A list of plants from Cameron’s Highlands, Pahang
M.R. Henderson, a botanist affiliated with the Straits Settlements, published this comprehensive floristic checklist of Cameron’s Highlands in 1927, drawing on three field visits between 1923 and 1925 to document the plant communities of an area then under active consideration for development as a hill station. The article serves as the first systematic botanical inventory of the highlands, recording species across all major families, describing four new species, and identifying a substantial number of endemics restricted to the area.
Summary
Henderson’s work is fundamentally a taxonomic checklist organised by family, but it is framed by a brief but valuable ecological and phytogeographical introduction. He situates Cameron’s Highlands at the headwaters of the Bertam River in Pahang and traces the earlier botanical history of the area, noting Leonard Wray’s 1890 crossing and Ridley’s 1908 expedition (which, Henderson argues, actually collected at Lubok Tamang rather than on the highlands proper, and misidentified the Bertam as the Telom river). His own three visits—June 1923, January 1924, and November 1925—provided the empirical basis for the list, though the 1925 expedition was cut short by wet weather, limiting orchid collections despite the area’s extraordinary orchid diversity.
The ecological observations, though brief, are significant. Henderson documents the vertical zonation of vegetation: the absence of Dipterocarps above roughly 3,500 feet, the dominance of species such as Xanthophyllum, Gordonia, Saurauia, and Calophyllum in the montane forest, the transition to “mossy forest” on summit ridges, and the “elfin forest” of gnarled, moss-covered trees no more than 10–15 feet tall on the summit of Gunong Batu Brinchang (6,665 feet). He also records a 16-acre clearing made in September 1923 for meteorological purposes and documents the rapid secondary succession that followed, with Litsea citrata, Mallotus spp., Macaranga sp., and Blumea balsamifera colonising the felled area within a little over a year. A curious natural swamp below Foster’s Hill, destitute of trees but dense with Baeckia frutescens, Hedychium paludosum (new species), Rhododendron jasminiflorum, and Nepenthes spp., is described as a formation with no connection to the river and no drainage outlet.
The checklist itself spans approximately 40 pages and covers the full range of vascular plant families represented in the area. Henderson provides locality, elevation, collection number, flowering or fruiting season, and a brief note on distribution and endemism for each taxon. The F.M.S. Museum Series and Singapore Field Number Series are used for specimen references.
Key Findings
- Four new species are formally described: Sonerila Whittyi (Melastomataceae), Vitex Millsii (Verbenaceae), Hedychium paludosum (Zingiberaceae), and Bulbophyllum Hodgsoni (Orchidaceae) (pp. 240, 249, 262, 269).
- A list of 30 species is identified as known only from the Cameron’s Highlands area, of which 26 are endemic to the area and four (Sarcopyramis nepalensis, Sanicula europaea, Cyrtophyllum speciosum var. montanum, Ophiopogon intermedius, Disporum pullum) have extra-Peninsular distributions (p. 240).
- Meteorological data from the Tanah Rata station (1924–1926) record annual rainfall of 114.49, 144.91, and 109.46 inches respectively, with mean humidity of 85–90.1% and mean minimum temperatures of 55.5–56.0°F (p. 238).
- No Dipterocarps occur in the area; the canopy is dominated by Xanthophyllum, Gordonia, Saurauia, Calophyllum, Garcinia, Amoora, Dysoxylon, and related genera. Dacrydium elatum occurs at approximately 3,500 feet and D. Beccarii at 5,000 feet (pp. 238–239).
- The summit of Gunong Batu Brinchang (6,665 feet) supports “elfin forest” of trees 10–15 feet tall, while Bambusa elegans forms dense thickets on ridge crests at approximately 6,000 feet (p. 239).
- A 16-acre clearing made in September 1923 had, by November 1925, been colonised by Litsea citrata (10–15 feet tall), Mallotus spp., Macaranga sp., Blumea balsamifera, Musa sp., Vitis, and Uncaria, demonstrating rapid secondary succession (pp. 239–240).
Conclusion
Henderson’s definitive contribution is the establishment of a baseline floristic record for Cameron’s Highlands at the moment of its transition from unexplored wilderness to planned hill station. The list of 30 species known only from the area, combined with the four new species descriptions, underscores the high degree of endemism and the phytogeographical distinctiveness of the highlands. The article implicitly argues that the area’s botanical richness—particularly its orchid diversity, which was only partially captured due to adverse weather—warranted careful consideration before large-scale development proceeded.
Context
- Specimen references draw on the F.M.S. Museum Series (numbers up to 11,786) and the Singapore Field Number Series (numbers above 11,786), with some material from Dyak and Forest Department collections held at the F.M.S. Museum (p. 241).
- The article represents the first comprehensive floristic treatment of the area and remains a foundational reference for the botany of Cameron’s Highlands; it predates the establishment of the hill station and thus documents the pre-development vegetation.