with numerous erect black spicules borneon low ridges. The knee is conspicuous. The leafis cirrate with a very short petiole, usually lessthan 5 cm and up to 7 leaflets on each side of therachis. These are diamond-shaped and dark greenon both surfaces. The inflorescence is enclosedin a large, flattened bract, which splits along itslength. Widespread in the lowlands of Sabah. Itis found scattered throughout the rest of Borneoand also in Sumatra where it is rare. This rattangrows in mixed dipterocarp forest, reaching analtitude of 600 m asl. It apparently does notfavour kerangas, waterlogged sites or ultramaficsoil. Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not threatened. A widespread clusteringrattan that is not commonly harvested.

VI. Cocos

1. COCOS NUCIFERA L.

Dusun name(s): piasau in all communities. Atleast one variety - piasau kopal ‘ship coconut’ -is recognized. Its name comes from the legendthat people leaving on sea journeys would plantthis kind of coconut, which is short and produceslarge, yellow fruits after only a few years. Uponreturning from the voyage, the coconut treeswould already be fruiting, providing a source offood and drink.Dusun uses and management: The palm cab-bage is eaten, always cooked. Sap is harvested bycutting the sheath containing immature inflores-cence. It is then fermented to make wine (baharin Dusun, or tuak in Malay); this can be made inany season of the year. The coconut milk isdrunk and the meat is eaten, and produces oil forcooking. The leaves are used, but seldom, forroofing houses. Leaf midveins are often used tomake a whisk broom (leaf blade removed) oroccasionally as a skewer for satay, but it is morecommon to use wood or bamboo for this pur-pose. The stem is used as firewood, particularywhere common (not in Bundu Tuhan but inRanau area). Household implements (mugs andspoons) are made from the coconut shell. Fibresfrom the husk are attached to bamboo handlesand made into brooms, yielding 1-2 brooms perhusk. Brooms are also made from fibres (sarak)from the leaf-base. Hollowed out stems are usedas honeybee hives. Stems are also used as simplebridges.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: A widely employed,multiple-use palm, commonly planted in ruraland urban areas. The most common uses are:stem as wood, leaves as thatch and fibre, husk offruit as fibre, endosperm for oil, shell as fuel,

immature liquid endosperm as beverage andmature endosperm as food, heart is eaten andthere are many additional minor uses (Basu1991:18,21,22; Madulid 1991:189,249; Pearce1991:155).Botanical description and distribution: A soli-tary palm, growing up to 30 m tall. The stem isslightly swollen at the base, light grey and withleaf scars. The crown bears about 35 leaveswhich are spirally arranged, and up to 7 m long.There are up to 100 narrow leaflets regularlyarranged on each side of the leaf axis. The fruit isusually 20-30 cm long, rounded to ovoid, ripen-ing to yellow or orange. Cultivated in the low-lands (up to 700 m asl) particularly in coastalareas, in both home gardens and plantations,often regenerating spontaneously. Unknown inthe wild. The most abundant and widely distrib-uted palm in South-East Asia. In Bundu Tuhan, ithas become rarer than before, but is commonlycultivated elsewhere in lowlands and hill forest.Conservation status: Not threatened, althoughsome varieties have an indeterminate status. Thespecies is cultivated and most uses are notdestructive. However, it has a solitary habit andsome cultivars may come under pressure fromdisease and storms.

VII. Daemonorops

1. DAEMONOROPS DIDYMOPHYLLA BECC.

Dusun name(s): Known as lomu lomu in Kiau,lomok in Melangkap Tomis, and as lomok lomokin Sayap. It is lambat or tomborua in BunduTuhan, where the name lambat is used to refer toa number of Daemonorops species. No namereported in Takutan or Poring. In Serinsim, thevoucher was identified as pipit alansau ‘largepipit’.Dusun uses and management: In Sayap thesplit stems are used for tying, and the cirrus isused to make animal traps. The cooked fruits arealso said to be eaten, although elsewhere thefruits are not considered even as an emergencyfood source as they are sour and only tasted occa-sionally. In Takutan it was reported that the caneis not used as it breaks too easily, nor is it used inBundu Tuhan, Poring or Kiau.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:53) states that the species produces amedium quality cane which is sometimes used,split, in parts of the Malay Peninsula. He alsonotes that it is a source of dragon’s blood, a resinfound on the scales of the fruits. This was for-merly used medicinally and, among the Penan ofSarawak, as a colorant for tin-tipped blow-pipedarts (Dransfield, 1984b:53; Pearce 1991:145).In Sarawak, the fruits are said to be edible(Pearce 1991:144).



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Botanical description and distribution: A mod-erate sized, clustering rattan that may climb ashigh as 15 m, but is often fertile when onlyapproximately 3 m. The leaf sheaths are darkgreen and armed with scattered, somewhatreflexed, grey to black triangular spines. The kneeis well-developed. The petiole is yellowish belowand dark green on the upper surface, and armedwith short spines. These are arranged in densegroups on the upper surface. Although variable,the leaflets are usually arranged in divergent,opposite or alternate pairs. It is one of only twospecies of Daemonorops in Sabah that producesdragon’s blood. It is widespread throughoutSabah and other parts of Borneo, growing at alti-tudes of up to 1000 m asl, and is usually found inmoist sites such as lower hillslopes and particu-larly in valley bottoms of hill dipterocarp forest.It also grows in Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula andsouthern Thailand. At Mount Kinabalu, it isfound in lowlands and hill forest.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) and Pearce (1991:160) consider thatits status is insufficiently known, but it is appar-ently widespread in both states. Around KinabaluPark it is not threatened. It is a clustering palmwhich grows in a fairly wide range of ecologicalniches. Although it produces medium qualitycane, edible fruits and medicinal resin, there is nocurrent commercial exploitation and limited sub-sistence use of these products around the MountKinabalu region.

2. DAEMONOROPS ELONGATA BLUME

Dusun name(s): An unnamed tuai collectedonly twice in Melangkap Tomis, Lorence Lugasreferred to it as tuai puru.Dusun uses and management: Used for tyingand in construction.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported.Botanical description and distribution: Leafsheaths are dark green and rather densely cov-ered with chocolate-coloured indumentum andarmed with abundant scattered or partiallywhorled black reflexed or erect spines to 30mm,usually much less, with pale bases; spines aroundleaf sheath mouth erect papery, to 12cm. Kneepoorly developed. Leaflets regularly arrangedbelow, irregularly arranged above. Scatteredthroughout the lowlands of Sabay; elsewherethroughout Borneo, endemic (Dransfield1984:65).Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not threatened; not common aroundMount Kinabalu. It is a clustering rattan that isapparently not commonly harvested.

3. DAEMONOROPS FISSA BLUME

Dusun name(s): toyon tokoda (small toyon) inTakutan, and pipit sansarabon in Sayap; in

Poring it is known as lambat; not present orapparently named in Bundu Tuhan or Kiau; like-ly present in Serinsim, but not yet collected.Dusun uses and management: In Sayap thecooked fruits are eaten and the stems are used fortying and for making furniture. No uses havebeen reported in Takutan.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: John Dransfield(1984:51) notes that it produces a coarse, medi-um-sized cane, but gives no specific uses ornotes on commercialization.Botanical description and distribution: Amoderate to robust rattan that climbs to heightsof 30 m. The stems are clustering, often produc-ing thickets. The leaf sheaths are dull greenish-brown and are densely armed with shiny, flat-tened black spines 10-20 mm long. The male andfemale inflorescences look rather alike and areproduced in abundance. These are erect whenflowering begins and are enclosed in a persistantbract which splits from bottom to top, revealingthe inflorescence. Although endemic to Borneo,it is widespread and abundant in disturbed vege-tation in the lowlands of Sabah and elsewhere. Itis particularly common in secondary forests onalluvial soils in lowlands but also occurs in hillforests up to 800 m altitude.Conservation status: Pearce (1991:160) states itis not threatened in Sarawak. Dransfield andJohnson (1991:177) consider that its status isinsufficiently known in Sabah, but note it is awidespread species. Although endemic toBorneo, it is abundant and widespread. It thrivesin lowland secondary forest, which is increasing-ly common, and is a clustering palm with a ten-dency to form thickets. Around Mount Kinabalu,it is not threatened. It is relatively abundantaround Poring and Takutan and is found in lowermontane forest protected within the Park bound-ary. Although it produces a coarse, medium-sized cane (Dransfield 1992:43), it has no currentcommercial value and is apparently not usedeven for domestic purposes.

4. DAEMONOROPS INGENS J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): ladawan in Melangkap Tomis;ladanan in Sayap.Dusun uses and management: Leaves used asthatch in construction.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: The leaves are usedby the Penan as thatch for temporary shelters,and the sweet fruit is eaten at Gunung Mulu inSarawak (Dransfield 1984b).Botanical description and distribution: A mas-sive, clustering palm with short subterraneanstems. The leaf is ecirrate, growing up to 6 mlong, and with a leaf sheath which is open alongits length. The petiole bears whorls of huge,slightly reflexed pale yellow spines, which can


52

be up to 11 cm long. Indentations of these spinesremain on the petiole surface, which is coveredin a light brown indumentum. The leaf rachis isarmed with similar, but smaller spines, and bearssome 35 leaflets on each side. These are regular-ly arranged, dark green on both surfaces, armedwith bristles along the margins, and end in a drip-tip. The inflorescence is infrafoliar and some-what arching, with branches crowded near to thetip. At the base of each branch is a tattering,brown, hairy bract. The female flowers arebrown with pink stigmas, measuring up to 11 x 6mm. The male flowers are relatively large, up to7 x 4.5 mm. The mature fruits are very large, to45 x 20 mm, and covered in matt, rich brownscales with dark margins. Endemic to Borneo,this rattan is known from Sabah, Sarawak andKalimantan. At Mount Kinabalu, it is found invalley bottoms of hill forest.Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not threatened. It is a clustering rattanthat is apparently not commonly harvested.

5. DAEMONOROPS KORTHALSII BLUME

Dusun name(s): sansarabon in Serinsim. InTakutan, several names have been recorded:pipit, pipit sompuun, sarok and sumiliu (the namesumiliu is usually reserved for Calamus pogo-nacanthus). There is some similarity between theleaves of these two species, but the thorns on thesheaths are quite different. In Poring it is knownas sulak, ragi-ragi or pakama. The name loburhas also been recorded here, though some peoplesuggest that this name usually refers to a smallerrattan.Dusun uses and management: In Takutan theleaves are used for thatch, and in Poring thestems are used for tying and binding. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:63) reports no uses, but suggests that thecane is of medium quality.Botanical description and distribution: Amoderately robust, clustering rattan that reachesheights of 15 m. The largest stems measure 1.5cm without sheaths and 3 cm with sheaths. Theleaf sheaths are dull green and sparsely armedwith black spines up to 30 mm. These are typi-cally uniform in length on any individual plant,except for those around the leaf sheath mouthwhich are larger and erect. The leaves are up to 3m long including a 1m cirrus, and bear up to 60pairs of regularly arranged, narrow leaflets.Endemic to Borneo, this rattan is widespread inprimary and secondary forests. It is typicallyfound in lowland or hill forest at altitudes of 700-800 m. Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) and Pearce (1991:160) consider thatits status is insufficiently known, but it is appar-ently common in both states. Although endemic

to Borneo, it is widespread, clustering and is ableto grow in both primary and secondary vegeta-tion. Around Kinabalu Park, it is not threatened.There is no known commercial or subsistenceuse and it is probably relatively widespread inlowland areas.

6. DAEMONOROPS LONGIPES (GRIFF.)MART.

Dusun name(s): pipit in Kiau; pipit orsansarabon in Poring, Serinsim and Takutan,where the names pipit timbaan (‘primary forestpipit’) and pipit sansarabon are also recognized;among some speakers sansarabon is consideredto be a small-sized pipit. In Bundu Tuhan thespecies is called lambat, like most otherDaemonorops. Lambat nuluhan, meaning ‘lam-bat from the hill’, is sometimes used, or lambattagayo (‘large lambat’) to differentiate this frommore slender species. In Sayap it is known aswaig-waig. Dusun uses and management: The palm cab-bage is eaten cooked, often in soup, in Poring,Serinsim, Takutan and Bundu Tuhan, but is notamong the preferred species. In Sayap andSerinsim, the peeled fruits are eaten. The stems,dried in the sun or smoked over a fire, are used inboth Sayap and Takutan to make furniture. Theywere formerly used as spear handles in Serinsim,Takutan (where one spear is left), and in Poring.Some community members say that spears werelast used to fight the Japanese during World WarII. In Serinsim and Takutan, the leaves are sewntogether to make thatch. The stems, split intosmall sections, are widely used for tying andlashing. In some communities, such as Poring,the stems may be used for walking sticks,referred to as tongkat in Malay and sukud inDusun. In Bundu Tuhan, the dried and split stemsare said to be used in the manufacture of handi-crafts such as bakul and wakid.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Pearce (1991:143-144) reports that the split canes are used to lashaxe-heads to handles and for tying in general.The fruits and palm cabbages are said to be eatenin Sarawak.Botanical description and distribution: Ahighly variable, moderate to robust rattan. Thestems are clustering, sometimes forming lowthickets or, rarely, high climbing. The largeststems measure 5 cm in diameter, and whenstripped of sheaths, up to 3 cm. The leaf sheathsare bright green and armed with large brownish-black, flattened and reflexed spines that are oftenarranged in horizontal rows. The leaves, whichsometimes have a short whip, are up to 4.5 mlong, including a 50 cm stalk. They bear between30 and 60 pairs of leaflets, which are oftenarranged in neat groups of 2-5. The species isvery widespread throughout Sabah and is found



53

in other parts of Borneo, Palawan, Sumatra andsouthern part of Malay Peninsula (Dransfield1992:79). It grows in a wide variety of habitatsfrom sea level up to 1600 m asl. The species hasbeen collected at diverse localities in the low-lands, hill forest and lower montane forest from900-1,700 m asl in Kinabalu Park. The ethnob-otanical vouchers were collected from popula-tions found on hilltops, hillsides or valley bot-toms in old primary forest or secondary associa-tions in Kiau, Serinsim, Takutan and BunduTuhan. A sight record was made above PoringHot Springs. The species is considered to bequite common in the forests of Takutan.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) and Pearce (1991:160) consider thatits status is insufficiently known, but it is appar-ently widespread in both states. The species is notthreatened aroud Kinabalu Park. The palm iswidespread, clustering and can form thickets. Itcan survive in a wide variety of habitats, includingboth primary and seconday vegetation. No har-vesting for commercial ends has been reportedand the subsistence uses are minor and occasional.

