Short Communication: Incidence of insect pest on planted Shorea macrophylla at reforestation sites in Gunung Apeng National Park, Sarawak, Malaysia

Sidi MB, Wasli ME, Polly E, Jaffar ANNM, Kalu M, Sani H, Nahrawi H, Elias H, Omar D. 2021. Short Communication: Incidence of insect pest on planted Shorea macrophylla at reforestation sites in Gunung Apeng National Park, Sarawak, Malaysia. Biodiversitas 22: 5162-5168. Incidence of insect pest in Shorea macrophylla (de Vriese) P.S. Ashton had critical foliage damage in mono planting technique. The main objectives were to assess the foliage damage intensity of planted S. macrophylla by age stands and type of foliage damage. The insect pest attacks the foliage of S. macrophylla was determined. The study site was located at Gunung Apeng National Park (GANP), Sarawak, Malaysia, with planted S. macrophylla in enrichment planting at different years (planted in 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011 for age stand 6, 5, 4, and 3, respectively). The results showed that the degree of foliage damage decreases with the age stand of S. macrophylla tree. Therefore, foliage damage was suspected to be caused by insect pests. Among the common foliage damages observed was "hole damage" caused by insect order Lepidoptera. Although foliage damage was significant, the severity of the damage will "heal" as the age stand increases. Further investigation on other possible causes of these pest attacks should be initiated to find solutions that may hasten the growth of planted S. macrophylla for forest restoration.

Community awareness and participation in biodiversity conservation at Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, Vietnam

Truong DD. 2021. Community awareness and participation in biodiversity conservation at Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, Vietnam. Biodiversitas 23: 583-594. Local community's perception and attitude towards biodiversity conservation are essential to the sustainable management of national parks in Vietnam. The conservation of biodiversity in national parks is facing pressures from economic development activities, which has led to the degradation of the ecological values ??of the national parks. People's awareness and their participation in conservation management are crucial to the sustainable management of national parks. This study examined the awareness and participation of local people in biodiversity conservation at Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park (PN-KBNP), Vietnam. PN-KB is one of the national parks with the highest biodiversity values ??in Vietnam and is recognized by UNESCO as a world heritage site. To assess participation in conservation management, the study implemented a Contingent Valuation Method for estimating the willingness to pay of households in the buffer zone for biodiversity conservation in PN-KBNP. A survey was implemented to 358 households randomly selected in five communes adjacent to the park. Focus group discussions and in-depth interviews with selected key informants were also practiced for the management of insight information. The result showed that local villagers generally hold a fairly high perception of biodiversity values and positive attitudes towards biodiversity conservation at PN-KBNP. This positive perception comes from the close interaction between household livelihoods and the national park on a daily basis. However, awareness of national park management rules are not high. In addition, local people are willing to sacrifice part of their income to conserve biodiversity for current and future generations. On an average, each household was willing to pay 297,000 VND/year for biodiversity conservation. Payment levels, age, length of residency and education were observed to significantly impact on villagers' participation in biodiversity conservation initiatives. The balance between development and conservation was found to be the key in Park management, where communities need to be given more power to plan, monitor and implement conservation activities while establishing clear forest land user right for households and communities.

Isolation and characterization of soil actinobacteria as cellulolytic enzyme producer from Aceh Besar, Indonesia

Fitri L, Bessania MA, Septi N, Suhartono S. 2021. Isolation and characterization of soil actinobacteria as cellulolytic enzyme producer from Aceh Besar, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 22: 5169-5180. Cellulolytic actinobacteria are cellulase-producing bacteria capable of degrading cellulose. This study aimed to isolate, characterize, evaluate the cellulolytic ability, and to determine physiological characterization of soil cellulolytic actinobacteria isolated from the Ujung Pancu area, Aceh Besar. Isolation of actinobacteria from soil samples was performed using serial dilution method on Yeast Malt Agar (YMA) medium. Morphological characterization was carried out by growing isolates on YMA, Oatmeal Agar (OA), and Yeast Starch Agar (YSA) media. Cellulolytic ability was determined by calculating the cellulolytic index (IS) on 1% carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) medium after adding 0.1% congo red solution. Physiological characterization of cellulolytic actinobacteria tested in this study was salinity, pH, and carbon source in liquid Yeast Malt (liquid YM), and the growth was measured at a wavelength of 581nm. The results showed that a total of nine isolates of actinobacteria were isolated, which belonged to the genus Streptomyces. Cellulolytic test results showed that eight isolates had the ability to degrade cellulose. Isolates AUP-04, AUP-03, and AUP-01 had the highest cellulolytic index value. Physiological characterization results revealed that three isolates had different tolerances for salinity levels, pH, and types of carbon sources. AUP-03 isolate grew well at 10% salinity with an OD value of 0.88, isolate AUP-01 grew at 5% salinity with an OD value of 0.49, whereas isolate AUP-04 grew well on media that did not contain salinity. All three isolates grew well at pH 6 with OD values of 0.93, 1.12, and 1.27. AUP-03 and AUP-01 isolates grew well on media containing dextrose as carbon source with OD values of 0.154 and 0.17, respectively, while isolate AUP-04 grew well on glucose-containing media with an OD value of 0.22.

