Biodiversiti serangga ranting di Rezab Hidupan Liar Endau Kluang, Johor

Kajian inventori serangga ranting telah dijalankan di Hutan Simpan Endau-Kluang, Johor semasa Inventori Biodiversiti Rezab Hidupan Liar Endau-Kluang, Johor pada 28 Oktober hingga 1 November 2008. Persampelan telah dilakukan secara pencarian oportunistik di sepanjang trail-trail kajian. Sebanyak 18 spesies (42 individu) telah berjaya direkodkan yang merangkumi empat famili iaitu Heteronemiidae, Aschiphasmatidae, Phasmatidae dan Bacillidae. Daripada jumlah ini Famili Heteronemiidae merupakan famili dominan (83 %) dengan kepelbagaian spesies yang paling tinggi iaitu 15 spesies. Manakala tiga famili yang lain direkodkan sebanyak satu spesies bagi setiap famili. Famili Heteronemiidae merupakan famili yang terbesar dalam order Phasmida. Kebanyakan spesies dari famili tersebut biasanya dapat ditemui di mana-mana hutan tropika. Spesies yang paling tinggi kelimpahan ialah Abrosoma johorensis diikuti oleh Lonchodes sp, Prisomera malaya, Diesbachia tamyris dan Pylaemenes mitratus. Senarai serangga ranting yang diperolehi dalam kajian ini merupakan senarai yang pertama kali dilaporkan bagi kawasan Rezab Hidupan Liar Endau-Kluang, Joho

Research notes on bats' species assemblage in Madai Cave of Segama Valley, Sabah, Malaysia

Insectivorous bats spend approximately half of their lives in the roost. Most of them are cave-dwelling and use the caves as roosting grounds. Roosts are important for mating, hibernation, rearing young, and a place to socialise, while providing protection from predators in a thermo-stable environment. This study aims to assess the diversity of insectivorous bats at Madai caves in Kunak, Lahad Datu, Sabah over a temporal period of 8 years. The sampling of bats was conducted twice i.e. in August 2010 and in December 2018. Harp traps and mist nets were used to sample bats in all sampling sessions. Eighteen species of bats, including two fruit bats, Cynopterus brachyotis and Rousettus spinalatus, were identified from the study site. Four insectivorous bat species were found in both years consistently i.e. Hipposideros cervinus, Rhinolophus creaghi, R. philippinensis, and Chaerephon plicatus. The species list in 2010 and 2018 differed by more than 50%, which may be a cause of concern and warrants further investigation. Most of the listed species are categorised as Least Concern, under the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, except for Rousettus spinalatus, Hipposideros ridleyi and Miniopterus schreibersii which are listed as vulnerable. Only Hipposideros dyacorum is protected under Sabah Wildlife Enactment (1997). These findings will assist policymakers in making decisions on the importance to conserve the natural habitats of bats

Balnnophora reflexa Beccari, A new record for Mahua, Crocker Range, Sabah Parks, Sabah Malaysia

The root parasitic plant Balanophora retlexa Beccari is reported for the first time from Mahua, Crocker Range, Sabah Parks, Sabah though it has been reported to be found around Mount Kinabalu, Kinabalu Park, Sabah. In Mahua, on Crocker Range at an elevation of 1050 m asl, the Balanophora reflexa was found on the roots of host plants covered with humus topsoil which in turn was covered with leaf litter in the shady part of the tropical forest. The male and female flowers grow from different clumps and are usually found to be not so close to each other. The flowers exude a smell similar to that of Pandanus amaryIlifulius, which can be a strong indicator of its presence in the area. In addition to the morphological description, we sequenced a fragment of internal transcribed spacers (ITS) of nuclear ribosomal DNA