7. DAEMONOROPS LONGISTIPES BURRET

Dusun name(s): lambat in Bundu Tuhan, andlunggot or monompuun in Kiau. In Serinsim,some residents considered the voucher a type ofpipit, but an elderly man who was more knowl-edgeable called it tomboruah. No name given inTakutan.Dusun uses and management: In Bundu Tuhan,the stems are used as the frames of baskets andwakid. No reported use in Kiau or Takutan.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:68) reports that it produces a coarse caneof no known commercial significance.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der to moderate, clustering rattan that reachesheights of 10 m. The stems measure approxi-mately 1 cm after the sheaths are removed. Thesheaths are yellowish green and covered in darkbrown fuzz. They are armed with numerousblack spines up to 20 mm long. These spines arefragile and often break off, leaving short stubs onold sheaths. Around the sheath mouth, the spinesare erect and papery reaching 6 cm long. The leafis cirrate, and on each side there are up to 45leaflets, armed with small bristles on the mainvein beneath. Endemic to Borneo, it is abundantin lower montane forest on the Crocker Range,Mount Kinabalu and parts of Sarawak. AroundKinabalu Park, it has been collected between900-1,800 m elevation in hill and lower montaneforest. Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) and Pearce (1991:160) consider thatits status is insufficiently known, but it is appar-ently common in some areas of both states. It is

not threatened around Mount Kinabalu.Clustering and abundant in various localities,including many within Park boundaries. Itthrives in both primary and secondary forests andis neither commercialized nor used for domesticpurposes.

8. DAEMONOROPS MICROSTACHYS BECC.

Dusun name(s): pipit or sansarabon inSerinsim. In Bundu Tuhan it is also sometimesreferred to as sansarabon, while in Takutan it iscalled pipit sansarabon. In Bundu Tuhan it ismore commonly called lambat, like most otherstemless or short-stemmed Daemonorops.Sometimes it is referred to as lambat tokoro inreference to the size of this rattan, since tokoromeans small. The name lambat is also used inPoring. Not yet collected in other communities. Dusun uses and management: The palm cab-bage can be eaten in soup. In Bundu Tuhan andSerinsim, the leaves are used for thatch. Thestems are used for the frames of baskets andwakid in Bundu Tuhan. No uses reported inPoring. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: In Sarawak, thefruits (Pearce 1991:144) and palm cabbage(Kedit 1982) are eaten.Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering rattan, with stems not growing longer than1 m. Including the sheaths, the stems can mea-sure up to 5 cm diameter, but are usually less.The sheaths are covered with a brown indumen-tum, lack a knee, and are armed with spines up to3 cm long. The spines tend to point upwardswhere the leaf diverges from the stem. Theleaves bear up to 35 leaflets, regularly arrangedon each side of the leaf axis. The inflorescencesare arching, with rusty brown branches.Scattered in Sabah and throughout Borneo, butnowhere common. It is usually associated withpoor soils, such as those of ridgetops and onultramafic rock. Found in lowlands and hill for-est at Mount Kinabalu.

9. DAEMONOROPS PERIACANTHA MIQ.

Dusun name(s): logong or sansarobon inPoring. The typical sansarobon is said to be D.longipes, but there is a perceived similarity in theleaves and thorniness of the two species.Dusun uses and management: The leaves aresaid to be used for the thatch or walls of temporaryshelters and also in making hats and handicrafts,but these uses are minor and occasional. In Poring,the stems were formerly used as spear handles andmay still be utilized as walking sticks.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield (1984a)notes that it produces a coarse cane, but does notspecify any uses. Pearce (1991:144) states that thefruits are eaten in Sarawak and that the split canes


54

are used for tying fishtraps. The palm cabbage issaid to be eaten by the Penan (Kedit 1982).Botanical description and distribution: Arobust clustering rattan with stems that climb upto 10 m high, although sometimes very short-stemmed. The stems without sheaths have adiameter of between 1.5 and 3 cm. The leafsheath is green but densely covered with brightyellow brown, black-tipped spines of varyinglength and pointing in several directions. The leafstem is greenish with two lateral yellow lines, andis rather densely covered in spines, some groupedin whorls and others solitary. There are about 45leaflets on each side of the leaf and these areirregularly arranged in rather distinct groups of 2-7. The species is widespread in Sabah and else-where in Borneo, the southern Malaysian state ofJohor and Sumatra. It is found in lowland and hilldipterocarp forest up to 800 m elevation, particu-larly on the rich soils of valley bottoms and hill-sides rather than ridge tops. It has not been col-lected previously around Kinabalu Park. The eth-nobotanical voucher was collected on a hillside inprimary forest near Poring.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) and Pearce (1991:161) consider thatits status is insufficiently known, but it is appar-ently widespread throughout both states. It isprobably not threatened around Mount Kinabalu,but more collections are needed to understand itslocal distribution and abundance. Some parts ofits range fall within lower montane forest pro-tected within the Park boundary. The local usesare minor and occasional. Given that it is a clus-tering species, a quantity sufficient for domesticuse can probably be harvested without depletingindividual populations.

10. DAEMONOROPS RUPTILIS BECC. VAR.RUPTILIS

Dusun name(s): pipit tanaru or simply pipit inTakutan. It is also known as pipit in Kiau andSerinsim. However, on seeing the voucher spec-imen, some residents of Serinsim called thisspecies dobur. Dusun uses and management: The dried andsplit stems can be used for tying and binding.The unsplit stems, dried by smoking, were for-merly used to make handles for spears and arecurrently used for furniture making. The leavescan be used for thatch, and the raw fruit is said tobe edible.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield statesthat this species produces a large reddish cane ofmoderate quality, but not very long. Pearce(1991:144) notes that the fruits of another sub-species found in Sarawak and Sabah - D. ruptilisvar. acaulescens - are edible.Botanical description and distribution: A mas-sive, clustering rattan that reaches heights of 10

m. The stems without sheaths measure some 3cm in diameter, and with sheaths up to 6 cm. Thesheaths are dull green but the surface is almostcompletely covered by abundant reddish brownindumentum and brittle flattened spines. Theseare black or pale-tipped and generally upwardpointing. The leaf stem is covered with partialwhorls of straw-colored spines up to 4 cm long.The shiny, dark green leaflets are stiff, usuallyfolded lengthwise and regularly but rather dis-tantly arranged along the leaf axis. Endemic toSabah, where it is one of the commonest rattans.It is widespread in the lowlands up to about 700m elevation, growing in most types of drylandforest. Two previous collections were made inPoring at 600 m elevation. The ethnobotanicalvoucher, measuring approximately 14 m, wasfound on hilltops in hill forest of Takutan.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) consider that its status is insufficient-ly known in Sabah, but it is a common species inmany areas. It is not threatened around MountKinabalu. It is fairly common in the Poring andTakutan area, where some of its range is protect-ed inside the Park boundaries. The local uses areminor and the short cane size limits the commer-cial potential of the species. Because it is a clus-tering palm, a sufficient quantity for domesticuse can probably be harvested without depletinglocal stocks.

11. DAEMONOROPS SABUT BECC.

Dusun name(s): sulak in Serinsim and in BunduTuhan; known as salapangan in Takutan. Bothnames apparently refer to the interlocking spinesthat form collars around the leaf sheaths.Salapangan is one of the names used in Poring,as well as lopong-lopong, mogulopong and lino-pong. Dusun uses and management: In Serinsim, thestems are split and dried to make fish traps(bubuh in Dusun and Malay). In Takutan, themature bare stems, which are said to lose theirsheaths over time, are used to make temporarypens (called tinsod in Dusun and pagar in Malay)for animals or to protect seedlings. In BunduTuhan, rope made from the stem is used for tyingand leading buffaloes. The stems are also used inthe manufacture of furniture and for general tyingand binding, both in Poring and more widely. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:61) states that it produces a good qualitycane. Pearce (1991:143,144), in summarizingvarious reports of its utility, notes that the caneis very durable and of good market value, hav-ing been marketed in the past. It is split andwoven into mats and baskets and is much valuedfor tying roofs and binding in general. InSarawak, it is considered the best cane for mak-ing selabit, a kind of basket carried on the back



55

which is widely used by the rural population.This rattan is apparently cultivated at Kapit andseedlings are being raised for an orchard to beestablished by the Forest Department. Amongother names, the Penan of Sarawak call thisspecies wei selapang (Pearce, 1991:161) whichmay be cognate with the Dusun term salapan-gan. Alternatively, these names could bedescriptive terms that arose independently in thetwo communities.Botanical description and distribution: Amoderately sized, clustering rattan that climbsto about 40 m in the forest canopy. The stemswithout sheaths measure some 1.5 cm in diame-ter. The sheaths are bright green and bear com-plete and partial collars to about 10 mm. Thecollars are fringed with black and brown horse-hair like spines, measuring 1-6 cm long. Someof the collars and spines interlock, producing antgalleries. The leaf is cirrate with about 20leaflets on each side of the leaf axis, usually ingroups of 3-6. It is widespread thorughoutSabah as well as in other parts of Borneo and theMalay Peninsula. In is found in lowlands andhill forest, sometimes on ultramafic soils,around 700 m asl. The ethnobotanical voucherswere found on hillsides, valley bottoms andriversides in old secondary or primary forest inTakutan and Serinsim.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) and Pearce (1991:161) consider thatits status is insufficiently known, but it is appar-ently widespread throughout both states. It is notthreatened around Mount Kinabalu. Part of itsrange falls within lower montane forest protectedwithin the Park boundary. There is a moderatelevel of exploitation for domestic purposes, butbecause it is a clustering species, a sufficientquantity can probably be harvested withoutdepleting individual populations. Kiew(1991:119) considers it one of the palms mostlikely to become endangered in Taman NegaraPark in West Malaysia.

12. DAEMONOROPS SPARSIFLORA BECC.

Dusun name(s): loggi in Bundu Tuhan andlogong in Kiau; wakau lobu, mangkahatus orgipan-gipan in Poring. pipit humatou or tambahin Melangkap Tomis. Apparently unnamed inTakutan. In Serinsim, the voucher was identifiedas a type of kopit.Dusun uses and management: In Bundu Tuhan,the mature split stems are used to make handi-crafts such as barait and bakul. The palm cabbage,cooked in soup, is said to be bitter but is appreci-ated by some people. In Kiau, the dried and splitstems are used in thatching to tie the leaves ofMetroxylon sagu onto bamboo poles. In Poring,the leaves are used as thatch for temporary shel-ters, and the stems as rope or for making smallfishtraps and baskets. No use reported in Takutan.

Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:75) notes that the cane is of moderatequality and appears to shrink upon drying. Hehas observed the ornate seedlings of the speciesfor sale at roadside plant stalls or by itinerantplant sellers in Kota Kinabalu. Kedit (1982)reports that the Penan of Sarawak use the stemsfor tying.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der to moderately robust clustering rattan, grow-ing up to 20 m. The stems with sheaths measureup to 28 mm in diameter, and the cane between 8-18 mm. The sheaths are dull to bright green andarmed with scattered broad-based triangularspines up to 15 mm long. The leaf is some 2 mlong, and bears up to 50 leaflets on each side of therachis. These are stiff and usually very closely andneatly arranged, each narrowing abruptly at thebase. Endemic to Borneo, it is abundant through-out Sabah, Brunei and the eastern part of Sarawakand is found in parts of Kalimantan. It prefers rel-atively rich soils on valley bottoms, lower hill-slopes and riversides in primary or disturbed for-est, up to an elevation of 1,000 m. Around MountKinabalu, it has been collected in lowland and hillforest at 400-1,000 m asl. The ethnobotanicalvouchers, growing some 10-15 m long, werefound along hillsides in old secondary or primaryforest from Melangkap Tomis to Bundu Tuhanand Kiau across to Poring and Takutan.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) and Pearce (1991:161) consider thatits status is insufficiently known, but it is appar-ently widespread in Sabah and part of Sarawak.It is not threatened around Mount Kinabalu. Itappears to grow in forests along the southern areaof Kinabalu Park, with part of its range protectedin forest within the Park boundary. There is a lowlevel of exploitation for domestic purposes, butbecause it is a clustering species, a sufficientquantity can probably be harvested withoutdepleting individual populations.

VIII. Dypsis

1. DYPSIS LUTESCENS (H. WENDL.)BEENTJE & J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): Apparently unnamed in Dusun,as it is an exotic species recently introduced.Dusun uses and management: An ornamentalin home gardens of Bundu Tuhan.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported. Thisspecies is called ‘golden bamboo palm’ inEnglish.Botanical description and distribution: Agraceful, clustering palm which grows up to 7 mtall, in clumps of up to 20 plants. The stem is yel-low or pale grey-brown becoming green-greywith a waxy white bloom towards the top. The


56

leaves arch strongly, and bear between 44 and 59stiff leaflets regularly arranged on each side ofthe rachis. The leaf sheath, petiole and rachis areall yellow or yellow-orange. The leaflets aregreen above, with a grey somewhat waxy lowersurface. The inflorescence is interfoliar, withspreading branches. The fruits are yellow, ellip-soid to obovoid, with a fibrous endocarp. Thispalm is native to the east of Madagascar, whereit grows in white sand forest near the coast. It iscultivated widely throughout the tropics becauseof its ornamental value, growing under a widerange of conditions (Dransfield and Beentje1995:212-214).Conservation status: Not threatened, as it iswidely cultivated.

IX. Elaeis

1. ELAEIS GUINEENSIS JACQ.

Dusun name(s): piasau mamau in Dusun,though sometimes referred to by its Malay name,kelapa sawit.Dusun uses and management: Known as thesource of palm oil, but cultivated mainly as anornamental in the Mount Kinabalu area.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: One of the mostcommercially valuable palm crops in South-EastAsia and the Pacific, the African oil palm iswidely cultivated for production of crude palmoil and palm kernels.Botanical description and distribution: The oilpalm is a large, solitary palm. The trunk is greyand grows to 20 m tall. It has a swollen base andwhen young is covered with the remains of leafbases. The crown bears about 40-50 large leaves.The leaf sheath is fibrous, and the lower part ofthe leaf rachis bears short spines along the mar-gins. The petiole is also armed, with swollen-based spines. The leaves are pinnate, with some100-150 narrow leaflets on each side of therachis. These are folded to form an inverted V incross-section, and are held somewhat irregular-ly in two planes. The inflorescence is interfoliar,short and crowded. Branching is to one order,and the tips of the branches are spine-like. Theprophyll (the first bract on the inflorescence)soon develops into a mass of fibres, some ofwhich are spine-like. Female and male flowersare usually borne on separate inflorescences.The male flowers are borne in pairs, sunken inpits, while the larger female flowers are solitary.The fruits are ovoid, with a smooth, shiny sur-face, and oily, fibrous flesh. They are brightorange, sometimes with violet patches whereexposed.Conservation status: Not threatened, as it iswidely cultivated in commericial plantations.

