BENGKULU PROMOTES GIANT RAFFLESIA FLOWERS TO ATTRACT TOURISTS by Fardah

    Jakarta, April 10, 2014 (Antara) - Bengkulu Province is one of few habitats of the world's rarest gigantic Rafflesia species that are  found only in southeastern Asian forests of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand.

         Rafflesia is the official flower of Indonesia's Bengkulu province, Sabah state in Malaysia, and also Surat Thani Province in Thailand.

         The Bengkulu administration is currently making a map of the Rafflesia habitats in the province and promoting the flower species to attract more tourists.  Four species of Rafflesia exist in Bengkulu forests. They are Rafflesia arnoldii, gadutensis, hasselti, and bengkuluensis.

         Rafflesia bengkuluensis was discovered for the first time by botanist from Bengkulu University Agus Susatya and his two colleagues from a Malaysian university in 2005.

         The latest-discovered Rafflesia species is so far found only in Padang Guci sub-district, Kaur District, Bengkulu, unlike Rafflesia Arnoldii, which grows in Central Bengkulu, Kepahiang, Mukomuko, Lebong, Kaur, Seluma and North Bengkulu districts.

        Last February, a rare Rafflesia bengkuluensis was in full
bloom in a forest located around Manau Sembilan village, Padang Guci.

        "We found it inside a forest, near the bank of Pangkulan river, Padangguci Hulu," Nopri Anto, a local teacher, who discovered the blooming flower, said recently.

         Nopri Anto said local villagers had actually known about the full-bloom Rafflesia bengkuluensis, but they considered Rafflesia bengkuluensis flowers as common in  their village. They did not know that the flower is very rare and unique.

         When Nopri Anto, a local teacher, heard about the full-bloom flower, he went to the site to check. "Its color is light red, almost pink, and has a diameter of around 45 to 50 cm," he said.

         The location of the flower is about one hour walk from the village having a difficult topography as there are hills and the Cawang Kidau river that have to be crossed to see the flower.

         A number of young men in Manau Sembilan village, Padang Guci, set up a Rafflesia bengkuluensis preservation group to help protect its habitat.

         They decided to form the group after visiting the habitat of the world's rarest flower and noticed that there were some blooming flowers and tens of buds, Nopri Anto, coordinator of the group, said in early April 2014.

         "We found four flowers that bloomed in different times, and now there are still many buds in the area," he pointed out.

         The young people, who are mostly university students, routinely monitor the habitat of the Rafflesia Bengkuluensis, and plan to promote the rare flowers to attract tourists.

          "This is part of our commitment to preserve Indonesia's rare flora and fauna," he asserted.

          Meanwhile, in Seluma district, also Bengkulu, five Rafflesia Arnoldii flowers were about to bloom soon and two others were in full bloom, Sofian Ramadhan, coordinator of the Bengkulu Rare Flower Lover Community, stated on April 7.

         Doni, a farmer in Padangcapo village, Lubuksandi sub-district, Seluma district, informed the community about the rare Rafflesia Arnoldii flowers that he had found in the forest near his coffee plantation.

         "Near our coffee plantation, two flowers are in full bloom, and there are many buds," he pointed out.

         The flowers are located at a distance of a three-hour ride on motorcycle from Bengkulu city and a one-hour walk in to the forest.

         Sofian explained that several Rafflesia Arnoldii are also blooming in Bukit Daun protected forest which is located in Kepahiang district, Bengkulu.
    The Rafflesia arnoldii is the most largest species of Rafflesia flowers. Rafflesia arnoldii may be over 100 centimetres in diameter, and weigh up to 10 kilograms. It is generally unisexual, meaning that every plant just bears both female and male reproduction system.

        Indonesia sent Rafflesia Arnoldii flower to an international flower festival being held in South Korea in April 2014.

         "Rafflesia Arnoldii flower has been selected to represent Indonesia in this year's international flower festival in South Korea," Bengkulu Governor Junaidi Hamsyah stated.

         The flower was first preserved by the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) in cooperation with the Bengkulu research and development office before being sent to South Korea.

         In 2013, Indonesia sent the Titan Arum (Amorphophallus titanum), also known as the corpse flower, to the South Korea flower festival. The rare, gigantic flower is also an endemic flower of Sumatra, including Bengkulu.

                                                                                                                Parasite
    Being discovered for the first time by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles and British botanist Josepth Arnold in Bengkulu, in 1818, Rafflesia is a parasitic flowering plant with no visible leaves, roots, or stem.

         It is an endoparasite of vines spreading its roots inside the tissue of the vine to obtain water and nutrients. It is totally dependent upon a vine called Tetrastigma, which is related to the grapevine.

          The only part of the plant that can be seen outside the host vine is the five-petaled flower.

         When in bloom, the Rafflesia emits a foul odour, similar to that of rotting meat which gives this flower its local names which mean corpse flower or meat flower. This odour attracts insects such as flies and carrion beetles, which transport pollen from male to female flowers.

         The Rafflesia can only be seen when it is ready to reproduce. At this stage a tiny bud forms on the stem of the vine which develops for a period of about a year (nine to 12 months) resembling a cabbage. This cabbage-like bud will open up to reveal the massive five-petaled flower.
   According to information posted on http://livingsta.hubpages.com, other existing Rafflesia species include: Rafflesia azlanii, Rafflesia cantleyi, Rafflesia baletei, Rafflesia manillana, Rafflesia banahawensis, Rafflesia keithii, Rafflesia hasseltii, Rafflesia gadutensis, Rafflesia kerrii, Rafflesia leonardi, Rafflesia lobata, Rafflesia micropylora, Rafflesia mira, Rafflesia panchoana, Rafflesia patma, Rafflesia pricei, Rafflesia rochussenii, Rafflesia schadenbergiana, Rafflesia speciosa, Rafflesia tengku-adlinii, Rafflesia tuan-mudae, Rafflesia aurantia, Rafflesia verrucosa, Rafflesia meijeri, and Rafflesia lawangensis.
    Four other species - Rafflesia borneensis, Rafflesia ciliate, Rafflesia titan, and Rafflesia witkampii are still unverified.

        Of 32 Rafflesia species, 17 species are found in Indonesia, particularly on Java and Sumatra Islands, 10 in the Philippines and eight in Malaysia, Dr Joko R Witono of the Bogor Botanical Garden's Plant Conservation center, was quoted as saying by Republika daily recently.

         Four out of the 17 species, have been successfully grown in Indonesia's largest botanical garden located in Bogor, which is about 60 km of Jakarta. They are Rafflesia arnoldi, Rafflesia patma, Rafflesia meijerii, and Rafflesia tuan mudae. ***3***
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(T.F001/A/F. Assegaf/Suharto) 10-04-2014 22:53:59