Bat Ensembles Differ in Response to Use Zones in a Tropical Biosphere Reserve

Biosphere reserves, designated under The United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) Man and Biosphere Programme, aim to sustainably integrate protected areas into the biological and economic landscape around them by buffering strictly protected habitats with zones of limited use. However, the effectiveness of biosphere reserves and the contribution of the different zones of use to protection is poorly known. We assessed the diversity and activity of bats in the Crocker Range Biosphere Reserve (CRBR) in Sabah, Malaysia, using harp traps, mist nets and acoustic surveys in each zone-core, buffer, transition and in agricultural plots outside of the reserve. We captured 30 species, bringing the known bat fauna of CRBR to 50 species, half of Borneo's bat species. Species composition and acoustic activity varied among zones and by foraging ensemble, with the core and buffer showing particular importance for conserving forest-dependent insectivorous bats. Frugivorous bats were found in all zones but were the most abundant and most species-rich ensemble within agricultural sites. Although sampling was limited, bat diversity and activity was low in the transition zone compared to other zones, indicating potential for management practices that increase food availability and enhance biodiversity value. We conclude that, collectively, the zones of the CRBR effectively protect diversity, but the value of the transition zone can be improved

Research notes on bats' species assemblage in Madai Cave of Segama Valley, Sabah, Malaysia

Insectivorous bats spend approximately half of their lives in the roost. Most of them are cave-dwelling and use the caves as roosting grounds. Roosts are important for mating, hibernation, rearing young, and a place to socialise, while providing protection from predators in a thermo-stable environment. This study aims to assess the diversity of insectivorous bats at Madai caves in Kunak, Lahad Datu, Sabah over a temporal period of 8 years. The sampling of bats was conducted twice i.e. in August 2010 and in December 2018. Harp traps and mist nets were used to sample bats in all sampling sessions. Eighteen species of bats, including two fruit bats, Cynopterus brachyotis and Rousettus spinalatus, were identified from the study site. Four insectivorous bat species were found in both years consistently i.e. Hipposideros cervinus, Rhinolophus creaghi, R. philippinensis, and Chaerephon plicatus. The species list in 2010 and 2018 differed by more than 50%, which may be a cause of concern and warrants further investigation. Most of the listed species are categorised as Least Concern, under the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, except for Rousettus spinalatus, Hipposideros ridleyi and Miniopterus schreibersii which are listed as vulnerable. Only Hipposideros dyacorum is protected under Sabah Wildlife Enactment (1997). These findings will assist policymakers in making decisions on the importance to conserve the natural habitats of bats

Morus alba L. Plant: Bioactive Compounds and Potential as a Functional Food Ingredient

Morus alba L. (M. alba) is a highly adaptable plant that is extensively incorporated in many traditional and Ayurveda medications. Various parts of the plant, such as leaves, fruits, and seeds, possess nutritional and medicinal value. M. alba has abundant phytochemicals, including phenolic acids, flavonoids, flavonols, anthocyanins, macronutrients, vitamins, minerals, and volatile aromatic compounds, indicating its excellent pharmacological abilities. M. alba also contains high nutraceutical values for protein, carbohydrates, fiber, organic acids, vitamins, and minerals, as well as a low lipid value. However, despite its excellent biological properties and nutritional value, M. alba has not been fully considered as a potential functional food ingredient. Therefore, this review reports on the nutrients and bioactive compounds available in M. alba leaves, fruit, and seeds; its nutraceutical properties, functional properties as an ingredient in foodstuffs, and a microencapsulation technique to enhance polyphenol stability. Finally, as scaling up to a bigger production plant is needed to accommodate industrial demand, the study and limitation on an M. alba upscaling process is reviewed

Bat Diversity in Imbak Canyon Conservation Area: Note on their Echolocation Calls and Ectoparasites

Imbak Canyon Conservation Area (ICCA) is one of the conservation areas managed by the Sabah Foundation, which comprise of mixed vegetation forest landscape. A bat survey was conducted at ICCA from August 16th to 26th, 2017. A total of 141 individuals of bats representing 17 species were recorded from the eight nights of mist netting and harp trapping at various sites within the conservation area. Echolocation calls from 120 individuals of insectivorous bats representing 13 species were recorded, with 90% accuracy in relative amount. The captured bats were screened for ectoparasites from Order Diptera (91%), Mesostigmata (5%) and Ixodida (1%), and indicate that there is 66.7% prevalence. The results from the survey are paramount in enhancing information and knowledge on Bornean bats and their obligate ectoparasites

Life in the Canopy: Using Camera-Traps to Inventory Arboreal Rainforest Mammals in Borneo