X. Eugeissona

1. EUGEISSONA UTILIS BECC.

Dusun name(s): luba’ is a recognized name inall communities, but this palm has only beenreported in Poring and Serinsim.Dusun uses and management: In Serinsim, thestem was formerly used to fashion poison dartsand starch was made from the stems. The resi-dents of Serinsim would have to travel to a kam-pung, where the palm is found along a stream-side. It is not used anymore and no one travels tothis place now. Similarly, it does not grow inPoring, but only along the road to Ranau. InTakutan, the stems are used as the plug of darts,an occlusion.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Used in some areasas a source of sago, and for uses similar to thosereported in Dusun communities.Botanical description and distribution: A mas-sive, densely clustering palm growing to 15 m.The leaf sheaths and petioles are armed withblack, flattened spines. The leaves can be as longas 12 m. The leaflets are narrow and crowded,tending to hang irregularly. The spire-like com-pound inflorescence is erect, produced from thepalm apex, and bears brownish flowers. Thefruits are ovoid with a beak and up to 10 cm long.The species is restricted to lowlands and hillforests around Mount Kinabalu. As it is usuallyassociated with villages, it may be a remnant ofcultivation. Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) classify this species as not threatenedin Sabah, and Pearce (1991:161) concurs forSarawak. Although relatively rare around MountKinabalu, it is probably not threatened as it isclustering, is (or was) cultivated, and harvestingintensity has decreased over time.

XI. Korthalsia

1. KORTHALSIA CHEB BECC.

Dusun name(s): lasas in Bundu Tuhan. Dusun uses and management: In Bundu Tuhan,the split stems are used for weaving, to makebaskets and straps. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield notes thatthis species produces a medium-sized ‘rotanmerah’, or reddish cane (1984a:25). Pearce(1991:146) reports that the cane of this species isused for tying (Kedit 1982) and is split for mak-ing baskets and mats; the core is water-resistantand is used for tying bamboo structures.Botanical description and distribution: Arobust, clustering rattan with branching stemsthat climb up to 40 m. The stems with sheaths



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measure up to 3 cm. The ochreas are very largeand conspicuous, almost entirely concealing thesheaths, at first tightly sheathing just above thepetiole and then greatly inflated. Ants are usual-ly abundant within these chambers, which arearmed with scattered, short triangular spines. Theleaflets are broad and diamond-shaped, with upto seven on each side of the leaf axis. The inflo-rescences are up to 75 cm long, and the ripe fruitis somewhat oblong, 1.5 by 1 cm. Apparently avery local species, it was previously only knownin Sabah from one collection in the CrockerRange. Also found in Sarawak and Kalimantan,but always very local. Endemic to Borneo(Dransfield 1992:30). On Mount Kinabalu, itwas collected once in hill forest.Conservation status: Considered rare inSarawak by Pearce (1991:162), and quite scarcein Sabah; the species is vulnerable, but not inten-sively used, around Mount Kinabalu.

2. KORTHALSIA CONCOLOR BECC.

Dusun name(s): tuai pakot in Serinsim.Dusun uses and management: Used in craftsand construction.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der clustering rattan with branching stems thatclimb high into the canopy. The stems withoutsheaths are about 6 mm in diameter, with sheathsto 9 mm. The sheaths are bright green with verysparse spines and a very thick grey indumentum.Leaf some 30 cm long, including a cirrus of up to15 cm long. Petiole very short or absent. Leafletsthe same colour on both surfaces (concolourous),about 5 on each side, the largest 12 by 4 cm. Theinflorescence rarely exceeds 35 cm, and the fruitis ovate, about 2 by 1.7 cm. Found in the low-lands up to 400 m above sea level, usuallyrestricted to ultramafic soils.Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not threatened, as it is a clustering rat-tan not in great demand.

3. KORTHALSIA DEBILIS BLUME

Dusun name(s): rukatan timbaan in Takutan.Dusun uses and management: Apparently notused in Dusun communities.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Kedit (1992) notesthat the canes are used for tying.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der, clustering, high climbing rattan, the stemswith sheaths measuring up to 15 mm. The leafsheaths are sparingly covered in a rusty brownindumentum and are sometimes armed with shortspines. The ochrea is closely sheathing along itslength, and is usually armed with very shortprickles. It disintegrates into a distinctive fibrousnet. The leaves are about 30-40 cm long, with a

short petiole of 2-3 cm. The leaf rachis is armedwith small spines, and bears 4-6 leaflets on eachside. These are diamond shaped, and whitish ontheir lower surface. The inflorescence is small,some 30 cm long, bearing few, undividedbranches. The bracts subtending each branch arecovered in a pale indumentum. The fruit is small,about 1 cm diameter, sparingly fleshy and round-ed. It is found in lowland dipterocarp forests ofSabah, Sarawak and Sumatra; growing at up to500 m asl around Mount Kinabalu. According toDransfield (1992:22) also in Kalimantan.Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not threatened, as it is a clustering rat-tan not in great demand.

4. KORTHALSIA ECHINOMETRA BECC.

Dusun name(s): wakau ragang or potung inPoring. These names also refer to K. furtadoana,apparently because of the similarity in ochreas ofthese two species. The name potung, whichmeans ‘swollen’ in Dusun, is also used in BunduTuhan; the rattan does not grow there, but someresidents have seen it around Ranau. In Takutan,this rattan is called wakau ragang. The name tuairagang exists in Bundu Tuhan, but is used for amore slender species of Korthalsia.Dusun uses and management: The stems, splitand scraped clean, are used to make carryingbags (sikutan), baskets (barait), the frame oftrays for winnowing rice (nyiru) and other hand-icrafts. The split stems are also used for tying ingeneral. The cane is said to be durable, lasting for2 or 3 years. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:25) mentions that the split cane is used inbasket weaving and that it is a much sought afterspecies. Pearce (1991:146) cites several sourceswhich indicate that the durable yet unattractivecane is in high demand for baskets and mats. It issaid to be easy to work and to have some marketvalue for furniture making.Botanical description and distribution: A mod-erately robust rattan that climbs to heights of 40m. It is both clustering and branching. The stem,with sheaths removed, attains a maximum diame-ter of 2 cm. The bright green sheaths are almostcompletely hidden by the swollen ochrea, whichis densely covered with black laminar spines. Theleaflets are numerous, up to 25 on each side of theleaf axis, and dark green with a chalky whitelower surface. They are narrowly elongate, givingthe palm the appearance of a Calamus orDaemonorops. Considered by Dransfield to bethe commonest species in Sabah. It is very wide-spread in lowland and hill dipterocarp forest atelevations of up to 1,000 m asl. It is also wide-spread in Borneo, Sumatra and the southern partof the Malay Peninsula. At Mount Kinabalu, thespecies is widespread in lowlands and hill forest


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up to 900 m asl.The ethnobotanical vouchers, 8-10 m long, were found on hilltops and hillsides inprimary and secondary forest.Conservation status: Although Pearce consid-ers the status to be unknown in Sarawak,Dransfield and Johnson (1991:177) suggest thatit is not threatened in Sabah. It is very wide-spread and thrives in a variety of forest types andecological zones. Around Mount Kinabalu, itappears to be abundant. Harvesting of the speciesis occasional and solely for subsistence purposes.It is clustering and branching, so the limited har-vesting which takes place is unlikely to threatenthe survival even of individual plants.

5. KORTHALSIA FURTADOANA J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): wakau ragang or potung inPoring. Both of these names are also used for K.echinometra, apparently because of the similari-ty in their ochreas. Dusun uses and management: In Poring, thesplit stems are used for making the straps ofwakid and also to make hats. For the latter, thestems are soaked first in water. The whole stemsare used as the frames for fishtraps and baskets.This cane is said to be durable and strong. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:30) notes that this species producesdurable slender rattan used for binding, particu-larly in local handicrafts.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der, clustering rattan, with branching stems climb-ing to over 20 m. The stem measures 8-10 mmincluding the sheaths, and 5-8 mm when these areremoved. The sheaths are armed with scattered,triangular black spines. The ochrea is similarlyarmed, and swollen to form ant chambers. Theleaflets are narrow diamond-shaped, with up to 12in each leaf. The upper surface is bright green, andthe lower surface whitish. Usually only two inflo-rescences are produced, each with four robustbranches. Abundant in Eastern Sabah, where it isfound in lowland forest up to 500 m asl, but morescattered in the west of the state. Rather infrequentaround Mount Kinabalu.Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not vulnerable. It is a widespread clus-tering rattan in Eastern Sabah, of little commer-cial value. Perhaps vulnerable around MountKinablu, where the lowland forests are much dis-turbed, and where the species is infrequent.

6. KORTHALSIA HISPIDA BECC.

Dusun name(s): ludukon in Serinsim, and linogiin Kiau. In Poring, and apparently also inTakutan, it is called lasas. Upon reviewing avoucher specimen, a group of men in Serinsimcalled this jimpangaan, which refers to thebranching of the stems (said to be not much usedbecause they split unevenly and are fibrous).

Dusun uses and management: In Kiau, the driedand split stems are used to weave the straps of var-ious local carrying baskets (sikutan). In Serinsim,the split, dried and scraped stems are used to tietogether bamboo slats for fish traps, which arecalled bubuh in Dusun or Malay. In Poring, thestems are used for general tying and weaving. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:33) states that the species has no reporteduses, but may have a durable cane that could beused as other Korthalsia species in basket weav-ing. Pearce (1991:146) reports that in Sarawakthe stems are used as ropes for boats and rafts aswell as to tie together logs which are to be float-ed downriver. The split stems are used for bas-ket-making among various ethnic groups.Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering moderately-sized rattan that reaches aheight of up to 30 m in the forest canopy. Thestems without sheaths measure approximately 1.5cm in diameter. The bright green sheaths havesparse black spines and brittle black spicules. Theconspicuous ochrea, similarly armed with blackspicules, diverges from the stem at an acute angle,leaving a large chamber in which ants live. Theleaflets are diamond-shaped, bright green aboveand with a white lower surface. Local in Sabah, inlowland and hill dipterocarp forest up to altidudesof 900 m, often in disturbed forest on steepslopes. Found throughout Borneo, but never com-mon. Also found in Sumatra and MalayPeninsula. It had never been collected previouslyaround Mount Kinabalu before the beginning ofthe PEK. The ethnobotanical collections were 8-25 m vines found on hilltops and hillsides in sec-ondary vegetation.Conservation status: Kiew (1991:120) consid-ers it one of the palms most likely to becomeendangered in the Endau-Rompin State ForestPark of West Malaysia. Dransfield and Johnson(1991:178) and Pearce (1991:162) considers thatthe status is insufficiently known in Sabah andSarawak. Although not common around MountKinabalu, it is not likely a threatened species. Itis clustering and grows well in secondary vegeta-tion from the lowlands up to the foothills of themountain. It is not commercialized and the lowlevel of exploitation for subsistence uses proba-bly has a small impact on the local population ofthis species. It may be partially protected by thelarge number of ants which live in the ochrea,making it more difficult to harvest than otherspecies of similar quality.

7. KORTHALSIA JALA J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): rukatan in Takutan and Poring.Not known in Bundu Tuhan or Kiau, but possiblyfound in Serinsim.Dusun uses and management: In Takutan andPoring, the stems - after being dried in the sun or



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smoked over a fire - were formerly used to makespear handles. After cleaning and polishing, thestems can be used as the framework of furniture.The leaves are used to wrap food, such as cookedrice or cakes. The boiled palm cabbage is usedmedicinally in Poring, to help in child birth. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:22) notes that it produces large rotanmerah - reddish canes typically used in basketmaking - but does not list any specific uses.Botanical description and distribution: Arobust, clustering and branching rattan thatclimbs high in the forest canopy, often reachingheights of 60 m. The stems without sheaths mea-sure approximately 4 cm diameter. The large andconspicuous ochrea is expanded into a net-likefunnel which partially encloses the stem. Thebroad diamond-shaped leaflets are bright greenon the upper surface and chalky white beneath. Itis widespread in Sabah in lowland and hill forestup to about 700 m elevation, particularly in thenorthern and eastern parts of the state. It is localin Brunei (Dransfield 1992:28). Around MountKinabalu, it has been collected previously inlowlands and hill forest at Poring and along thePoring to Ranau road at 600-700 m elevation.The ethnobotanical vouchers, 12 to 14 m long,were collected on hillsides in young secondary toprimary vegetation at Poring and Takutan.Conservation status: Pearce (1991:157) statesthat it is vulnerable in Sarawak - where it has arestricted distribution - and is likely to becomeendangered if current rates of exploitation andhabitat destruction continue. Dransfield andJohnson (1991:178) consider its status insuffi-ciently unknown in Sabah, but note it is wide-spread up to 700 m elevation in the state. AroundKinabalu Park, it does not appear to be vulnera-ble or threatened. It is relatively common aroundthe Poring sub-station and grows well in both pri-mary and disturbed vegetation. Although usedfor a variety of subsistence purposes, it is notcommercialized. Because it is a clustering palm,a moderate amount of canes can be harvestedwithout killing the plant.

8. KORTHALSIA RIGIDA BLUME

Dusun name(s): pangaan in Kiau, Sayap andSerinsim; gampango in Bundu Tuhan. Thesenames apparently refer to the apparent branchingof the stem, due to the diverging ochrea. It iscalled rukatan timbaan in Takutan. In Poring,collections were identified as logong. When thevoucher specimen was shown to some residents,they thought it was a type of lasas, apparentlybecause of the superficial similarity in leavesbetween this species and K. robusta.Dusun uses and management: The split anddried stems are used to weave straps for carryingbaskets (wakid). In Bundu Tuhan and Poring, the

stems, either used whole or split and scrapedclean, are used for tying in general. It is notthought to be as strong a cane as K. furtadoana.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield (184a:17)notes that it is primarily used locally, apparentlyfor tying and basket weaving. The species iscalled rotan dungan in Malay. Other names pos-sibly cognate with Dusun are wi jaunungan inBidayuh and wai gu’un in Melanau.Botanical description and distribution: Amoderate, clustering rattan that branches high inthe canopy, often reaching heights of 50 m. Thestems without sheaths measure some 2 cm diam-eter. The sheaths are dull green and are denselycovered with a persistent grey indumentum andsparse triangular spines. The leaflets are dullgreen on the upper surface and bluish grey under-neath. It is widespread in the lowlands and hilldipterocarp forests of Sabah. It is also found inother parts of Borneo, Palawan, Sumatra, MalayPeninsula and South Thailand. Around MountKinabalu, it is found in lowlands to hill forest,from 700 m to 1,200 m asl. It has previously beencollected in Kiau and around Poring Hot Springs.The ethnobotanical vouchers, said to be up to 30m long, were collected on hillsides in primaryand secondary forest. The ethnobotanical vouch-er was found on hillsides in primary forest.Doinis Soibeh notes that suckers - called tunas inMalay and tolid in Dusun - are produced aftercutting the stems.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:178) and Pearce (1991:162) suggest thatthe status is insufficiently known in Sabah andSarawak, but the species is said to be widespreadin Sabah and other parts of South-East Asia. Itdoes not appear to be threatened around MountKinabalu. It grows well in secondary and prima-ry forests in a variety of ecological zones.Harvest of the species is occasional and for sub-sistence ends only. It is a clustering rattan thatappears to be used infrequently and is harvestedin a way that favours production of stem shoots.

