06/09/2026
FOUND AGAIN ❤️🌿
For more than a century, scientists had no confirmation that this rare Philippine plant was still surviving in the wild.
Now, Calamus vinosus, a Critically Endangered rattan found only in the Philippines, has been rediscovered deep in the forests of the Mt. Candalaga Range in Maragusan, Davao de Oro.
Before the discovery, the species was known from only one scientific collection made in 1912 on Mt. Urdaneta in Agusan del Norte. With no additional records for more than 110 years, scientists were left uncertain whether it still existed in the wild.
That changed during a plant photography expedition conducted from November 26 to December 4, 2024 by Dr. Julie F. Barcelona, Dr. Pieter B. Pelser, and Guiller S. Opiso. The team was documenting the plant diversity of Mt. Candalaga while improving knowledge of Philippine Eagle habitat.
Palm expert Jiro Adorador of UP Los Baños later identified one of their remarkable finds as the long-missing C. vinosus.
The rattan stands out for its striking wine-red fruits, a feature that makes it unlike other Philippine rattans. The expedition also produced 2,271 photographs documenting 236 plant species, many previously unrecorded from Davao de Oro.
Even more remarkably, the same Mt. Candalaga forests provide habitat for other threatened and extraordinary Philippine species, including the Critically Endangered Philippine Eagle and the giant flower Rafflesia mira.
One species disappearing from scientific records for 112 years, and then appearing alive in a Philippine forest, is a powerful reminder of how much remains undiscovered in the country’s wild places.
And of how much could disappear if those forests are not protected. 🌿🦅
