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Surianshah S. 2021. Environmental awareness and green products consumption behavior: A case study of Sabah State, Malaysia. Biodiversitas 22: 2685-2692. The severe weather changes in the Sabah state of Malaysia have raised a great concern for us to address it through environmental awareness. Addressing the problem is important because Sabah is one of the main tourist destinations in Malaysia with its beautiful biodiversity, flora and fauna. Hence, this paper examines the level and relationship between environmental awareness and green product consumption behavior in Sabah. Here, we mainly measure environmental awareness using proxies of awareness towards climate change issues. A systematic questionnaire survey was conducted to 300 respondents of Sabah, including Tawau, Lahad Datu, Sandakan, and Kota Kinabalu. The descriptive statistics results show that people in Sabah have a high level of environmental awareness and green product consumption. In particular, they aware to conserve and preserve the tropical rainforest ecosystem and consume green products for future generations benefits. However, to note that there is still a low Sabahan's awareness about impact of overuse of natural resources and the importance of consuming green products in daily life. The estimate of the relationship between both variables shows a positive and statistically significant effect, especially in Kota Kinabalu. Also, the effect is pronounced when we address potential endogeneity bias in the baseline model. This study suggests that the government, policymakers, and youngsters continuously spread the benefits of green product consumption. This is because an increase in environmental awareness possibly helps mitigate environmental issues and lead to better biodiversity conservation and economic improvement in Sabah and Malaysia.

Prastyaningsih SR, Hardiwinoto S, Musyafa, Koranto CAD. 2020. Diversity of termites (Isoptera) on industrial forest plantation of Eucalyptus pellita stands of tropical ecosystem in Riau, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 21: 5498-5505. Eucalyptus pellita is an alternative tree species for pulp and paper of industrial forest plantation. One of the forest plantation’s negative effect is the loss of biodiversity and vulnerable to pest and disease. Termites are one of the pests attacking the forest plantations and play an important role in the ecological process. Need a better understanding of the termite role ecosystem process in E. pellita stands. This research aimed to determine the diversity of termite species found in E. pellita stands at different rotation and ages of stands. Termite diversity sampled by the transect sampling method in the 4th and 5th rotation with four-level ages (1, 2, 3, 4-years-old). The transect area was divided into 24 plots (100 m x 2 m). The termites in the Eucalyptus stand consist of two families (Termitidae and Rhinotermitidae), five subfamilies (Termitinae, Macrotermitinae, Nasutitermitinae, Rhinotermitinae, and Coptotermitinae), and eight species (Discupiditermes nemorosus, Macrotermes gilvus, Termes rostatus, Amitermes dentatus, Microcerotermes sp., Nasutitermes matangensis, Schedorhinotermes medioobscurus, and Coptotermes havilandi). The diversity index (H) in the 4th rotation was 1.95, while in the 5th rotation was 1.63, with a similarity in the Sorensen Index of 87.71%. The existence of termites is dominated by the wood feeder group. The species richness of the termites at the two rotations increased with the increase of the stand age.. The relative abundance composition of termites in the 5th rotation, is higher than the 4th rotation. Termite occurrence was influenced by necromass, tree biomass, humidity, and temperature.

Lillo EP, Malaki AB, Alcazar SMT, Redoblando BR, Diaz JLB, Pinote JP, Rosales R, Buot IE Jr. 2020. Native trees in Nug-as forest Key Biodiversity Area, Cebu, Philippines. Biodiversitas 21: 4162-4167. Threatened species, by definition, have a high probability of extinction, and so each of their populations significantly contributes to their survival. This paper presents a list of threatened Native trees in Nug-as forest of the Municipality of Alcoy, Cebu. A list of indicators was used to identify the conservation status of the Native trees at the local level. A total of 135 native trees from 48 families and 105 genera were recorded. Most species belong to the families of Euphorbiaceae, Lauraceae, Moraceae, Clusiaceae, Myrtaceae, Meliaceae, Fabaceae, and Rutaceae. In this study, 62 species were categorized as threatened, and 72 species as Least Concern, while in IUCN classification 19 threatened species were recorded, and 111 taxa considered as Least Concern respectively. Using the DENR method of classification 15 threatened species were recorded, and 115 taxa considered as Not Evaluated. The Nug-as forest was degraded by illegal cutting, kaingin, hunting and charcoal making. Based from Beynen and Townsend analysis, Nug-as forest was categorized as moderately disturbed. While DENR and IUCN declaration on the status of the Philippine native trees take a very long time, threatened plant species would be gone before we know it, considering the destruction rate in the Philippines.

