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Cambodian Journal of Natural History Carnivorous plants Dragonfl ies and damselfl ies Banteng ecology December 2010 Vol 2010 No. 2 Cambodian Journal of Natural History Editors Email: [email protected] • Dr Jenny C. Daltry, Senior Conservation Biologist, Fauna & Flora International. • Dr Neil M. Furey, Head of Academic Development, Fauna & Flora International: Cambodia Programme. • Dr Carl Traeholt, Chief Lecturer in Biodiversity Conservation, Centre for Biodiversity Conservation, Royal University of Phnom Penh. International Editorial Board • Dr Stephen J. Browne, Fauna & Flora • Dr Sovanmoly Hul, Muséum National d’Histoire International (FFI), Cambridge, UK. Naturelle, Paris, France. • Dr Martin Fisher, Editor of Oryx – The • Dr Andy L. Maxwell, World Wide Fund for International Journal of Conservation. Nature, Cambodia. • Dr L. Lee Grismer, La Sierra University, • Dr Jörg Menzel, University of Bonn, Germany. California, USA. • Dr Brad Pett itt , Murdoch University, Australia. • Dr Knud E. Heller, Nykøbing Falster Zoo, • Dr Campbell O. Webb, Harvard University Denmark. Herbaria, USA. Other peer reviewers for this volume. • Mark Bezuijen, Victoria, Australia. • Dr Oleg E. Kosterin, Russian Academy of • Dr Charles Clarke, Monash University Sunway Sciences, Russia. Campus, Malaysia. • Nguyen Manh Ha, Vietnam National University • Dr Alex Diment, FFI, UK. (VNU), Vietnam. • David Emmett , Conservation International, • Annett e Olsson, Conservation International, Cambodia. Cambodia. • Dr Tom Evans, Wildlife Conservation Society • Edward Pollard, WCS, Cambodia. (WCS), Cambodia. • Dr Jodi Rowley, Australian Museum, Australia. • Andreas Fleischmann, University of Munich, • Weston Sechrest, Global Wildlife Conservation, Germany. USA. • Dr Simon Hedges, WCS, Lao PDR. • Dr K.S. Gopi Sundar, International Crane • Dr Matt i Hämäläinen, National Museum of Foundation (ICF), India. Natural History, The Netherlands. • Tang Hung Ban, Singapore. • Jeremy Holden, FFI, Cambodia. • Dr Tranh Triet, ICF and VNU, Vietnam. • Dr Matt hew Jebb, National Botanic Gardens, • Robert J. Timmins, Wisconsin, USA. Ireland. • Hugh Wright, University of East Anglia, UK. The Cambodian Journal of Natural History is a free journal published by the Centre for Biodiversity Conserva- tion, Royal University of Phnom Penh. The Centre for Biodiversity Conservation is a non-profi t making unit dedicated to training Cambodian biologists and to the study and conservation of Cambodian biodiversity. Cover photo: (© Jeremy Holden/ Fauna & Flora International) The pitcher plant Nepenthes bokorensis was fi rst described in 2009 by French Cambodian botanist François Sockhom Mey. This carnivorous plant is believed to be endemic to Phnom (Mount) Bokor. See Mey (this volume) for further information. Editorial 83 Editorial - Taxonomy and conservation go hand-in-hand Paul J.J. Bates Harrison Institute, Bowerwood House, 15 St Botoloph’s Road, Sevenoaks, Kent, TN13 3AQ, United Kingdom. Email [email protected] It is apparent that mainland Southeast Asia, includ- expertise grew - especially in the biodiversity-rich ing Cambodia, is a ‘hotspot’ for rare and endemic tropics - the availability of taxonomists declined biodiversity (Mitt ermeier et al., 1999). Unfortunate- substantially in the great natural history museums ly, it is also a sobering fact that some 40% of the of Europe and North America. Towards the end of region’s fauna and fl ora face extinction by the end the 20th Century, Western governments tended to of the century, making it one of the world’s most view research on biodiversity as a luxury, especially threatened areas for biodiversity (SCBD, 2010). when the biodiversity being studied was not their National governments, supported by international own, but rather in countries thousands of miles NGOs, are formally committ ed to wildlife conserva- away from London, Paris, New York or Moscow. tion and seek to deliver relevant initiatives. Except- Meanwhile, conservation organisations, fi ghting ing certain larger mammals and some other charis- for their own resources, gave litt le support or, in matic groups, however, there are too few scientists many cases, much appreciation to the scientists or conservationists, nationally or internationally, or their institutions that historically had provided who can identify and provide authoritative data much of the information on which their conserva- on the species composition, distribution, ecology tion initiatives were based. and status of much of Southeast Asia’s diverse and Taxonomy had few friends at the beginning of endangered wildlife. the 21st Century. To many biologists, taxonomy Taxonomists, with their identifi cation guides, appeared descriptive and old fashioned in their new keys, databases, and