Seed germination evaluation of Phalaenopsis amabilis in various media for long-term conservation

Puspitaningtyas DM, Handini E. 2021. Seed germination evaluation of Phalaenopsis amabilis in various media for long-term conservation. Biodiversitas 22: 5231-5238. Phalaenopsis amabilis (L.) Blume (moon orchid) is one of Indonesia's national flowers, which is mentioned in Presidential Decree No. 4/1993. Study on the orchid seed of P. amabilis was conducted to observe the longevity of seeds storage. The purpose of this study was to determine the viability of P. amabilis seeds after storage for years, then to predict the life span of the seeds, and to find out the best media germination for P. amabilis seeds. After harvesting, P. amabilis seeds were stored at –20 °C and the germination tests were carried out periodically in different periods until the seeds lose their viability to determine the optimum conditions for long-term seed storage. Four trial media cultures have been used to test seed germination by means of in vitro culture. The result showed that seeds of P. amabilis were able to germinate in 4 media i.e. Knudson C, modified Knudson C, modified Vacin & Went and modified leaf fertilizer. The best germination was on leaf fertilizer medium. Based on the research showed that the viability seeds of P. amabilis decreased sharply after 6 years stored. By using regression analysis, the life span of the seeds could be predicted can reach 9 years of storage which is sowing on the best media (leaf fertilizer).

Phenotypic and genetic diversity of watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) in East Java, Indonesia

Amzeri A, Badami K, Pawana G, Alfiyan Syah M, Daryono BS. 2021. Phenotypic and genetic diversity of watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) in East Java, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 22: 5223-5230. The assembly of hybrid watermelon (Citrullus lanatus Thumb.) varieties with superior characters is an effort to meet the needs of watermelon seeds in Indonesia and reduce dependence on imports of watermelon seeds. The morphological characterization of exploratory watermelon plants is needed to support the assembly of superior varieties because morphological characterization will reveal the characteristics of each watermelon tested. In addition, the genetic and phenotypic diversity coefficients, heritability, and correlation between characters are needed to support the assembling of the desired variety. This research aimed to determine morphological diversity, genetic and phenotypic diversity coefficients, heritability, and correlation among characters of watermelon from East Java, Indonesia. The research used a randomized complete block design with ten genotypes as treatment and three replications,. The observed morphological characters were quantitative and qualitative characters. The number of characters was 60 characters. Eight quantitative characters, i.e., flowering date, harvesting date, fruit length, fruit diameter, skin thickness, fruit total soluble solids, number of seeds, and fruit weight were used to calculate the genetic and phenotypic diversity coefficient, heritability, and correlation between characters. Quantitative character data were subjected to analysis of variance, followed with a Duncan Multiple Range Test (p<0.05). The results showed that (i) Grouping based on morphological characters produces dendrograms with similarity coefficients ranging from 0.58 to 0.86 or there was a morphological diversity of 0.14 to 0.42, (ii) The phenotypic diversity coefficient (PDC) was greater than the genotypic diversity coefficient (PDC) in all observed quantitative characters, (iii) The broad sense Heritability values ?? of the tested watermelon genotypes ranged from 0.33 to 0.99, (iv) Fruit weight was significantly and positively correlated with fruit diameter, skin thickness, and number of seeds, (v) G1, G2, and G6 were the genotypes that can be used as parents to assemble superior watermelon varieties.