Landicho LD, Ocampo MTNP, Cabahug RED, Baliton RS, Andalecio E, Inocencio R, Servanez M, Cosico RSA, Abadillos MG, Catillo AKA. 2020. Tiger grass (Thysanolaena maxima) cultivation in CALSANAG watershed in Romblon, Philippines: dilemmas and prospects for sustainable natural resources management. Biodiversitas 21: 2322-2330. Promoting sustainable natural resources management is a complex issue such that striking a balance between socioeconomic productivity and environmental integrity remains a challenge. This paper highlights the results of a study conducted from April to December 2019, which assessed the state of natural resources management in Barangay Marinorte, Romblon, which is part of the CALSANAG (Calatrava, San Andres, and San Agustin) Watershed. Biophysical characterization was done to determine land use and biodiversity, while farm household survey was administered to 133 farmers to characterize their socioeconomic conditions. Results showed that all of the farmer-respondents were engaged in the production of tiger grass (Thysanolaena maxima Roxb), where most of the farm households derived an estimated annual income of >Php50,000. Although their household income is higher as compared to other upland farming communities in the Philippines, most of them expressed that their income is insufficient since tiger grass is harvested only once a year, and the farmers have no alternative sources of income. On the other hand, biophysical characterization revealed the following: the farms are generally rainfed, have rolled to steep slopes, and have indications of low soil fertility, soil erosion incidence, and very low level of biodiversity (0.92). Most of the farmers practiced "slash-and-burn" to cultivate tiger grass as a single crop and hence, the forest cover has declined. A multi-agency collaboration jointly initiated agroforestry promotion in the upland farming communities through capability-building of upland farmers in agroforestry and establishment of tiger grass-based agroforestry model which showcases the economic and ecological viability of agroforestry systems in CALSANAG Watershed.

Windadri F I, Rosalina D. 2020. Short Communication: Mosses from Laiwangi-Wanggameti National Park, Sumba, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 21: 538-545. Sumba Island is an island within the Lesser Sunda Islands. Despite the high diversity and the uniqueness of the area, research to explore the biodiversity in the national park have been rarely conducted. This study was aimed to do inventory of mosses diversity in Laiwangi-Wanggameti National Park, Sumba Island, East Nusa Tenggara Province to enrich the limited information regarding biodiversity in the region. The inventory was done using explorative methods at two research sites (i.e. Laiwangi and Wanggameti), mainly around lake, along river banks, stream banks, site of mount tracking trail and forests. All the mosses found in the study site were collected and then identified based on existing literature and herbarium records. We found 33 species of mosses belonging to 24 genera and 16 families. There were 22 species that shared similarity between Sumba Island and the Lesser Sunda Islands. We proposed that there were 11species of mosses as new records of their distribution in the Lesser Sunda Islands. The ecology and taxonomical status of mosses in the study sites were also described in this paper.

Kostryukova AM, Mashkova V, Krupnova TG, Egorov NO. 2018. Phytoplankton biodiversity and its relationship with aquatic environmental factors in Lake Uvildy, South Urals, Russia. Biodiversitas 19: 1422-1428. Lake Uvildy is one of the largest and the most unique of the South Ural region lakes. This mountain deep lake, which has the status of a natural monument. The purpose of this paper was to study the phytoplankton community structure and the aquatic environmental factors in Lake Uvildy. The phytoplankton samples were collected from 5 sites of Lake Uvildy, then filtered through the plankton net and were preserved in 5% formalin. Species were identified using the handbooks by Sladecek, Yarushina, and Al-Kandari. Water samples were taken for water quality analysis. The several physicochemical parameters were measured in situ by a Portable Meters (Multitest IPL-513 and Multitest KSL-111, Semico Ltd, Russia, Novosibirsk). The others parameters were measured in the laboratory of the Department of Chemistry of the South Ural State University according to the standard methods. The sampling was made during the vegetation period in June-July 2014. The water quality was evaluated using the Shannon biodiversity index. A total of 38 species (11 phyla, 31 genera), including 9 species of Chlorophyta, 13 species of Bacillariophyta, 9 species of Cyanophyta, 4 species of Euglenophyta, 2 species of Chrysophyta, 1 species of Dinophyta, were identified. The phytoplankton species in the lake were mainly represented by Cyanophyta and Bacillariophyta. There were 5 dominant species: Fragilaria crotonensis, Asterionella formosa, Dolichospermum lemmermannii, Microcystis aeruginosa, and Coenococcus planktonicus. The Shannon index value comprised 1.27-2.21. According to the saprobity index values (1.63-2.35), the water in the late is evaluated as satisfactorily clean. Physico-chemical parameters were factors driving the change in phytoplankton community composition in Lake Uvildy.