9. KORTHALSIA ROBUSTA BLUME

Dusun name(s): sasas in Bundu Tuhan, Poring,Serinsim and probably other communitiesaround Mount Kinbalu. The name is derivedfrom the sound - ‘sas, sas, sas’ - made by antswhich live inside the ochreas.Dusun uses and management: The split anddried stems are used to weave carrying baskets(barait) and for general tying. In Poring, thestems were said to be used for spear handles. Thepalm cabbage is not considered edible there. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:30) states that this species is a source ofcoarse rotan merah or ‘red rattan’. which iscleaned, dried and split, and then used to weave


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carrying baskets. Pearce (1991:146) cites a reportthat the Penan of Sarawak use the stems fortying.Botanical description and distribution: Arobust clustering rattan that climbs to 30 m ormore. The stem without sheaths grows to a diam-eter of 2.5 cm. The conspicuous ochrea, which ispale brown and covered with many black spines,diverges from the stem at an acute angle, creatingan open space which is usually home to a largenumber of ants. When disturbed, the ants make anoise by tapping their abdomen against the dryochrea. The leaflets are bright green on the uppersurface and chalky white below. The species iswidespread throughout Sarawak. Elsewherewidespread in Borneo; uncommon in Sumatra,also in Borneo (Dransfield 1992:37). AroundMount Kinabalu it is common in disturbed sitesin lowland and hill forest. It has been previouslycollected at Poring Hot Springs at 700 m. Theethnobotanical voucher, about 5 m long, was col-lected in secondary vegetation alongside a waterbuffalo pasture near the village of Poring.Conservation status: Although Dransfield andJohnson (1991:178) and Pearce (1991:162)suggest that its status is insufficiently known inSabah and Sarawak, it can be considered as notthreatened in the Mount Kinabalu area. It is a clus-tering and branching species which grows well indisturbed sites and is widespread in the lowlandsof Sabah. The cane is not commercialized andsubsistence use is occasional. It is protected by thelarge number of ants which have to be removedfrom the stems, making it more difficult to harvestthan other species of similar quality.

XII. Licuala

1. LICUALA BIDENTATA BECC.

Dusun name(s): silad, considered to be a palmain all communities. Silad is confirmed as thename in Serinsim, but residents know that thepeople of Lingkabou (where there is a distinctdialect of Dusun, with estimated 80% mutualintelligibility) call it luntuk.Dusun uses and management: In Serinsim, thefruit is eaten but the leafy shoot is not considerededible. In Poring the leaves are used as thatch.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported.Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering undergrowth small, more or less stemlesspalm. The leaves are fan-shaped with linear,blunt-ended segments. The central and interme-diate segments are 22-27 cm long. These areeither with a single midrib, about 10 mm wideand two terminal lobes, or with two prominentveins, 20 mm wide and with three equal lobes.The lateral segments are slightly shorter, withoblique, irregularly lobed ends. The petiole isslender and armed with small spines along the

margins towards the base. The inflorescencegrows to nearly 1 m in length, and is slender andquite straight. The rachis is strongly flattened,sheathed by one or two bracts near the base, andwith 3-4 partial inflorescences at the top. Thelower branches are spreading, and bear spirallyarranged flowers. The uppermost flowers are sur-rounded by conspicuous, narrow bracteoles. Thecalyx is three-lobed and bell- or cup-shaped, withquite thick walls. The corolla is nearly twice aslong as the calyx, fused at the base, then dividinginto three lanceolate-acuminate segments. Thefruit is bright orange, spherical and about 10 mmdiameter. Found in Sabah and Sarawak. AtMount Kinabalu, apparently restricted to low-lands in Serinsim, on the northeast side of thePark. Ethnobotanical vouchers collected on hill-sides in young secondary vegetation.Conservation status: Insufficiently known, butprobably not threatened because it is a commonspecies in some areas of secondary vegetation.

2. LICUALA PALUDOSA GRIFF.

Dusun name(s): silad morompogun or simplymorompogun in Serinsim.Dusun uses and management: Used as a roofthatch.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported.Botanical description and distribution: Amoderately sized clustering undergrowth fanpalm, growing up to 7 m tall. The trunk is slen-der, unarmed and smooth below, but markedwith ringed leaf scars towards the top. The leafpetiole is armed along the lower margins withsmall black patent to reflexed spines. The leaflamina is made up of 6-12(-15) wedge-shapedsegments. These are divided into 3-4 lobes at theapex. The inflorescence is erect, with green,tubular spathes. Each partial inflorescence bears5-7 second-order branches, and these are curved,nodding and slightly pubescent. The flowers aresolitary to groups of 2-3, sessile and top-shaped.Found in peat swamp forests in Indochina,Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo. AtMount Kinabalu, apparently restricted to lowlandswamp forest in Serinsim, on the northeast sideof the Park.Conservation status: Considered vulnerable inSarawak by Pearce (1991), it may threatened inthe Kinabalu Park region and other parts of itsbroad range by habitat destruction in the low-lands.

3. LICUALA AFF. VALIDA BECC.

Dusun name(s): silad, considered to be a palmain all communities.Dusun uses and management: The leaves arewidely used to make hats, and are doubled overbamboo slats and sewn together with rattan tomake thatch for houses. It is said that the quality



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is better than that of Metroxylon sagu, but siladgrows in the wild and is thus more difficult tocollect. In Bundu Tuhan, the palm cabbage iseaten in soup. In Poring, the leaf is used as a foodwrapper, particularly for a dish made with rice.In Takutan, the stems are used as instruments tohit gongs used in village festivities such as mar-riages. Stems from this species and Salacca areused similarly in other communities, includingBundu Tuhan. In Poring, the young leaves areused as cigarette papers, if nipah leaves areunavailable. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Pearce (1991:148)states that the young leaves are used for hats andmats, and that older leaves are used for roofingand the walls of shelters. The Penan consider thatthe palm cabbage is edible (Kedit 1982). TheKelabit of Sarawak call a related species (L. peti-olulata) ilad tu’ud, possibly cognate with theDusun name.Botanical description and distribution: Alarge and robust species. The leaves are fan-shaped, and are covered in minute brown dots ontheir lower surface. The segments are wedge-shaped, the intermediate ones up to 1 m long,with 3-4 main veins. The ends of the segmentsare irregularly lobed. The outermost segmentsare half the length, with two main veins andlonger lobes. The upper petiole is flat, becomingconvex towards the base, and bears minute teethalong its margins. The inflorescence is robust.The rachis is covered with a brown indumentum,and bears tubular bracts which become inflatedwith a slight keel. The inflorescence branches arespreading. The fruit is relatively large, up to 2 cmlong, slightly longer than it is broad and veryfleshy. Found in mixed dipterocarp forestthroughout Borneo, including Kalimantan. AtKinabalu Park, found in lowlands and hill forest.The ethnobotanical vouchers, about 1.5-2 m tall,were collected on hilltops and hillsides in prima-ry forest. The specimen from Bundu Tuhan wascollected in Kampung Himbaan (part of BunduTuhan), where the palm is common. Thereappear to be two or more forms of this species;definitive identification and description of thisand other Licuala species awaits a revision of thegenus.Conservation status: Considered vulnerable byPearce (1991:163) because it has not been recent-ly collected in Sarawak, it is relatively commonand probably not threatened in Kinabalu Parkregion and other parts of Borneo.

XIII. Metroxylon1. METROXYLON SAGU ROTTB.

Dusun name(s): rumbioh in Bundu Tuhan,Kiau, Poring and Serinsim and rumbiyoh inTakutan.

Dusun uses and management: Sago can be har-vested from the inner stem by felling the palm,breaking open the trunk and scraping out thestarchy sago, which is then washed in water. Thewater is gathered in a bucket and after a day thesago settles to the bottom. The sago is thenpressed in gauze or mesh to remove excesswater. The leaves are sewn together to makethatch for traditional houses, a use which is stillcurrent. The roots, boiled and used in baths ortaken as tea, are used to treat coughs, particular-ly in children. The palm is said to grow in wetareas. In previous times, some people fromBundu Tuhan went to lowland areas in Baayat(where they had land and planted padi) to harvestMetroxylon sagu for sago and leaves.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Pearce (1991:154)reports that the sago palm is widely planted inSarawak. Apart from the predominant role as asource of sago, the palm has many other uses.The leaves are used to make thatch, hats, basketsand blow-pipe darts. The sticky sap is chewed asgum, the ripe fruits and palm cabbage are eaten.Edible sago grubs are harvested from the trunksof palms about to flower. Madulid (1991:251)notes that one of the local names for the palm inthe Philippines is lumbiya, probably cognate withthe Dusun term.Botanical description and distribution: Amedium sized palm, up to 20 m high, with clus-tering stems. The stems are ringed with leaf scars,and towards the top covered with clasping leafbases. The sheaths and petioles are sometimesarmed with spines. The leaves are as long as 7 m,with narrow, closely arranged leaflets. These areshiny green, slightly paler below and often bearspines along their margins and central vein. Thelarge inflorescences bear spirally arranged red-dish-brown flowers. The fruit is more or lessrounded and covered with yellow-brown scales.Cultivated throughout South-East Asia and thePacific. At Mount Kinabalu, sago palm is culti-vated in communities in the lowlands. Conservation status: Not threatened. Relativelycommon around Mount Kinabalu, it is widelycultivated throughout its range, and harvestingintensity has decreased over time in response tolowered demand.

XIV. Nenga

1. NENGA PUMILA (MART.) H. WENDL.VAR. PACHYSTACHYA (BLUME)

FERNANDO

Dusun name(s): lompiwou or bumburing inPoring, apparently unnamed in MelangkapTomis.Dusun uses and management: The leaves canbe used for thatch. The hard base of the leaves


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can be used to weave baskets and other crafts.The fruit can be eaten raw, as a type of sirih.Apparently the stem was formerly used to makespear handles and hammers.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Called pinang inMalay; no information on uses and managementis reported.Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering undergrowth palm, with stems growing to6 m tall and about 6 cm diameter. The stems aresmooth, green to brown, often with stilt rootsaround the base. The crownshaft is a pale green-ish brown. The crown bears up to 7 leaves, eachwith up to 60 leaflets. The leaflets are brightgreen with papery scales on the lower surface ofthe rachis. The pendulous inflorescence bearsspirally arranged flowers. The fruit ripen to yel-low and then brick red. Ranges from southernThailand to the Malay Peninsula, Singapore,Sumatra and Borneo. Found in dense humiddipterocarp forest on hillslopes or river valleys,and in heath forest on sandstone or granitic sand.Also found on the landward edge of mangroveswamps. Grows from sea level to 1,100 m asl. AtMount Kinabalu, found in lowlands - and infre-quently in hill forest - often in swampy habitats.Conservation status: Insufficiently known butprobably not threatened as it is a clustering palm,distributed across a broad geographical range.

XV. Oncosperma

1. ONCOSPERMA HORRIDUM SCHEFF.

Dusun name(s): tolibung in Takutan andSerinsim. This name was recognized in BunduTuhan and Kiau, but the palm does not growhere. In Serinsim, it is said to be the smaller ver-sion of a palm called toyon. Known as molugusin Poring, a name apparently not recognized byresidents of Serinsim.Dusun uses and management: In Poring thepalm cabbage is eaten, cooked with meat. Thefruits are said to be inedible. The leaves arewoven to make atap, and the outer portion of thetrunk is used in house construction and also forbridges. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Pearce (1991:150)states that this species produces one of the mostesteemed palm cabbages in Sarawak, and that itcan be eaten raw or cooked. The stems are quar-tered and the pith removed to make boards forconstruction. The stem may be hollowed out tomake durable culverts to drain fishponds. Thereis no evidence of cultivation of the species inSarawak. A number of names used in Sarawak(Pearce 1991:163) may be cognate with theDusun name: debung (Bidayuh), nibong(Kenyah), nibong or nyivung (Penan).Botanical description and distribution: A mas-

sive, clustering palm, growing to a height of over20 m. The trunk and crownshaft are densely cov-ered in spines, as are the leaf and inflorescencestalks. The trunk is ringed with leaf scars. Theleaves measure up to 4 m in length and bearabout 80 leaflets on each side of the main axis.These are held quite stiffly. The fruits are roundand black when ripe. It is found throughoutBorneo, and also occurs in the Malay Peninsula,Sumatra and more rarely in Sulawesi. At MountKinabalu, found in lowlands and hill forest up to900 m asl.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) classify this species as not threatenedin Sabah. Individuals are protected withinKinabalu Park at Poring Hot Springs and otherlocations. Intensive harvesting of the palm cab-bage affects some populations in Sarawak(Dransfield 1984b), especially near urban areaswhere the vegetable is marketed.

XVI. Pinanga

1. PINANGA ANGUSTISECTA BECC.

Dusun name(s): Not known, but probably con-sidered a kind of bumburing.Dusun uses and management: None reported.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported.Botanical description and distribution: Asmall ‘stemless’ undergrowth palm. The leavesare narrow, about 1.5 m long and held erect. Theleaf sheath is leathery and sparsely covered inminute scales. The petiole is similarly covered,but becomes glabrous towards the top. It is moreor less round in cross-section, while the rachis isstrongly triangular. There are about 28 narrow,acuminate leaflets arranged alternately on eachside of the rachis. These have a pale lower sur-face and a single mid-rib, although this divides into 2-5 at the tip. The 2 terminal pairs of leafletsare wider than the others, with 2-5 primary veinsand ending in 2-5 triangular teeth. The inflores-cence is erect, with a long peduncle, and 6-8spreading, alternate branches. The flowers areborne close together, arranged spirally or irregu-larly. The fruit is ellipsoid, measuring 15-17 mmlong when mature. At Mount Kinabalu, found inlowlands and hill forest at 1,100 m asl.Conservation status: Pearce (1991:63) andDransfield and Johnson (1991:178) concur thatthe conservation status is unknown. Although thepalm has no apparent commercial value, it isvery localized and could be vulnerable in someareas because of habitat destruction.

2. PINANGA ARISTATA (BURRET) J.DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): Not known, but probably con-sidered a kind of bumburing.Dusun uses and management: None reported.