specialist knowledge of par- world of DNA and cutt ing edge molecular science. ticular animal or botanical groups, are uniquely To many conservationists, taxonomy seemed irrele- qualifi ed to identify, describe and document the vant and slow, “a victim of the narcissism of minor biodiversity of ecosystems and thereby support the distinction” (Godfray & Knapp, 2004). Conversely, work of ecologists and conservationists. They can taxonomists viewed many conservationists as sur- advise on priorities for species and site-based con- prisingly ill-informed, with litt le understanding of servation and help monitor biodiversity loss from the biodiversity they purported to be conserving the impacts of climate change and habitat fragmen- and a limited understanding of the real conserva- tation. They can assess the spread of invasive alien tion priorities that surrounded them. species and identify the host species in the study of Happily, this is changing. Taxonomy is expe- zoonoses (the transmission of disease from animals riencing a renaissance in how it is perceived and to man). With the introduction of international in increased recruitment to the science. This is laws such as CITES - the Convention on Interna- partly due to international programmes such as tional Trade on Endangered Species of Wild Fauna the IUCN’s Global Taxonomy Initiative, launched and Flora - taxonomists can assist with specialist in 1998, and in part to a raised profi le through identifi cations to enable customs offi cers, police enquiries and publications, such as the UK Govern- and other enforcers to control the trade in wildlife. ment’s Science and Technology Reports (House of Ironically, even as human pressures on the Lords, 2002, 2008). Equally importantly, it is due to environment increased and the need for taxonomic the developing world becoming richer, with bett er Cambodian Journal of Natural History 2010 (2) 83-85 © Centre for Biodiversity Conservation, Phnom Penh 84 Editorial communications, a more skilled workforce and, in would imply there are somewhere in excess of 300 many cases, an ambitious and knowledge-hungry species of bats. My own institution has been part university sector with a growing interest in the of a team of international taxonomists who, since environmental sciences. It is now possible, perhaps 2004, have described fi ve new species of Asian the fi rst time, for the centres of excellence to be bat, at least one of which (Harrison’s tube-nosed located in the centres of biodiversity richness: in the bat Murina harrisoni) is thought to be endemic to universities, museums, and other institutes of Asia, Cambodia (Csorba & Bates, 2005). Other bats are Africa and Central and South America. now in the process of being described and, in addi- tion, many new country records have been added The process of capacity building and repatria- in a series of papers by taxonomists from Hungary, tion of taxonomic information has already begun. Ireland, Russia, and the United Kingdom. Of course, For example, in Cambodia, through the collabora- new discoveries are not confi ned to bats. New bird tion of the Royal University of Phnom Penh and species have been described from Laos (Woxvold et Fauna & Flora International, and with fi nancial al., 2009) whilst the number of bird species record- support from the UK Government’s Darwin Initia- ed from Thailand has increased by 25% in the last tive, the MacArthur Foundation, and US Fish and 45 years (Phil Round, pers. comm.). Wildlife Service, a new natural history museum has been set up within the university’s Centre for Bio- Some may question whether it is important to diversity Conservation. With its growing reference know about the diversity of animals and plants collection of small mammals, reptiles, amphibians that live in the diff erent parts of the world. Well, and other groups, this is becoming an archive of the community of nations obviously believes it is. the country’s natural history and a resource centre Since its inception in 1992, 193 countries, including to promote further research of Cambodia’s biodi- Cambodia, have signed the Convention on Biologi- versity. Its young Cambodian curator, Ith Saveng, cal Diversity or CBD (see htt p://www.cbd.int/con- recently completed his MSc in mammal taxonomy. vention/text/). Comprising 42 articles, it lays down Saveng is now beginning to publish his own taxo- legally binding commitments for the individual nomic, fi rst-authored papers in international jour- countries relating to their wildlife. For example, nals and embarking on a taxonomic PhD. Other Article 7 states that each nation shall ‘identify com- Cambodian scientists are also being introduced to ponents of biodiversity important for its conserva- the world of biodiversity research, with a view to tion and sustainable