Mashkova IV, Krupnova TG, Kostryukova AM, Vlasov NE. 2018. Short Communication: Biodiversity of weeds in Ilmen State Reserve, Russia. Biodiversitas 19: 106-111. Weeds are a synanthropic flora. Human exposure to the natural landscape leads to the spread of synanthropic plant species, so weeds begin to occupy a significant place in the structure of ecosystem biodiversity. The aim of this study was to investigate the weeds biodiversity structure and to assess the extent of invasion of weeds into the territory of the Ilmen State Reserve in South Urals, Russia. This paper presents the results of study of weeds during the vegetation period in 2013–2017. Fifty one species of weeds distributed in four genera and six families were found on the territory of the Southern Forestry of the Ilmen State Reserve. Besides, the differences between species diversity of weeds on three types of roads (gravel, earth and foot) and on two types of forests (birch and pine) were also discovered in this study . The greatest degree of invasion was discovered for foot roads. It was noted that pine forest is the most resistant the invasion of weeds.

Susintowati, Puniawati N, Poedjirahajoe, Handayani NSN, Hadisusanto S. 2019. The intertidal gastropods (Gastropoda: Mollusca) diversity and taxa distribution in Alas Purwo National Park, East Java, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 20: 2016-2027. Gastropods play an essential role in the ecosystem and can be used as bioindicators of environmental pollution. Understanding of their behavior, habitat, and distribution, and how these factors evolve, is crucial. This paper aimed to describe the diversity of the gastropod community and their spatial taxa distribution, based on the specimen frequency across all observed samples, in the diverse environment of Alas Purwo National Park (APNP), East Java, Indonesia. We studied eight beaches and two mangroves areas, and the study areas of the intertidal zone divided into upper, middle, and lower zones towards the sea. The purposive sampling was used to determine the locations and multi-plot quadrats for observations. The diversity of gastropods was elucidated by using the Shannon and Simpson indexes, while the Morisita index was applied for analyzing their spatial distribution pattern. However, the correspondence analysis and principal component analysis were performed using the software of PAST 3.22 for describing the diversity profile and individual rarefaction of gastropods together with environmental quality. There were three beach types: rocky, sandy, and muddy beaches were found in APNP. The highest diversity index (H’) was found on Pancur beach: H’ = 3.271, D = 0.947 of 67 species. The spatial distribution pattern of gastropods species was weakly clumped to random, with Ip: 0.165 - 0.016. Gastropods, both predators and scavengers, were distributed from the upper to lower zones. The distribution of gastropods in APNP is mostly in type B. These results expand our knowledge of gastropods diversity and distribution of Indonesia’s beach and can contribute to the future environmental assessments of biodiversity of tropical intertidal zones worldwide.

Rahayu EMD, Yusri S. 2016. Georeferencing orchids specimen history cards in Bogor Botanic Gardens to increase their use for conservation efforts. Biodiversitas 17: 510-514. Orchids are considered valuable plant resource but overharvesting and habitat conversion have threatened their population. Bogor Botanic Gardens (Kebun Raya Bogor; BBG) stores millions of plant specimens, including orchids, taken from the wild or captivity. Origin of specimens is recorded in specimen tags and cards, where each of these can be converted to species occurrence datum for investigations of biodiversity, its relationship with the environment, evaluating conservation efforts and anthropogenic disturbances along spatial or temporal scales. However, data from tags and cards available are often insufficient because localities are typically being recorded as textual descriptions, without geographic coordinates, thus making analysis using Geographical Information System (GIS) tools difficult. In this paper, we reviewed the use of online resources (i.e. GoogleMapsâ„¢, ProtectedPlanet.net) for georeferencing specimen cards and Quantum GIS as a GIS tool to store and display the data. Specimen cards from the chosen genera of orchid in BBG were reviewed. The georeferencing process encountered several obstacles, includes: geographically biased locations, changes in spatial-administrative borders, unregistered location name, unavailability of location name in online resources, and typographic errors during specimen recording process. We also encounter quality difference along georeferenced records, some are good quality (i.e. record coordinates or nearest village) and some are poor (only record the provinces). Georeferencing is an underappreciated task, but once it is done, it can be used for future expeditionary research, national conservation planning, species status review, and other large scale analysis for both spatial and temporal scales.

Sutradhar B, Deb D, Majumdar K, Datta BK. 2015. Traditional dye yielding plants of Tripura, Northeast India. Biodiversitas 16: 121-127. This present paper deals with the survey of traditional dye yielding plants, their ethnobotanical usage and cultural practices by the different ethnic communities of Tripura. Field investigation was carried out in different villages and adjacent forest pockets in South and West district of the State. The ethnobotanical information was collected based on semi-structured questioner, personal interviews and group discussion among the major ethnic communities of Tripura. The study reports a checklist of 39 species of dye yielding plants belonging to 35 genera and 26 families documented along with their vernacular name, habit, parts use. The active coloring agents were also listed for each plant based on earlier reports. Natural dye yielding plants have immense significance in the socio-economic and socio-cultural life of indigenous ethnic people and if we promote these products in a managed way then efforts towards preservation of traditional knowledge and local biodiversity will be more fruitfully achieved. Keywords: Dye yielding plants, indigenous knowledge, natural products, Tripura