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Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported; theBahasa Malaysia name pinang mureng is report-ed in Sarawak.Botanical description and distribution: This isa slender, clustering undergrowth palm, the stemmeasuring up to 3 cm in diameter. The leavesgrow up to 40 cm long. The leaf rachis isglabrous below, and with minute dark brownscales on the upper surface. The leaflets are lin-ear-lanceolate in shape, reaching up to 25 cmlong and 5.5 cm wide, and bear 4 prominentveins. At their tips they divide unequally into 2.The leaflets are slightly spreading, and quiterigid. The upper surface is dark green, mottledwith paler green and glabrous, with a paler lowersurface bearing small whitish scales. The apicalpair of leaflets are broader, with 7-8 main veins.The flowers are borne spirally on short stalks andthe perianth is somewhat spreading. The calyx isunited, with narrowly linear lobes, and the petalsare ovate-lanceolate. The fruit is orange or cus-tard-yellow, ovoid, about 6 x 3 mm, and borne onpale hairy rachillae. Found in Brunei, Sabah,Sarawak and Kalimantan. At Mount Kinabalu, itgrows in hill forest and lower montane forestfrom 900-1,500 m asl.Conservation status: Pearce (1991:63) andDransfield and Johnson (1991:178) classify theconservation status as unknown. Although ratherwidespread, the palm is very localized and isknown from a single collection around MountKinabalu.

3. PINANGA BREVIPES BECC.

Dusun name(s): No name reported.Dusun uses and management: None recorded.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported.Botanical description and distribution: Thissquat undergrowth palm has a short, solitarystem, reaching only 10 cm in height and 20-25mm diameter. It is covered with numerous leaf-scars, and with the persistent leaf sheaths whenyoung. The leaf sheath is thickly ribbed towardsthe apex, with a sparse covering of minute scales.The leaves are held erect, measuring up to 2.25m. The petiole, over 1 m long, is glabrous androunded in cross-section. The leaflets are widelyspaced, and arranged alternately or nearly oppo-site. The 2 terminal segments are partially joined,35-45 cm long, with 4-7 primary nerves, andending in 4-6 triangular bifid lobes. The othersegments are narrow, almost scythe shaped, andtaper to a point. They measure some 45-50 cmlong and 2-3 cm wide, and have 2-3 primaryveins. The inflorescence is erect, with a veryshort peduncle of 2-4 cm, and 3 branches. Theflowers are densely arranged spirally or in tworows. The male flowers are borne on shortpedicels. The fruit is oblong-obovoid, and up to17 mm long when ripe. Found in hill forests at

1200 m asl on Mount Kinabalu. Very localized inSabah and Sarawak.Conservation status: Pearce (1991:63) andDransfield and Johnson (1991:178) consider theconservation status as unknown. It is among thePinanga palms that have no apparent commer-cial value, but that could be vulnerable in someareas because of habitat destruction.

4. PINANGA CAPITATA BECC.

Dusun name(s): bumburing in all communities. Avariety called bumburing tondudug in BunduTuhan is used as a substitute for betel nut.Residents of Serinsim say they have seen this palmin the forest and that it looks like a type of bum-buring, but is not prototypical of the folk genus.Dusun uses and management: The leaves areoccasionally used as roofing material for houses,especially sinurambi (Dusun). These are the hutsbuilt in padi, used for approximately 3 months,and then reconstructed the following year. Manyleaves are placed on the roof, 2 cm poring polesare placed over the top and are lashed down withsmall (½ cm) rattan canes. They can also be usedto roof the sulap, a more permanent field house.This use appears to be quite rare, for example, nosinurambi or sulap roofed with bumburingleaves exist in Bundu Tuhan. The quality is con-sidered inferior to rumbiah (Metroxylon sagu)and kobuh (Marantaceae) which are said to lastsome 4-8 years. The bumburing leaf is verysmall, so many must be collected to roof a smallhouse, and it is said to last for only 3 years. InBundu Tuhan, the palm cabbage is eaten in soup.The fruits of a specific variety are used as a sub-stitute for betel nut. It is not cultivated or appar-ently encouraged in any way.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Pearce (1991:163)records the names berang (Kelabit) and pinang(Iban) that may be cognate with the Dusun namefor this palm.Botanical description and distribution: A vari-able, slender undergrowth palm growing up to 5m tall. The stems are solitary or clustered, andcovered with brown or black scales. The crown-shaft is only slightly swollen. The leaves mea-sure between 1 and 3 m long, and bear about 16pairs of dull green leaflets. These are broad ornarrow, and the terminal pair may or may not bejoined along part of their length. The inflores-cences are produced below the crownshaft, andhave many branches. The ripe fruits vary fromred to dark purple. Endemic to Borneo, where itgrows in the undergrowth of primary forests orwell-developed secondary forests. A relativelycommon species on Mount Kinabalu, found inhill, lower montane and upper montane forestfrom 800-3,000 m asl.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) classify this species as not threatenedin Sabah as it is abundant on Mount Kinabalu.


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5. PINANGA KEAHII FURTADO

Dusun name(s): bumburing kombirayat (meaningunknown) in Bundu Tuhan; bumburing in Poring.Dusun uses and management: The fruits aresaid to be used as a substitute for betel nut inBundu Tuhan and Poring. The palm cabbage iseaten in soup. In Poring, it can also be used tomake spear handles, walking sticks and hammers.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der, clustering palm which often forms thickets.The stems are usually less than 3 m in height, andup to 2 cm in diameter. The crownshaft is palegreen, as are the leaves. The leaves measure up to1.5 m, with about 12 pairs of broad or narrowleaflets. The inflorescences are unbranched. Theyoung fruit is green and spindle-shaped, andbecomes oblong, purplish and fleshy on matur-ing. Endemic to Borneo. On Mount Kinabalu,found in hill and lower montane forest from1,300-1,500 m asl. Ethnobotanical voucherfound on a hilltop in primary forest.Conservation status: Pearce (1991:163) classi-fies it as rare, and Dransfield and Johnson(1991:178) note that it is localized in Sabah.Probably not threatened at Mount Kinabalu, asthe level of exploitation is low and it is a cluster-ing palm collected at various locations.

6. PINANGA LEPIDOTA RENDLE

Dusun name(s): bumburing kuning, yellowbumburing, in Kiau and bumburing in other com-munities. It is bumburing lobu in Poring, fromthe voucher specimen. In Serinsim, this is calledlondudug, apparently referring to its small size.Dusun uses and management: No use reported.In Serinsim, residents specifically say that theseeds are not eaten as a substitute for areaca nut.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: none reportedBotanical description and distribution: A veryslender palm that reaches up to 1 m high in for-est undergrowth. The stems are solitary or clus-tering. The stem, crownshaft and rachis are allcovered in brown scales with silvery hairs. Theleaves grow up to 1m long, and are entire or bearleaflets of variable width. The inflorescence isunbranched and pendulous. The fruits are elon-gate, and purple when ripe. Endemic to Borneo,where it is known from Brunei and northeasternSarawak as well as Sabah. At Mount Kinabalu,occasional in lowland and hill forest on ultramaf-ic soils from 600 to 1,000 m asl.Conservation status: Two collections have beenmade in Hempuen Hill, an area that has beenrecently burned over, but it is found elsewhere onMount Kinabalu. Pearce (1991:163) classifies itas indeterminate in Sarawak, and Dransfield andJohnson (1991:178) note that it is localized inSabah.

7. PINANGA PILOSA (BURR.) J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): bumburing tokoro, ‘small bum-buring’.Dusun uses and management: The fruits aresaid to be used as a substitute for betel nut. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: none reported.Botanical description and distribution: A slen-der, clustering palm, which forms clumps in theforest undergrowth. The stems are usually lessthan 50 cm tall. The leaves are simple or dividedinto a few broad leaflets. The upper surface isdull green with a paler underside. The inflores-cence is unbranched or branched only once, bear-ing spirally-arranged flowers. The male flowersare cream-coloured and hairy. The ripe fruit isspindle-shaped and yellow or orange. Endemic toBorneo, where it is found in lower montane for-est. On Mount Kinabalu, common in hill andlower montane forest from 1,200-2,100 m asl. Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) classify this species as not threatenedin Sabah as it is abundant on Mount Kinabalu.

8. PINANGA SALICIFOLIA BLUME

Dusun name(s): None reported, but likelyreferred to as bumburing if given a name.Dusun uses and management: None reported.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Pearce (1991:164)notes that the Iban call this species pinangmorang daun kecil (small leaved pinangmorang); the Malay name is pinang muring.Botanical description and distribution:Slender clustering palm to 3 m tall, juvenilefoliage usually markedly different from the adult.Found in primary hill forest on ultramafic soils,often on ridgetops and kerangas.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:177) note that the species has a localizeddistribution but that its status is unknown; Pearce(1991:164) considers it indeterminate.

9. PINANGA TENELLA VAR. TENELLA (H.WENDL.) SCHEFF.

Dusun name(s): None recorded.Dusun uses and management: None recorded.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None recorded; P.tenella var. tenuissima is among the palms thatthe Iban call pinang mureng (Pearce 1991:164).Botanical description and distribution: Thispalm has a very slender stem, growing to 1 m.The tough-textured leaves, which are up to 60 cmlong, bear approximately 11 narrow, linearleaflets on each side of the rachis. These are quitetough, and have a single prominent vein. Theleaflets are folded either singly or in two, the for-mer type being found in Sabah, and the latteroccurring elsewhere in Borneo. The inflores-cence is very short, about 10 cm long, with



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between one and four branches. The flowers arearranged in two opposite rows. The fruits areovate-ellipsoid, and up to 7-8 mm long. Thisspecies is rheophytic, confined to rocks on riverbanks, and occurs throughout Borneo. On MountKinabalu known only from the type specimencollected in 1856 (the first palm collected on themountain) and a second collection by Burbridge.Conservation status: Pearce (1991:164) consid-ers P. tenella as rare in Sarawak; Dransfield andJohnson (1991:178) classify the status asunknown in Sabah, but note that it is very local-ized. At Mount Kinabalu it is probably extinct orvery endangered, as it has not been collectedsince the 19th century and the vegetation of typelocality has been greatly modified.

10. PINANGA VARIEGATA BECC. VAR. HAL-LIERIANA BECC. EX MARTELLI

Dusun name(s): tondudug in Takutan andPoring and probably bumburing in other commu-nities. Dusun uses and management: The stems, whichare said to be easy to sharpen, were formerly usedto make spears for inter-village warfare.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: none reportedBotanical description and distribution: A slen-der palm, reaching 2 m in height. The stems maybe solitary or clustered, and are pale grey orbrown. The crown bears about 6 leaves, whichare divided into a few broad leaflets. The inflo-rescences are simple or divided once. The maleflowers are cream in colour and fruity smelling.The fruit is red when ripe. At Mount Kinabalu,found along streams in lowlands and hill forest. Conservation status: Pearce (1991:164) consid-ers the species is vulnerable in Sarawak if currentrates of habitat destruction continue; Dransfieldand Johnson (1991:178) classify the status asunknown in Sabah, but note that it is localized.Apparently rare at Mount Kinabalu, as it hasbeen collected in only two - but rather distant -localities.

XVII. Plectocomia

1. PLECTOCOMIA ELONGATA MART. EXBLUME VAR. ELONGATA

Dusun name(s): none recorded, but see notesunder the following species. Dusun uses and management: none recordedClassification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield (1984a)notes that the canes, though often very large,have a soft pith which makes their use in bentcane articles impossible. They can be used inmaking some accessories such as coat hangers.Madulid (1991:252) notes that the stems ofanother variety (P. elongata var. philippinensis

Mart. ex Bl. Madulid) are considered soft andeasily broken in comparison to Calamus spp.They are harvested locally in Palawan andAgusan Mindanao for clothes hangers, baskethandles and other minor uses. The inflorescence,which produces pendulous branches with over-lapping boat-shaped bracts, is used ornamentally.Pearce (1991) lists no uses for Plectocomia inSarawak. Whitmore (1973) notes thatPlectocomia species are eaten by elephants.Botanical description and distribution: Arobust solitary rattan that climbs high in the for-est canopy, often reaching 50 m. The stem with-out sheaths ranges from 6-10 cm in diameter.The sheaths, which lack a knee, are dull greenand are armed with horizontal or oblique combsof golden brown or deep-reddish spines to 4 cm.The leaf is very large, up to 7 m in length with a3 m cirrus. The leaflets are bluish-green, with apale lower surface. In Sabah it is only found inupper montane forest from 1,200-1,500 m eleva-tion and perhaps above. It is very rare in Sarawakbut abundant in Malay Peninsula, Sumatra andJava. There is also a variety on the Philippineisland of Palawan. At Mount Kinabalu, it isfound in disturbed sites in lowlands to lowermontane forest, from 1,200-1,700 m asl.Conservation status: Although very rare,Pearce (1991:164) states that it is not threatenedin Sarawak. Dransfield and Johnson (1991:178)consider that the status is insufficiently known inSabah, but note that the species is found only atMount Kinabalu. Considering its limited distrib-ution and the fact that there are few recent col-lections, it appears to be a rare rattan in theregion. It is apparently not used by local peopleand probably most of its range is protected with-in Kinabalu Park, so it is not particularly vulner-able at this time.

2. PLECTOCOMIA MULLERI BLUME

Dusun name(s): mangkawaian in Kiau; soroh inTakutan and in Poring, where it is also known asbondig. Said to be called mangkaian in BunduTuhan, where it is found only in one place in thevillage about four hours from the town centre atapproximately 1,000-1,200 m elevation. Thiscould correspond to either P. mulleri or theclosely related P. elongata. In Poring, it is saidthat soroh (P. mulleri) is a low elevation speciesthat grows in disturbed areas near Poring, where-as mangkawaian (possibly P. elongata) is a high-er elevation species found in primary forest. Dusun uses and management: In Poring, theunsplit stems are cut into suitably-sized piecesfor use as table legs and in the manufacture ofother furniture. The leaves are used to weave hatsand thatch. The palm cabbage can be eaten and afermented drink (bahar in Dusun) is made fromthe sap that is tapped from the leafy shoot. Nouses reported in Kiau or Bundu Tuhan, though


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there is speculation that the stem could have beenused formerly as a walking stick, but the labourinvolved would appear to make this a very occa-sional use. In Poring, a medicine made from boil-ing the shoots is said to prevent pregnancy. It isused both by women and men. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield (1984a)notes that the canes, though often very large,have a soft pith which makes their use in bentcane articles impossible. They can be used inmaking some accessories such as coat hangers.Pearce (1991) lists no uses in Sarawak for thetwo species of Plectocomia.Botanical description and distribution: Amoderate to robust rattan, that may be either soli-tary or clustering. It climbs high in the forestcanopy, with stems reaching some 30 m. Thestem without sheaths measure from 2-10 cm indiameter. The sheaths, which lack a knee, arebright green and are armed with full or partialwhorls of closely-placed, brown spines that areup to 2 cm long. The leaves are variable, with upto 70 leaflets arranged in fanned groups of 2-5. Itis widespread throughout Sabah from the low-lands up to 1,400 m elevation, particularly in dis-turbed vegetation on poor soils; at MountKinabalu growing on poor sandy soils in low-lands and hill forest. Occasionally found in pri-mary dipterocarp forest, but only on steepimpoverished ridgetops or old landslips. It is alsofound in other parts of Borneo and the southeast-ern part of the Malay Peninsula. Conservation status: Kiew (1991:120) consid-ers it one of the palms most likely to becomeendangered in the Endau-Rompin State ForestPark of West Malaysia. Pearce (1991:164) statesthat the species is not threatened in Sarawak.Dransfield and Johnson (1991:178) consider thatthe status is insufficiently known in Sabah, butnote that the species is widespread. AroundMount Kinabalu, it is not threatened. It growswell in secondary vegetation across a broadrange of elevations. The subsistence use is minorand occasional. Harvesting the cane or leafyshoot sap is rendered difficult by the often mas-sive stem size and length of the rattan.