Genome analysis of Lysinibacillus sphaericus isolate 6.2 pathogenic to Culex quinquefasciatus Say, 1823 (Diptera: Culicidae)

Viersanova A, Purwanto H. 2021. Genome analysis of Lysinibacillus sphaericus isolate 6.2 pathogenic to Culex quinquefasciatus Say, 1823 (Diptera: Culicidae). Biodiversitas 22: 5211-5222. Lysinibacillus sphaericus is an entomopathogenic bacteria that is specific to vector mosquitoes, especially Culex spp., and Anopheles spp., so it has been widely used as a bioinsecticide. L. sphaericus has a wide variation of toxicity efficiencies, which have led to continuous exploration of new isolates with higher toxicity and a new toxin to deal with resistance problems. This study aimed to identify the genomic characteristics and toxin characteristics of isolate 6.2 based on whole genome analysis and analyze the identification of isolate 6.2. Isolate 6.2 was previously obtained from rhizosphere in Yogyakarta. To analyze the genome and toxins, the NGS technique was used and then the analysis was carried out using a couple of freely available bioinformatics tools. Molecular identification was carried out with the 16SrRNA gene and the relationship was analyzed by reconstructing the phylogenetic tree using Neighbours-Joining. The genomic analysis of isolate 6.2 showed good results with G+C content and genome size that matched the reference genome of L. sphaericus. The result of the 16SrRNA gene blasting showed that the closest related gene of isolate 6.2 is L. fusiformis (NR_042072.1). However, the reconstructed phylogenetic tree did not show the formation of clusters according to the species. Toxin analysis indicates that isolate 6.2 has Mtx, s-layer protein, hemolysin, and chitin-binding protein genes. All of which are known to be associated with the toxicity of L. sphaericus to binary toxin resistant population of Culex quinquefasciatus.

Honey sugars profile of stingless bee Tetragonula laeviceps (Hymenoptera: Meliponinae)

Agus A, Agussalim, Sahlan M, Sabir A. 2021. Honey sugars profile of stingless bee Tetragonula laeviceps (Hymenoptera: Meliponinae). Biodiversitas 22: 5205-5210. Honey was a functional food to improve human health, but irresponsible people used this circumstance to make fake honey. This study aimed to evaluate the profile of the sugar of stingless bee honey [Tetragonula laeviceps (Smith, 1857)] from different geographical origins in Indonesia. Honey, three samples were directly collected from three other sources for meliponiculture of T. laeviceps in Indonesia: Sleman, Klaten, and Gunungkidul. The honey sugars profile was analyzed: glucose, fructose, sucrose, reducing sugar, the sum of fructose and glucose, glucose to moisture ratio, fructose to glucose ratio, and honey pH. Glucose and fructose were analyzed by HPLC, sucrose by Luff Schoorl, reducing the sugar by Layne-Enyon, and pH by a pH meter. The current findings revealed that the geographical origins had a highly significant effect on glucose, fructose, the sum of fructose and glucose, glucose to moisture ratio, fructose to glucose ratio, and honey pH (P<0.01) and significant effect on reducing sugar (P<0.05), but not on sucrose content. Thus, it can be concluded that the origins were affecting the honey sugars profile and honey from Sleman has the highest sugars content, followed by honey from Klaten and the lower was honey from Gunungkidul.

Species diversity, abundance, and wildlife conservation status in Batang Gadis National Park, North Sumatra, Indonesia

