SANDAKAN: During a recent scientific expedition in mid-August 2024, a team of researchers led by John Sugau, Dr. Reuben Nilus, and Razy Japir from the Forest Research Centre of the Sabah Forestry Department, in collaboration with the Beluran District Forestry Office and TSH Resources Berhad, uncovered Sabah’s endemic Rafflesia tengku-adlinii in the Bukit Monkobo and Bukit Mentapok Forest Reserve, located in the north-central region of the state.
This remarkable species is the rarest of the three rafflesia varieties found in Sabah, previously known only to inhabit the western and central areas, specifically the Trus Madi Range and Maliau Basin Conservation Area.
The researchers identified at least three populations of Rafflesia tengku-adlinii in Gunung Monkobo and an additional population in Gunung Mentapok.
This unique flower, named in honor of one of Sabah’s leading conservationists, Datuk Dr. Tengku D. Z. Adlin, was first discovered in 1987 by the late Prof. Kamarudin Mat Salleh in the Trus Madi Range. Measuring between 20.5 and 23.2 cm in diameter, this flower is smaller than its two counterparts, featuring uniform orange perigone lobes adorned with round orange warts.
As a parasitic plant, Rafflesia relies on a liana, specifically Tetrastigma (Vitaceae), for its survival. The host plant for this species has been identified as Tetrastigma diepenhorstii. Datuk Frederick Kugan, the Chief Conservator of Forests, highlighted that the discovery of this rare rafflesia species will significantly bolster the protection and conservation efforts within this reserve, which was reclassified as a Class I Forest Reserve (Protection) in 2015.
Covering an area of 5,443 hectares, this reserve is predominantly surrounded by the Ulu Tungud Forest Reserve, with the exception of its southern boundary, which adjoins private land.
The Ulu Tungud FR is licensed to TSH Resources Berhad. While officially designated as ‘Bukit’, the local community commonly refers to both peaks as ‘Gunung’. The Monkobo (1,829 m) and the nearby Mentapok (1,581 m) are among the lesser-known and largely unexplored mountains in the north-central region.