XVIII. Plectocomiopsis

1. PLECTOCOMIOPSIS GEMINIFLORA(GRIFF.) BECC.

Dusun name(s): tomboruwah in Poring. Thename tomboruwah also exists in Serinsim, butthe species could not be verified.Dusun uses and management: The dried, wholestems are sold in local markets, and are used fortable legs and other furniture. The split stems areused to make handicrafts. The palm cabbage,though bitter, is eaten raw, or is cooked and

eaten, often accompanied by meat. Roasted in thefire, it is reputed to be effective against nauseaand high blood pressure. The leaves can be usedas thatch for temporary houses.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:40) notes that the cabbage is highlyesteemed but very bitter and that the cane is usedin Sabah only for rough basketware or cordage.Pearce (1991:151) states that the cabbage is apopular local vegetable sold in great quantities atthe Kuching Sunday market, in bundles of 3-4. Itmay be roasted or boiled. The palm cabbage of arelated species (P. mira) is said to be very poiso-nous and to have caused fatalities among the Ibanpeople of Sarawak.Botanical description and distribution: Amoderate to robust, clustering rattan with stemsof up to 30 m that form rather dense thickets. Thestems without sheaths measure approximately 3cm diameter. The sheaths are dull green with per-sistent grey fuzz, scattered reddish-brown scalesand abundant scattered golden-yellow spines upto 8 mm long. The sheaths lack a well-definedknee and ochrea. The leaflets are bright shinygreen on both sides, and have golden-yellowbristles on the mid-vein of the upper surface. It isabundant in mixed dipterocarp forest of theCrocker Range at elevations up to 1,000 m andlocally abundant elsewhere in Sabah, except forthe eastern lowlands. Considered to be commonthroughout Borneo, Sumatra, southern Thailandand Malay Peninsula, typically in disturbed sitesof hill dipterocarp forest. At Kinabalu Park, it isfound in lowlands and hill forest around 600 masl. The ethnobotanical vouchers, measuringsome 10 m, were collected on a hillside in pri-mary hill forest.Conservation status: Pearce (1991:164) statesthat it is vulnerable in Sarawak and is likely tobecome endangered if current rates of exploita-tion (for its cabbage) and habitat destruction con-tinue. Dransfield and Johnson (1991:178) con-sider its status insufficiently known in Sabah, butnote it is relatively abundant in the CrockerRange. Around Kinabalu Park, it may be vulner-able because of its limited distribution and appar-ent popularity as a source of palm cabbage.Because it is a clustering palm and often formsthickets, a moderate amount of the palm cabbagecan be harvested without killing the plant. Itcould potentially be used for enrichment plantingin secondary forest, particularly if a local marketfor the palm cabbage exists or were to develop.

2. PLECTOCOMIOPSIS MIRA J. DRANSF.

Dusun name(s): not knownDusun uses and management: none recordedClassification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: Dransfield(1984a:43) reports no known uses. Pearce(1991:151) reports that the palm cabbage is said



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to be very poisonous and to have caused fatalitiesamong the Iban people of Sarawak.Botanical description and distribution: Amoderately robust clustering rattan which climbsto some 40 m in the forest canopy. The stemswithout sheaths, measure 1.5-2 cm in diameter,and are slightly triangular in cross section. Thesheaths are bright green with a thin covering ofsilvery grey fuzz and sometimes with a fewspines. The sheath lacks a knee but has a well-defined orange-yellow ochrea to 3 cm. Theleaflets are bright green and broad. It is a localrattan found in scattered localities around thestate, typically growing in lowland and hill dipte-rocarp forest up to 900 m elevation. It is scatteredthroughout Borneo, Sumatra and MalayPeninsula. At Kinabalu Park, it has been collect-ed only twice on the southeast side of the Parkaround 700 m asl.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:178) and Pearce (1991:162) consider thatthe status is insufficiently known in Sabah andSarawak, but it apparently has a scattered distri-bution in both states. Around Kinabalu Park, it isprobably vulnerable because of widespread habi-tat destruction outside the Park boundaries. BukitHempuen, the type locality, was degazetted fromthe Park in the 1980s and then burned over sev-eral years later. Only one other population hasbeen detected in ethnobotanical or general col-lecting since that time.

XIX. Salacca

1. SALACCA CLEMENSIANA BECC.

Dusun name(s): Although called lambat bysome people in Bundu Tuhan, others say that it isa type of torintid. Those who call it lambat con-sider it a tuai (though a short, non-climbing one)while those who refer to it as torintid consider ita palma. Alim Biun, Sabah Parks naturalist fromBundu Tuhan, considers that highland species ofSalacca (possibly S. lophospatha, S. clemensianaand perhaps S. dolicholepis) with edible fruits(acid and astringent, but apparently turning sweetupon maturing) are called torintid. Lowlandspecies, probably S. affinis or S. ramosiana, arecalled bogung. S. zalacca is referred to by theMalay name salak; it is locally cultivated for itsedible fruit, which is sometimes pickled.Dusun uses and management: The leafy shootis considered edible and the leaves are used asthatch for temporary shelters. Only a few peoplesay that it has edible fruits.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported.Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering, spiny palm which is usually stemless butoccasionally the stem reaches 1 m. The leafsheath and petiole are both armed with long,

black spines. The leaves measure up to 5 m long.The leaflets are narrow, except for the terminalpair, which are broad and compound and arearranged in groups of 3 or 4. The leaflets areshiny green above with a dull whitish lower sur-face, and bear small spines along their margins.The fruit, borne along the leaf sheaths, is roundand covered with scales with upturned tips. Thespecies is found in valley bottoms of hill forest,from 800-1,000 m asl, and rarely in the lowlands.The ethnobotanical vouchers were collected on ahillside in primary forest of Kambung Himbaan,Bundu Tuhan.Conservation status: Dransfield and Johnson(1991:175) note this species is among the mostthreatened palms in Sabah, classified as endan-gered. Madulid (1991:212) notes that the speciesis found in Davao and Zamboanga, where its sta-tus in indeterminate because the small popula-tions of the palm are threatened with habitatdestruction. Around Mount Kinabalu, it is knownfrom a single specimen, collected by DoinisSoibeh, one of the PEK collectors.

2. SALACCA DOLICHOLEPIS BURRET

Dusun name(s): torintid in Bundu Tuhan andKiau; bogung in Poring, Serinsim and Takutan.All communities consider it to be a type ofpalma. The name torintid also exists in Serinsim,but refers to a different plant from bogung. Pukais an alternative name used by some elderly peo-ple in Takutan.Dusun uses and management: The ripe fruitsare eaten in all communities. The fruits arepeeled and the sweet fleshy layer covering theseed is chewed off. They can also be used to pre-pare a fruit drink, adding sugar. The palm cab-bage can be eaten cooked in soup. The collectionfrom Serinsim was made from a home garden,apparently cultivated or protected.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reported.Botanical description and distribution: A clus-tering palm, with a short, prostrate stem, oftenwith stilt roots. The leaves measure up to 5 mlong, and the sheaths and petiole are denselyarmed with spines. There are up to 45 pairs ofleaflets, borne in fanned groups of three to five,and the terminal pair are compound. The leavesare green above, and dull grey beneath. The ripefruits are black. Ethnobotanical vouchers, about4 m in height, were collected in diverse zones:hillsides, valley bottoms or riversides in cultivat-ed areas, secondary or primary forest. An endem-ic species of Mount Kinabalu which is foundfrom 900-1,700 m asl in hill and lower montaneforest.Conservation status: Considered by Dransfieldand Johnson (1991:179) as endangered, amongthe most threatened palms in Sabah.


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3. SALACCA LOPHOSPATHA J.DRANSF. &MOGEA BECC.

Dusun name(s): Not known, but probably clas-sified with other Salacca species as torintid inBundu Tuhan and Kiau. Dusun uses and management: Not known.Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: n/aBotanical description and distribution: A clus-tering, very spiny palm with no apparent stem.Found at 900 m asl in hill forest. An endemic ofMount Kinabalu.Conservation status: Considered by Dransfieldand Johnson (1991:175) as endangered or possi-bly extinct, certainly the most threatened palm inSabah. It is known from a single specimen col-lected at Dallas by the Clemens in the early1930s and described in 1942.

4. SALACCA AFF. VERMICULARIS BECC.

Dusun name(s): bogung in Takutan. Dusun uses and management: The ripe fruitsare peeled and the sweet fleshy layer coveringthe seed is eaten raw. Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: None reportedBotanical description and distribution: Amassive, stemless and clustering palm. The leafsheath is armed with dark brown spines,arranged in whorls below, and in pairs or scat-tered higher up. The leaves are up to 7 m long,also armed with spines along the petiole. Theleaflets are dark green above and grey beneath,and are borne in groups of three to five on theleaf axis. The inflorescence is massive. Themale flowers are red and musty-smelling. Thefruits are black, and are borne at ground level.Endemic to Borneo. Ethnobotanical vouchercollected in valley bottom in lowland primaryforest.Conservation status: Pearce (1991:164) consid-ers that the status of S. vermicularis is insuffi-ciently known in Sarawak. Apparently quitescarce around Mount Kinabalu and possiblythreatened.

In addition to the palms growing at MountKinabalu, other species are found in local mar-kets, including the following:

XX. Nypa

1. NYPA FRUTICANS WURMB.

Dusun name(s): nipah, the Malay name for thepalm is used in Dusun as well.Dusun uses and management: The youngleaves are used as cigarette papers in Poring andother communities. Although the palm is notfound around Poring, the leaves can be obtainedfrom Ranau market and elsewhere around MountKinabalu. Corn husks, which are readily avail-able, are used where nipah leaves are not avail-able (for example in Takutan). Classification, uses and management else-where in South-East Asia: The nipah palm hasmany ethnobotanical uses. Pearce (1991:147)notes that the leaflets are used to make thatch,hats, mats, bags and baskets; the midribs are usedto manufacture brooms and string. The youngunexpanded leaflets are used to make cigarettepapers and to wrap cooked rice. Salt is obtainedfrom the petioles and stem of the palm, whichalso yields sap that can be used as a beverage orto produce sugar, alcohol and vinegar. The meatof the young nuts is edibleBotanical description and distribution: Thispalm forms extensive stands due to its creepinghabit. The prostrate stems are usually submergedin mud. They branch dichotomously, each termi-nal shoot producing a cluster of leaves. Theleaves reach up to 7 m tall, are held erect andbear closely arranged lanceolate leaflets. Theinflorescence produces a terminal spike of yel-low, female flowers and lateral branches ofcream, male flowers. The fruits are brown andtightly clustered, forming a large fruiting head,which floats on the water surface. The nipahpalm is an important component of the mangroveforests of Southeast Asia and the West Pacific. Itgrows along river banks and in shallow lagoonsin brackish waters, often forming almost purestands.Conservation status: Pearce (1991:163) consid-ers that the nipah palm is not threatened inSarawak, and Dransfield and Johnson (1991:178) classify it in the same way for Sabah. It hasapparently been planted in the past and is stillabundant, although alternative land use (con-struction and plantations) is affecting some pop-ulations.



69


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The data presented in this working paper providea strong argument for local participation in bio-diversity inventories. As the diligent work of thePEK collectors shows, community-based inven-tories: 1) enhance regional floras by providing more

complete assessments of plant species in arange of habitats;

2) lay the foundation for detailed ethnobotan-ical research based on broad surveys ofplant names and uses; and

3) enrich studies on the ecology and evolutionof the flora through systematic documenta-tion of geographical distribution of taxa.When the People and Plants Initiative started

in 1992, a focus on local plant collecting toenhance biological inventories was not onthe cutting edge of ethnobotany and biodi-versity studies. Over the past eight years, theglobal and local context has been trans-formed.

The call for a global biodiversity inventoryIn 1992, the Convention on Biological Diversity(CBD) - echoing many other international decla-rations - called for a range of challengingapproaches to conserve biodiversity, promote itssustainable use and ensure the equitable sharingof benefits from its commercial exploitation. Oneof the specific activities to have emerged fromthe Convention is the Global TaxonomyInitiative (GTI), which was established by theConference of the Parties to address the lack oftaxonomic information and expertise available inmany parts of the world, thus improving deci-sion-making in conservation, sustainable use andequitable sharing of the benefits derived fromgenetic resources. The GTI is specifically intend-ed to support implementation of the work pro-grammes of the Convention on thematic andcross-cutting issues.

A similar call has come from a non-profitfoundation called All Species (www.all-species.org), whose goal is to record and sampleevery form of life during our generation. Thisinitiative calls for funding and training of a net-work of local collectors and naturalists. Theinventory would be matched with an effort toemploy advances in information technology to

manage the resulting biological data. In thewords of the foundation, the justification for thismultibillion dollar programme is that it will:“1) give us, for the first time, a complete list of

who is here,” the roster of our fellow inhab-itants;

2) provide a reliable baseline for countingpopulations and determining endangeredspecies;

3) form the foundation for developing a com-plete genome of all life, and a new under-standing of nature;

4) uncover multitudes of new species, manyof which will have immediate cultural andeconomic impacts;

5) train many people as naturalists and scien-

tists, who can leverage these skills furtherin their own lives and that of society; and

6) distribute wealth from the developed worldto far corners of the Earth by employingindigenous and native observers and col-lectors.”Another major step for biodiversity invento-

ry is the Global Biodiversity Information Facility(GBIF) established by the Organisation forEconomic Cooperation and Development(OECD) Megascience Forum Working Group onBiological Informatics. In January 1996, theWorking Group's Biodiversity InformaticsSubgroup concluded that existing biodiversityand ecosystems information is neither readilyaccessible nor fully useful. They also realizedthat recent technological and political develop-ments present leadership opportunities forOECD countries to provide access to this infor-mation, which they characterized as vast andcomplex and of critical importance to society. Asof March 2001, 14 countries had joined theFacility and collectively pledged over 2.5 millionUS dollars to support GBIF’s first year of opera-tion. Its goal is to provide world-wide access, viathe Internet, to information about the 1.8 millionspecies of organisms that are known and classi-



71

Ethnobiological inventories, biodiversityloss and erosion of local knowledge

Erosion includes not only genetic ero-sion and erosion of species, soils and

the atmosphere - but also the erosionof knowledge and the global erosion

of equitable relations.P.R. Mooney (1999:3)

fied. These data are mostly concentrated indeveloped countries and are not easily accessibleespecially to the developing countries fromwhich much of the data originated.

