Species of the month - Hoya lasiantha

A flowering specimen of Hoya lasiantha was recently observed by Chan Y.M., a well-known botanist, in the Bukit Lagong forest, near the Park.

Hoya is a popular ornamental plant, with around 200-300 species of Hoya around the world, mainly in Asia, including India, China, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.  Within Peninsular Malaysia, 26 species have been recorded.

Hoya are also known as waxplant or waxvines, and are often epiphytic creepers or vines.  Hoya have attractive scented flowers that grow in cute umbrella like bunches, called umbels. Many flowers produce abundant nectar, making them attractive to insects.

Hoya lasiantha is commonly considered rare, and is recorded from lowland forests in Selangor (Ulu Gombak and Semenyih thus likely within the Park) and Perak.  H. lasiantha is also known from Johor (Labis and Endau-Rompin), with the latest collection from Hulu Terengganu (Tembat).  However, according to Y.M. Chan, “the species may be more common in the peninsula than previously thought.  The reason it is rarely collected could be because it is not easily spotted as the epiphytic plant usually grows in the canopy.”

Extracted from:

Conservation Malaysia bulletin, Issue no. 18(2013), write up by Chan Y.M.

Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoya