>From Indonesia, 7 taxa of Nepenthes have been
>collected and named in the last 20 odd years, but at Bogor, the National
>herbarium of Indonesia, not a SINGLE type specimen of these species has EVER
>been deposited.
Do you mean the (at least) 20 taxa: _N.adnata_, _borneensis_, carunculata
var.robusta, dentata, _eymae_, *ferrugineomarginata, _glabrata_, _hamata_,
infundibuliformis *kuchingensis, _longifolia_, _mapuluensis_, _ovata_,
rafflesiana var.longicirrhosa, reinwardtiana var.samarindaensis, rosulata,
spinosa, _talangensis_, _tenuis_, which were collected in Indonesia and/or
named in the last 20 years?
At least 9 of which are or were represented in Indonesian herbaria (Andalas
or Bogor): _N.adnata_ (ANDALAS, BO), dentata (BO), infundibuliformis (BO),
_hamata_ (BO), _glabrata_ (BO), rafflesiana var.longicirrhosa (ANDALAS,
BO), rosulata (ANDALAS), spinosa (ANDALAS), _tenuis_ (ANDALAS), the
specimens being at least paratype material.
;-) minutae, of course, but I just could not resist (no pun intended!)
BTW, It was e.g. a local botanist (JUMAAT H.ADAM, admittedly not Indonesian
but still Bornean) who removed all interesting Bornean (type) material from
BO and also from European herbaria for a rather long time.
> Is it any surprise that Indonesian botanists are thoroughly
>pissed off >-( with people collecting without permits.
Especially in Indonesia, it is easier for local profiteers or farmers to
get a permit to log or burn the whole primary forest than for a foreign
botanist to get a (legally correct) permit from the Indonesian government
to collect a single specimen from the same forest (before it is logged or
burnt). From an average population, it is possible to collect specimens
without disturbing the natural balance, whereas there has not been
sustainable logging in Indonesia so far. So it is no surprise that some
botanists are not overly amused with Indonesian officials as well.
>Indonesian taxonomists are the ones who suffer most from this lack of
>material, and if Indonesia botanists are to take charge of their botanical
>heritage they NEED this material.
The (1) Indonesian taxonomist (I do know only one who is working with
_Nepenthes_) and with him, his (>15!) colleagues from abroad suffer most
from a severe lack of $$ which would be needed to keep the Indonesian
herbaria in an appropriate condition. As far as I can judge from material I
have seen, specimens are just preserved at much better conditions in
European herbaria (like K or L) than e.g. in BO, so for me it is not
surprising if some authors prefer to deposit at least their holotypes at
non-Indonesian institutions.
I do not know (and am not interested in) who started it, and I certainly do
not justify outlaw collectors who ransack whole populations for the purpose
of selling as many plants as possible at a good price (these guys very
rarely deposit specimens in any herbarium at all, and they are usually
specialized in orchids and cacti, not cps). I just want to stress that
there are two players (plus, of course, the plants) in this game, the rules
of which could perhaps be improved a bit (as long as some of the plants are
still alive).
Kind regards
Jan