Mohamed Kassas (2001), renowned desertecologist and past president of the WorldConservation Union (IUCN), has identified sev-eral gaps in our knowledge of biodiversity thatthese approaches could ameliorate. Foremostamong these in his opinion is the lack of a com-plete inventory of global species diversity. Thishas been termed the 'global taxonomic impedi-ment', and is limiting progress in biodiversityprogrammes encouraged under the CBD. Basedon a best guess estimate of 10 million species,Kassas suggests that only 18% (1.8 millionspecies) have been classified and named.Another gap relates to our lack of understandingof the role of each species in the ecosystem,which is key to setting priorities for conserva-tion. Kassas also raises concerns about our limit-ed ability to assess and forecast bio-ecologicaldegradation. Drawing upon the writings of PatMooney (1999), he extends this concept ofdegradation to the erosion of local knowledgeand cultural practices.

Local benefits from resourceinventoriesWhile it is clear that community-based invento-ries can contribute to a global initiative in biodi-versity information, how do they fit the goals andaspirations of local people? During the lastdecade, globalization and free market policieshave led to rapid economic growth and anenhanced standard of living for only some peo-ple. Those who profit least from development areoften from disadvantaged groups in rural andurban communities, including women, indige-nous people and the rural poor.

A growing number of people insist that eco-nomic development should not come at theexpense of cultural, linguistic and biologicaldiversity. For example, Pat Mooney (1999) hasobserved that “linguists have begun to recognizethe gravity of the homogenization, especially forthe poor. At least 70 percent of the people in theSouth depend on traditional healers for theirmedical care. Along with language, the poor arelosing their knowledge of the medicinal prepara-tions they customarily utilized… Talking about a‘crash in cultural and intellectual diversity simi-lar to what biologists say is happening to animaland plant species’, linguists warn that only fivepercent of the world’s remaining languages arenot endangered. The speakers of the languagesare also endangered.”

The People and Plants Initiative has soughtto vitalize biological, cultural and linguisticdiversity by focusing on community-based eth-

nobotanical research and action. Along withother approaches, community biodiversity inven-tories can contribute to improving people’s stan-dard of living by encouraging the: 1) maintenance of traditional crop varieties,

and the related use of non-cultivated plantsin traditional agricultural systems;

2) sustainability of critical resources marketedon a regional or international level;

3) continuity in knowledge and subsistencesystems based on a wide range of plantresources and

4) protection of forests, wetlands and otherhabitats essential for water catchment pro-tection, ecotourism and other benefits.

Integrating global and local per-spectivesAn important way of integrating local and globaldemands to complete biodiversity inventories isto build teams of researchers, Park personnel andcommunity members. The assessments carriedout by local people, in collaboration withresearchers, NGOs and governmental agencies,focus on issues of greatest importance to them.Often, these include the decline in access to for-est resources and the erosion of local knowledgesystems. Providing communities with concepts,tools and empirical results drawn from globalscience helps them guide conservation anddevelopment initiatives in a way that meets theirconcerns and expectations.

The relationship between outside researchersand local participants in field studies has beenevolving for more than two centuries. In someprojects, local people serve solely as informants,giving linguistic or cultural information inresponse to the queries of an outside investigator.This practice began during the heyday of botani-cal exploration of tropical countries in the 1800s,when botanists such as J.D. Hooker - whoworked extensively in India and other Asiancountries - regularly sought the assistance oflocal men who could collect, prepare and trans-port botanical specimens. Because theseresearchers had the dual goal of describing plantspecies new to science and discovering their util-ity and commercial potential, they often askedtheir assistants about local uses and classifica-tion. Botanists continued this practice in the1900s. For example, H.H. Bartlett (1940) - whoemployed many local assistants during his field-work in Asia - drew insights about plant taxono-my from the indigenous systems of classificationhe encountered.

In recent years, local people have beentrained as parataxonomists or paraecologists,(terms inspired by the concept of paramedics,people trained to assist medical professionals inproviding emergency health care). They partici-


72

pate in taxonomic and ecological studies ofplants, mammals, insects, soil micro-organismsand many other forms of life, often at protectedareas or research stations in tropical countries.For example, a national training programme ofparataxonomists organized by Costa Rica'sInstitute of Biodiversity has as its goal the fullinventory of biological organisms in the country(Janzen et al. 1993). As interest in ethnobotanygrows, the traditional ecological knowledge ofthese local assistants becomes an increasinglyvaluable asset to outside researchers (Naisbitt2000).

Some ethnobiologists, eager to expand therole of local people beyond that of informant orplant collector, have begun to employ them torecord a wide range of ethnobiological data intheir mother tongue. Brent Berlin (1984), anAmerican anthropologist who has extensiveexperience with Maya counterparts in Mexicoand with Aguaruna collaborators in Peru,described the role that indigenous people canplay as research assistants in ethnobotanical pro-jects:

“Not only can native assistants be taught tocollect plant specimens, thus greatly increasing-ly the botanical coverage for a particular region,but they can also be encouraged to produce thekinds of valuable information on native knowl-edge of the plant world and of the application ofthis knowledge in daily life ... The benefits ofwidening the scope of routine botanizing in theAmerican tropics to include these kinds of eth-nobotanical data is underscored by the rapid andoften deleterious social and ecological transfor-mation of the neotropics... If extensive ethnob-otanical data are to be collected in the Americantropics before the turn of the century, the work inlarge part must be coordinated by modernbotanists who accept the challenge of includingnative botanists as an integral part of their ongo-ing research programs.”

Jason Clay (1988), an anthropologist whohas promoted the role of indigenous peoples inconservation and development projects, echoesthis perspective. Noting that some researcherswho study tropical forests ignore indigenouspeople, he recommends that all scientists collab-orate with local guides and assistants fromgroups living in tropical rain forests. This isalready a reality in areas such as the ComarcaSan Blas in Panama, where the resident KunaIndians have approved a research code whichrequires visiting scientists to be accompanied atall times by a local assistant, who thus acquiresresearch skills and scientific insights about natur-al resources (Chapin 1991).

Even when local collaborators become anintegral part of the research team, they do nottypically define the goals, methods and applica-tion of the research. Some ethnobotanists are

calling for a different mode of research in whichlocal people take greater responsibility for guid-ing the design and implementation of the project.These cultural promoters (a term borrowed fromthe concept of 'health promoters', communitymembers who have received basic training in pri-mary medicine) have the potential of becomingequal partners of external researchers. They tendto concentrate on issues that are of importance totheir community, taking a holistic view of therole of plants and animals in local culture.Contrary to many parataxonomists - who maypay little attention to recording local biologicalknowledge and often make collections far fromhome in protected or remote areas - ethnobotani-cal promoters stay in their own communities tosurvey local uses of plants and to collect speci-mens in nearby fields and forests. In this way,they are able to integrate their ethnoecologicalwork into the general life of their village, apply-ing the results to community development, edu-cation and the rational use of local resources.Because they are part of the community, theyhave a special ability to record local ecologicalknowledge, cultivate gardens of useful plants,create biodiversity registers and pursue manyothers ways of returning the results of theirresearch to their fellow villagers (Martin andSemple 1994).

Among the many young people who pursuea formal education, some do not leave behindtheir local traditions and language. They chooseto return to their communities to integrate whatthey study in the university with what they learnfrom their relatives and elders, combining theirroles as researchers and local people. It is at thispoint that ethnobotany comes full circle, from adiscipline that looks at how other people interactwith nature to one that provides tools and con-cepts that allow people to investigate and refinetheir own traditional knowledge of the environ-ment.

Members of some communities, taking thisprocess a step further, are beginning to documentlocal knowledge and biological resources in away that limits the participation of externalresearchers. In India, for example, there is agrassroots movement to create community agri-cultural biodiversity registers and seedbanks. Asdescribed by Navdanya, an Indian non-govern-mental organization which is promoting theseactions (Anonymous 1995),

“A community register is the documentationof the resources and knowledge of local commu-nities at the local, regional and national levels bythe people themselves for the purpose of rejuve-nating the ecological basis of agriculture and theeconomic status of farmers...The purpose of thecommunity register is to serve the needs of thelocal agricultural communities and not the needsof non-local commercial interests who need bio-



73

diversity for raw material...However, since com-munity needs and community rights also need tobe recognized and taken into account in nationalpolicy formulation, a national community reg-istry built out of local registers becomes a polit-ical imperative to deal with the property regimesemerging from intellectual property rights lawsemanating from the GATT/WTO [GlobalAgreement on Trade and Tariffs/World TradeOrganization].”

These community-controlled inventories ofbiodiversity and local knowledge open the doorto innovative ways of defending the land,resources and intellectual property rights ofindigenous and local communities. When sharingof knowledge between different communities isdesirable, the exchange can take place in thelocal language, stressing common ways of under-standing the natural world and traditionallifestyles. The final goal of this movement is toproduce community researchers who have thetools to carry out their own analyses of biodiver-sity, thus limiting the outflow of knowledge andgenetic resources that may be used for personalgain by external participants.

When results need to be shared with externalresearchers and government officials, the com-munity can draw upon university-trained consul-tants to provide taxonomic identifications, analy-ses of sustainability and assessments of the com-patibility of current land-use practices with con-servation policies. As Marcus Colchester(1994:57) has noted,

“...many indigenous communities are fullyaware of the fact that as pressure on their landsfrom outside intensifies and as their owneconomies and social organization change toaccommodate their increasing involvement in themarket economy, they need to elaborate newmechanisms to control and use their resources.Ecologists, social scientists, lawyers and devel-opment advisors may have relevant knowledge tocontribute to such indigenous communities tohelp them achieve this transition. Their role,however, is to act as advisers to indigenous man-agers rather than as directors of indigenous ven-tures.”

The various types of collaboration betweenexternal researchers and local people, summa-rized in table 5.1, suggest the diversity of waysthat ethnobotanical projects may begin and thenevolve over time. For example, many conven-tional researchers start by surveying or inter-viewing an initial group of informants, then pro-ceed with the selection of assistants that cancarry out a detailed, long-term inventory of bio-logical resources. As local people define theirown interest in characterizing their knowledgeand management of the environment, they mayform community groups which decide on thedesign, methodology and application of furtherphases of the project. In some cases they draw

upon the results of scientific research projects asthey mobilize themselves to claim land rights orcreate management plans for the naturalresources they control. These local politicalmovements may have a positive feedback ondevelopment projects in which people are pas-sive participants, ensuring that they are benefi-ciaries rather than victims of development.

Thus PEK illustrates the potential for localcollaborators to become integral members ofresearch teams formed to identify and tackle con-servation and development problems. This is acommon practice in People and Plants projects,in which researchers, local resource-users andresource managers have all contributed their ownparticular knowledge, skills and perspectives tothe identification of priority local conservationand development issues. Local participation alsocontributes to the design of research by givinginsights into the conceptual analysis and dissem-ination of the results of participatory research,and in the search for ways to make practicalimprovements. This typically involves an inci-sive approach to the identification of criticallocal problems, often with an initial scoping sur-vey, followed by concentration on topics ofpressing local concern. This range of ‘materialincentive’, ‘functional’ and ‘interactive’ partici-pation can provide a foundation for self-mobi-lized action advocated by community members.

Revisioning participatoryapproaches to biodiversityinventoryThe PEK and similar broad-based inventoriesgenerate a large amount of information andinvolve many people. They have the potential tostimulate new, and sometimes unexpected, initia-tives in a variety of fields, based on communityconcerns and scientific interests. Long-termmonitoring of the PEK will determine the practi-cal long-term benefits of local involvement ininventories, including their impact on the conser-vation of botanical and cultural diversity. It willalso provide insights into the extent to whichlocal participation in botanical surveys encour-ages sustainable resource use.

The Conference of the Parties (COP) to theCBD provides additional guidance on how toproceed with biodiversity inventories that con-tribute not only to a global taxonomic initiativebut also to local needs. Of particular relevanceare discussions on the implementation of Article8(j), which recognizes ‘the need to respect, pre-serve and maintain knowledge, innovations andpractices of indigenous and local communitiesembodying traditional lifestyles relevant for theconservation and sustainable use of biologicaldiversity and promote their wider application’.As part of a formal decision adopted at the fifth


74

COP meeting in Nairobi in May 2000(UNEP/CBD/COP/5/5), an ad hoc WorkingGroup established a programme of work on theimplementation of article 8(j) and related provi-sions. In the spirit of this programme, it is rec-ommended that any future biodiversity invento-ries involving local peoples be guided by gener-al principles advocating that:1. there be full and effective participation of

men and women from indigenous and localcommunities in all stages of the identifica-tion and implementation of the elements ofthe programme of work.

2. traditional knowledge should be valued,given the same respect and considered asuseful and necessary as other forms ofknowledge.

3. a holistic approach be adopted, consistentwith the spiritual and cultural values andcustomary practices of the indigenous andlocal communities and their rights to havecontrol over their traditional knowledge,innovations and practices.

4. the ecosystem approach should be a foun-dation for the work, as it provides a strate-gy for the integrated management of land,water and living resources that promotesconservation and sustainable use of biolog-ical diversity in an equitable way.

5. access to traditional knowledge, innova-tions and practices of indigenous and localcommunities should be subject to priorinformed consent or prior informedapproval from the holders of such knowl-edge, innovations and practices.These guidelines emphasize that gaining a

better knowledge of the identity, uses and valuesof biological resources managed by local peopleis only the beginning of a more complex processof biocultural conservation. If researchers takeup the opportunity to work with local people,they will have a moral obligation to participate inthe innovation of mechanisms to protect intellec-tual property rights and promote the continueddevelopment of local knowledge of the naturalworld. Through their collaborative efforts, scien-tists, politicians and community members willhave a better basis for taking action on biodiver-sity conservation and the equitable sharing ofbenefits that come from the sustainable use ofplant genetic resources.

Further readingAnonymous. 1995. Community Agricultural

Biodiversity Register, draft dated January 1995.NAVDANYA, New Delhi.

Bartlett, H.H. 1940. The concept of the genus. I.History of the generic concept in botany. Bulletinof the Torrey Botanical Club 67(5): 349-362.