Arboreal mammals form a diverse group providing ecologically important functions such as predation, pollination and seed dispersal. However, their cryptic and elusive nature, and the heights at which they live, makes studying these species challenging. Consequently, our knowledge of rainforest mammals is heavily biased towards terrestrial species, limiting our understanding of overall community structure and the possible impacts of human-induced disturbance. We undertook the first in-depth appraisal of an arboreal mammal community in Southeast Asia, using camera-traps set in unlogged and logged tropical rainforest in Sabah, Borneo. Using paired canopy and terrestrial camera-traps at 50 locations (25 in unlogged forest, 25 in logged), we assessed the effectiveness of camera-trapping at characterising the arboreal versus terrestrial community, and tested the influence of strata and forest type on community structure and composition. The paired design detected 55 mammal species across 15,817 camera-trap nights, and additional canopy sampling in a subset of trees added a further two arboreal species to the inventory. In total, thirty species were detected exclusively by terrestrial camera-traps, eighteen exclusively by canopy camera-traps, and nine by units set at both heights, demonstrating significant differences between arboreal and terrestrial communities. This pattern was strongest in unlogged forest, reflecting greater structural diversity of this habitat, but held in logged forest as well. Species accumulation curves revealed that canopy camera-trapping significantly boosted species inventories compared to terrestrial-only sampling, and was particularly effective at detecting gliding mammals, rodents and primates. Canopy inventories took longer to reach an asymptote, suggesting that a greater sampling effort is required when deploying canopy camera-traps compared to those set on the ground. We demonstrate that arboreal mammals in Borneo’s rainforest form a diverse and distinct community, and can be sampled effectively using canopy camera-traps. However, the additional costs incurred by sampling in the canopy can be substantial. We provide recommendations to maximise sampling effectiveness, while bringing down costs, to help encourage further study into one of the last frontiers of tropical forest research

Survey on the small mammals in Sg. Kangkawat research station Imbak canyon conservation areas

Sg. Kangkawat Research Station is a newly established research station in the Imbak Canyon Conservation Area, Sabah which encompasses both primary and secondary forest areas. Limited data is available on the small mammal diversity for this particular area. Therefore, a survey-based study on small mammal diversity was carried out between the 29th September – 8th October 2018 along the established trails within the vicinity areas of this research station. Small mammal trapping was done using traps (mist nets, harp traps, cage traps and pitfall traps) employed randomly along the Nepenthes trail, the Kawang trail, the South Rim trail and the Pelajau trail. This study documented a total of 32 small mammal species i.e. represented by 26 species (15 spp. of new records for ICCA ) of volant small mammals (Chiroptera) and 6 species of non-volant small mammals (Rodentia, Scadentia, Insectivora, Carnivora). The total number of specimens recorded was 108. A new distribution record on the Free-tailed Bat, Chaerephon cf. johorensis, was documented for Sabah and Borneo during this study

The Tudan's Organic Mulberry Tea: An Indigenous Community Tea Product Made Underutilized Part of Mulberry Plant

Kampung Tudan is located at the rural area and protected under buffer zone of Crocker Range Biosphere Reserve Area by UNESCO, where human and society live in harmony. Mulberry plantations have been introduced as an alternative economic activity to enhance their livelihood. Tudan’s Organic Mulberry Tea was made locally in Kampung Tudan, is an innovative product made up from the mulberry leaves into tea product. Fresh leaves from mulberry plant was harvested, dried using community solar powered dryer for the production of the tea and the formulation is under Trade Secret by the Centre for Research and innovation which belongs to Universiti Malaysia Sabah. A few series of laboratory test have been conducted on Tudan’s Organic Mulberry Tea such as physicochemical analysis and consumer sensory evaluation. Results shows that, mulberry tea powder considerable high in protein with stable shelf life. There were about 100 panels majority from student has been evaluated Tudan’s Organic Mulberry Tea based on four sensory test which are aroma, color, taste, mouthfeel and their overall acceptance. Overall acceptance scores for Tudan’s Organic Mulberry Tea is more than 30%. The newly developed tea product has been undertaken by Kampung Tudan villager’s cooperative, Koperasi Kampung Tudan Berhad and has commercialized in the market since January 2017. The product is priced at RM 19.90 per box and has generated more than RM 95, 081 revenues since January 2017