Rambe IF, Rambey R, Siregar S. 2021. Species diversity, abundance, and wildlife conservation status in Batang Gadis National Park, North Sumatra, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 22: 5189-5196. Indonesia is one of the countries with the highest biodiversity in the world. Furthermore, the biodiversity of floral and faunal species is still being monitored and maintained, one of which is in the forest of the National Park. Batang Gadis National Park is a habitat for various species of endemic Sumatran wildlife, most of which are endangered species in the world. Therefore, this study aimed to inventory wild animals and to calculate their abundance in the Batang Gadis National Park. The study used camera traps as recording devices that were installed on permanent and non-permanent plots based on evidential animal trajectories in the National Park Management Section Region III Resort 7 Forest of Ampung Padang Forest in 2018. In the permanent plot, 10 species were documented within nine families, namely the Felidae, Tapiridae, Cervidae, Viverridae, Ursidae, Tragulidae, Suidae, Tupaiidae, and the Cercopithecidae. The highest species abundance was Macaca nemestrina (36.17%), and the second-highest was Muntiacus muntjak Zimmermann (14.89%), and then Tapirus indicus Desmarest (10,64%). Also, the Sumatran tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae Pocock) was in the fourth position with a value of 10.63% of species abundance. Meanwhile, the lowest abundance index value was from clouded leopard (Neofelis diardi Cuvier) with 2.12%. The abundance of species from the non-permanent plots using camera trap documented a total of 13 species with 12 families namely Felidae, Tapiridae, Cervidae, Hystricidae, Viverridae, Muridae, Phasianidae, Tragulidae, Suidae, Muscicapidae, Tupaiidae, and Cercopithecidae. The highest was documented from wild boar (Sus scrofa Linnaeus) at 42.48% and the second-highest species abundance was macaque (N. nemestrina) at 26.144%. The lowest species abundance index values were tapir (T. indicus) and Javan blue robin (Myiomela diana Lesson) with 0,33% and 0,33 %, respectively. The existence of documented wildlife species in our study affirmsed the importance of Batang Gadis National Park as a natural habitat for some key and protected species.

Molecular identification and morphological description of Theloderma albopunctatum tadpoles from the Phu Khiao-Nam Nao Forest Complex, northeastern Thailand

Chunskul J, Thongproh P, Simmasian W, Arkajag J, Tongpun S, Kanishthajata P, Prompalad S, Duangjai S, Duengkae P, Phochayavanich R, Chuaynkern C, Chuaynkern Y. 2021. Molecular identification and morphological description of Theloderma albopunctatum tadpoles from the Phu Khiao-Nam Nao Forest Complex, northeastern Thailand. Biodiversitas 22: 5145-5161. Presently, tadpole description of an external morphology and internal oral features of Theloderma albopunctatum (Anura, Rhacophoridae) is unknown. Therefore, this study aimed to describe tadpoles of T. albopunctatum from the Phu Khiao-Nam Nao Forest Complex in northeastern Thailand based molecular and morphological characters. Tadpole identification was based on molecular analyses. The 16S and COI sequences of the T. albopunctutatum tadpole had a genetic distance of 0% and 0.15% with the adults from Phu Luang Wildlife Sanctuary and Nam Nao National Park, respectively. Bayesian inference analyses of 16S, 16S+COI, and BDNF + SIA + RHO + TYR strongly supported the identity of tadpole and adults T. albopunctatum tadpoles are of medium size, with a black to ashy gray body that turns dark brown in preservative, they also exhibit elliptical body depressions and follow the keratodont row formula 1:2+2/1+1:2 or 1:1+1/1+1:1. T. albopunctatum tadpoles are generally similar to T. asperum.

Accelerated growth of Kappaphycus alvarezii using Sargassum aquifolium extract and its anatomical characteristics

Cokrowati N, Risjani Y, Firdaus M, Andayani S. 2021. Accelerated growth of Kappaphycus alvarezii using Sargassum aquifolium extract and its anatomical characteristics. Biodiversitas 22: 5195-5202. Cultivation of Kappaphycus alvarezii seaweed has been carried out in Ekas Bay of Jerowaru Sub-district, East Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia but its production has decreased in the last three years due to its slow growth. In 2014, seaweed production was 1,882,875.50 tons and in 2017 it was 1,037,000 tons. Efforts are needed to increase growth by providing growth triggers from marine natural ingredients, namely Sargassum aquifolium. These brown algae can be found in the waters of Ekas Bay, the numbers are abundant and untapped. The purpose of this study was to analyze the growth of K. alvarezii given S. aquifolium extract. This research was conducted in the waters of Ekas Bay. The method used is experimental. The experimental design used was a completely randomized design with different treatments of K. alvarezii soaking time using S. aquifolium extract. The results showed that the growth of K. alvarezii given S. aquifolium extract increased and was significantly different between treatments. The highest absolute weight was 479 g in treatment A (soaking for 2 hours) and the lowest absolute weight was 181.25 g in treatment K (control). The highest growth rate occurred on the 18th day, namely 9.24% and the lowest was in the K treatment (control) which was 1.3%.