Berlin, B. 1984. Contributions of Native Americancollectors to the ethnobotany of the Neotropics.Pages 24-33. In: Prance, G.T. & Kallunki, J. A.(eds). Ethnobotany in the Neotropics, Advancesin Economic Botany 1:24-33. New York, NewYork Botanical Garden.

Clay, J.W. 1988. Indigenous Peoples and TropicalForests - Models of Land Use and Managementfrom Latin America. Cultural Survival Report 27.Cultural Survival, Inc., Cambridge,Massachusetts.

Chapin, M. 1991. How the Kuna keep the scientists inline. Cultural Survival Quarterly 15(3): 17.

Colchester, M. 1994. Salvaging Nature: IndigenousPeoples, Protected Areas and BiodiversityConservation. Discussion Paper 55. UnitedNations Research Institute for SocialDevelopment, Geneva.

Janzen, D.H., Hallwachs, W., Jimenez, J. & Gamez,R.. 1993. The role of parataxonomists, inventorymanagers and taxonomists in Costa Rica's nation-al biodiversity inventory. In: W. Reid, W, Laird,S., Meyer, C., Gamez, R., Sittenfeld, A., Janzen,D.H., Gollin, M. & Juma, C. (Eds). BiodiversityProspecting, pp. 223-254. World ResourcesInstitute, Washington, D.C.

Kassas, M. 2001. Biodiversity: Gaps in Knowledge.Paper presented to the UNESCO RegionalTraining Workshop on 'Taxonomic CapacityBuilding and Biodiversity Conservation in theArabic Countries. 14-18 May. Sharm El Sheikh,Southern Sinai, Egypt.

Martin, G.J. & Semple, A.. 1994. Joint ventures inapplied ethnobotany. Nature & Resources 30:5-17.

Mooney, P.R. 1999. The ETC Century: Erosion,Technological Transformation and CorporateConcentration in the 21st Century. DevelopmentDialogue 1999:1-2.

Naisbitt, N. 2000. Parataxonomists. Whole Earth102:28 - 31.

Pimbert, M. & Pretty, J.N. 1995. Parks, People andProfessionals: Putting 'Participation' intoProtected Area Management. Discussion Paper57. United Nations Research Institute for SocialDevelopment, Geneva.



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76 PEOPLE AND PLANTS WORKING PAPER 9, FEBRUARY 2002PROJEK ETNOBOTANI KINABALUG.J. MARTIN, A. LEE AGAMA, J.H. BEAMAN & J. NAIS

Box 5. A typology of local people's

Participants

‘Victims’ or ‘beneficiaries’ of development

Informants, interviewees & survey respondents

Parataxonomists, plant collectors & research assistants;

and governmental health, nutrition and cultural promoters

Community promoters & researchers

Indigenous researchers & registrars of local biological

resources



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participation in ethnobotanical projects (modified from Pimbert and Pretty 1995)

Type of participation Components of each type

Passive participation People participate by being told what is going to happen or what has already happened. It is uni-lateral announcement by an administration or project management without listening to people's responses. The information being shared belongs only to external professionals. Examples include introducing improved varieties of crop plants, distributing pharmaceutical products through health clinics and relocating local people to make way for dam reservoirs or other devel-opment initiatives. Depending on the compatibility of these external development projects with local desires, people may benefit or be victimized.

Participation by providing People participate by answering questions posed by researchers and project man-information agers using questionnaires or similar approaches, which do not always require face-to-face

interaction. People may not have the opportunity to influence proceedings, in part because the project design or findings of the research are not always shared or checked for accuracy. Survey approaches favored by rural sociologists exemplify this type of participation.

Participation by consultation People participate by being consulted, and external agents listen to their views. These external agents often define both problems and solutions, and may modify these in the light of people's responses. Such a consultative process does not necessarily concede any share in decision-making. Professionals are under no obligation to accept people's views, but the direct contact and personal relationships they form during the consultation often influence them. Conventional methods of anthropologists, including interviewing and partici-pant observation, fall into this category.

Participation for People participate by providing resources, for example labor, in return for material incentives food, cash or other material incentives. Much in-situ research and bio-prospecting falls in this

category, as rural people provide the resources but are not involved in experimentation or the process of learning. Local people often have no stake in prolonging activities when the incen-tives end, but they may employ the skills they have acquired to design and implement their own community projects. Many floristic and ethnobotanical inventories carried out with local peo-ple depend on this kind of participation.

Functional participation People participate by forming groups (or modifying existing ones) to meet predetermined objec-tives related to the project, which can involve the promotion of externally initiated social organi-zation. Although local involvement does not tend to be at early stages of planning but only after major decisions have been made, there are usually opportunities for community feedback during the course of the project. The community institutions tend to be dependent on external initiators and facilitators, but may become independent later. Many governmental training pro-rams for local health, nutrition and cultural promoters fall in this category.

Interactive participation People participate in joint analysis, including participatory rural appraisal, which leads to action plans and the formation of new local groups or the strengthening of existing ones. The analysis tends to involve interdisciplinary methodologies that seek multiple perspectives and make use of systematic and structured learning processes. These groups take control over local decisions, and so people have a stake in maintaining structures or practices.

Self-mobilization People participate by taking initiatives independent of external institutions. Such self-initiated mobilization and collective action may or may not challenge existing production systems or dis-tributions of wealth and power. External collaborators may be invited at certain stages of the project, or they may be excluded entirely. Some inventories of crop genetic resources or wild useful plants carried out by communities or indigenous groups exemplify this level of participation.


78

The PEK was initiated with support from the World Wide Fund for Nature - International (as an exten-sion of WWF Project 3325 on Palms for Human Needs in Asia) and the United Nations Educational,Scientific and Cultural Organization. Additional funds were given by the Tropical Forestry Programof the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service. In 1993, The John D. and Catherine T.MacArthur Foundation provided a first grant to Sabah Parks for the PEK, and it approved a secondthree-year grant in 1996. A no-cost extension from the MacArthur Foundation is continuing to providesupport for the project through 2002. The People and Plants Initiative provided logistical support forthe project from 1992 - 1999. The Flora of Mount Kinabalu floristic inventory has been supported bythe National Science Foundation and the Institute of Biodiversity and Environmental Conservation,Universiti Malaysia Sarawak. Some sections of this working paper were originally included in aNational Science Foundation proposal and final report submitted by John H. Beaman, and in manu-scripts for the Plants of Mount Kinabalu volume on gymnosperms and non-orchid monocotyledons,and the volume on dicotyledon families A - L. Additional sections are based on reports prepared forthe People and Plants South-East Asia program.

We would like to thank Datuk Lamri Ali, Director of Sabah Parks, for the support he providedthroughout this project. Representatives of the various Dusun communities provided permission tocarry out field research, including the collection of ethnobotanical voucher specimens by communityparticipants . Naturalists Alim Biun and Ansow Gunsalam, former Ranger Gabriel Sinit, and formerdirectors of Projek Etnobotani Kinabalu Ludi Apin and Luisa Majuakim assisted the work describedhere. Additionally, Francis Liew, Deputy Director of Sabah Parks, has greatly facilitated the researchin many ways. John Dransfield participated in the first etnobotanical training workshop in July 1992,and has identified palm collections made during the project. Charles C. Davis III worked for sixmonths as a field assistant on Mount Kinabalu, working with the local collectors. Alison L. Hoare con-tributed herbarium and bibliographic data from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and Fenella Cookeprovided valuable information on herbarium collections at the Forestry Research Centre, Sandakan.Agnes Lee Agama assisted on the processing of PEK herbarium specimens at Kew and provided a syn-opsis of her doctoral research in Kiau. Reed Beaman prepared the map presented here as Figure 1. Weappreciate reviews of the manuscript by Sasha Barrow, Alan Hamilton, Hew Prendergast and MartinWalters.

Acknowledgements



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Davis, S.H., Heywood V. & Hamilton A. C. (eds.)1995. Centres of Plants Diversity: A Guide andStrategy for their Conservation. Gland, WorldWide Fund for Nature and Cambridge, IUCNPublications Unit. [Borneo: CPD Site SEA24,Kinabalu Park, Sabah, Malaysia, pages 347 - 352]

Dennis, J.G. & Ruggiero M. A. 1996. BiodiversityInventory: building an inventory at scales fromlocal to global. Pages 149-156. In: Szaro R. C. &Johnston D. W. (eds.) Biodiversity in ManagedLandscapes: Theory and Practice. OxfordUniversity Press.

Dransfield, J. 1980. Systematic notes on Pinanga(Palmae) in Borneo. Kew Bulletin 34(4): 772.

Dransfield, J. 1981. A synopsis of the genusKorthalsia. Kew Bulletin 36(1): 176.

Dransfield, J. 1984a. The Rattans of Sabah. SabahForest Record No. 13. Sandakan, Sabah ForestDepartment.

Dransfield, J. 1984b. The palm flora of Gunung MuluNational Park. In: Jermy A. C., (ed.), Studies onthe Flora of Gunung Mulu National Park,Sarawak. Kuching, Forest Department.

Dransfield, J. & Beentje H. 1995. The Palms ofMadagascar. Kew, Royal Botanic Gardens, withthe International Palm Society.

Dransfield, J. & Johnson D. 1991. The conservationstatus of palms in Sabah (Malaysia). Pages 175-179. In: Johnson D., (ed.), Palms for HumanNeeds in Asia: Palm Utilization and Conservationin India, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.Rotterdam, Balkema.

Gentry, A.H. 1996. Species extirpations and currentextinction rates: a review of the evidence. Pages17-26. In: Szaro R. C. & Johnston D. W., (eds.)Biodiversity in Managed Landscapes: Theory andPractice. Oxford University Press.

Greaves, T., (ed.). 1994. Intellectual Property Rightsfor Indigenous Peoples: A Sourcebook.Oklahoma City, Society for AppliedAnthropology.

Heywood, V.H., (ed.). 1995. Global BiodiversityAssessment. Cambridge, Cambridge UniversityPress.

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Johnson, D. 1991. Palms in Asia: the broader view.Pages 227-235. In: Johnson D., (ed.), Palms forHuman Needs in Asia: Palm Utilization andConservation in India, Indonesia, Malaysia andthe Philippines. Rotterdam, Balkema.

Johnson, D., (ed.). 1991. Palms for Human Needs inAsia: Palm Utilization and Conservation in India,Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.Rotterdam, Balkema.

Johnson, M., (ed.). 1992. Lore: Capturing TraditionalEnvironmental Knowledge. Ottawa, InternationalDevelopment and Research Centre.

Kelly, K. 2000. All Species Inventory: a call for thediscovery of all life-forms on earth. Whole Earth102: 4-9.

Kiew, R. 1991. Palm utilization and conservation inPeninsular Malaysia. Pages 75-130. In: JohnsonD., (ed.), Palms for Human Needs in Asia: PalmUtilization and Conservation in India, Indonesia,Malaysia and the Philippines. Rotterdam,Balkema.

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Already published in this series:

1. Cunningham, A. B. 1993. African medicinal plants: Setting priorities at the interface between conservationand primary healthcare. (This publication is also available in Spanish.)

2. Cunningham, A. B. and Mbenkum, F.T. 1993. Sustainability of harvesting Prunus africana bark inCameroon: A medicinal plant in international trade.

3. Aumeeruddy, Y. 1994. Local representations and management of agroforests on the periphery of KerinciSeblat National Park, Sumatra, Indonesia. (This publication is also available in French and Spanish.)

4. Cunningham, A. B. 1996. People, park and plant use: Recommendations for multiple-use zones and devel-opment alternatives around Bwindi Impenetable National Park, Uganda. (This publication is also availablein French.)

5. Wild, R. and Mutebi, J. 1996. Conservation through community use of plant resources: Establishing collab-orative management at Bwindi Impenetrable and Mgahinga Gorilla National Parks, Uganda. (This publica-tion is also available in French.)

6. Höft, M., Barik, S.K. and Lykke, A.M. 1999. Quantitative ethnobotany: Applications of multivariate and sta-tistical analyses in ethnobotany.

7. Aumeeruddy-Thomas, Y., Saigal, S., Kapoor, N. and Cunningham, A. B. 1999. Joint management in themaking: Reflections and experiences.

8. Maundu, P., Berger, D., Saitabau, C. ole,. Nasieku, J., Kukutia, M., Kipelian, M., Kone, S., Mathenge, S.,Morimoto, Y., Höft, R. 2001. Ethnobotany of the Loita Maasai: Towards community management of theForest of the Lost Child. Experiences from the Loita Ethnobotany Project.

Contact addresses:

WWF InternationalPlant Conservation OfficerPanda House, Weyside ParkGodalming, Surrey GU7 1XRUNITED KINGDOMFax: 44 1483 426409

Division of Ecological SciencesMan and the Biosphere ProgrammeUNESCO, 7 Place de Fontenoy75352 Paris Cedex 07 SP FRANCEFax: 33 1 45685804

The DirectorRoyal Botanic Gardens, KewRichmond Surrey TW9 3ABUNITED KINGDOMFax: 44 181 3325278

The People and Plants Initiative

was started in July 1992 by WWF, UNESCO and theRoyal Botanic Gardens, Kew to promote the sustain-able and equitable use of plant resources throughproviding support to ethnobotanists from developingcountries.

The initiative stems from the recognition that peoplein rural communities often have detailed andprofound knowledge of the properties and ecology oflocally occurring plants, and rely on them for many oftheir foods, medicines, fuel, building materialsand other products. However, muchof this knowledge is being lost with the transformationof local ecosystems and local cultures. Over-harvesting of non cultivated plants is increasinglycommon, caused by loss of habitat, increase in localuse and the growing demands of trade. Long-termconservation of plant resources and the knowledgeassociated with them is needed for the benefit of thelocal people and for their potential use to localcommunities in other places.

The diversity of traditional plant-resourcemanagement practices runs through a spectrum from“cultivation” through to gathering “wild” plants, all ofwhich are included in the People and Plantsapproach.

Ethnobotanists can work together with local people tostudy and record the uses of plant resources, identifycases of over-harvesting of non-cultivated plants, findsustainable harvesting methods and investigatealternatives such as cultivation.

The People and Plants initiative is building supportfor ethnobotanists from developing countries whowork with local people on issues related to theconservation of both plant resources and traditionalecological knowledge. Key participants organizeparticipatory workshops, undertake discussion andadvisory visits to field projects and provide literatureon ethnobotany, traditional ecological knowledge andsustainable plant resource use. It is hoped that anetwork of ethnobotanists working on these issuesin different countries and regions can be developed toexchange information, share experience andcollaborate on field projects.

Please visit our website at:http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/peopleplants

http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/peopleplants

Documents

Projek Etnobotani Kinabalu: the making of a Dusun Ethnoflora