The Seashore Life of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Volume 4:
Beachcombing
by
Roger McIlroy
and
Monique Desvoyes
Photographs
by
Roger McIlroy (RM)
Monique Desvoyes (MD)
Claudia and Walter Obendrauf (CO)
Novi E. Yusniasita Dols (NY)
Hans Dols (HD)
1st Edition: Jan 2009
Panaga Natural History Society
Panaga, Seria, Brunei Darussalam
1) Cerbera (Pong-Pong) 2) Seashore Screwpine (Pandan) 3) Excocaria (Gurah) 4) Rhizophora (Bakau Kurap)
5) Casuarina (Aru, Ru) 6) Sea Almond (Ketapang) 7) Alexandrine Laurel (Penaga Laut) 8) Nipa (Abong)
9) Xylocarpus (Nyireh Bunga) 10) Acacia (Akacia) 11) Lithocarpus (Langguai Ambok, Mempening) 12)
Bruguiera (Lenggadai)
This group of the commonest drift seeds or “disseminules” found on Panaga Beach by
Claudia Obendrauf captures the diversity of form, texture and colour which makes a
collection so interesting (CO)
Printed by
Brunei Press Commercial Printing Services
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.bruneipress.com.bn
Tel: +673 245 6170
1st Edition published in Jan 2009
ISBN 99917-32-24-1
Copyright © 2009 in text: Roger McIlroy and Monique Desvoyes
Copyright © 2009 in photographs: Roger McIlroy, Monique Desvoyes and Claudia Obendrauf or as credited
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted,
in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior
written permission of the copyright holders.
Contact the authors and find out more about this series via:
PNHS website: http://www.bsp.com.bn/panagaclub/pnhs/
Cover Photograph: The complete giant composite seedhead of the Nypa Palm Nypa fruticans is a sought after
find for the beachcomber (RM)
Printed in Brunei Darussalam
All proceeds from this series will support the Heart of Borneo initiative.
Contents
Section 1:
Beachcombing...................................................................... 1
Alexandrine Laurel (Penaga Laut)................................................. 8
Artocarpus (Chempedak and Jackfruit)........................................ 9
Avicennia (Api-Api)..................................................................... 9
Barringtonia, Box Fruit (Putat Laut)............................................ 10
Belian, Ironwood (Belian)............................................................ 13
Bluemeodendron (Gangulang)..................................................... 15
Bruguiera (Lenggadai, Mata Buaya).............................................. 17
Cashew (Jagus)............................................................................. 18
Casuarina (Aru,Ru)...................................................................... 19
Cerbera (Pong-pong).................................................................... 20
Coconut (Kelapa)......................................................................... 23
Dalbergia, Coin Vine or Coin Plant............................................. 23
Dioclea, Sea Purse........................................................................ 24
Dipterocarps (Pengiran)............................................................... 25
Durian (Durian).......................................................................... 26
Entada......................................................................................... 27
Eugeissona (Tanjang pipit, Rumbia Bukit)................................... 28
Excoecaria (Gurah, Apid-apid)..................................................... 29
Heritiera (Itik-itikan, Dungun laut)............................................. 30
Hodgsonia................................................................................... 31
Intsia (Merbau, Ipil, Kwila).......................................................... 32
Kapayang (Kapayang).................................................................. 32
Kulim (Kulim, Bawang hutan)..................................................... 33
Lithocarpus (Mempening)........................................................... 33
Mallotus (Mallotus)..................................................................... 34
Mango (Mangga)......................................................................... 35
Mucuna....................................................................................... 36
Mengkulat (Mengkulat, Buak-buak jari itik)................................ 37
Nickar Nut (Sapang).................................................................... 37
Nypa Palm (Apong Nipah)........................................................... 38
Oil Palm (Kepala sawit)................................................................ 39
Quassia (Manuggal)..................................................................... 39
Rattan (Ratan) and Asam Paya (Asam Paya)................................. 41
Rengas (Rengas Ayer)................................................................... 42
Rhizophora (Bakau Kurap and Bakau Minyak)............................ 43
Rubber (Pokok Getah)................................................................. 44
Saga, Red Sandalwood, Coral Tree (Saga)..................................... 45
Sea Almond (Talisai Ketapang)..................................................... 46
Sea Lettuce (Ambong-ambong).................................................... 46
Sea Randa.................................................................................... 48
Seashore Screwpine (Pandan)....................................................... 48
Silingi (Silingi, Sapang)................................................................ 50
Sonneratia, Mangrove Apple (Perepat, Pedada)............................. 50
Vatica (Resak)............................................................................... 51
Wattle (Akasia)............................................................................. 52
Xylocarpus (Nyireh Bunga).......................................................... 53
Resin.................................................................................... 54
Dammar Gum (Mata Kucing)...................................................... 54
Seaweed................................................................................ 55
Sargassum..................................................................................... 55
Logs and Timber.................................................................. 56
Fungi........................................................................................... 57
Fishing Equipment............................................................... 60
Footprints and Trails............................................................. 62
UFOs (Unidentified Floating Objects)................................. 63
Where to Find Out More About Tropical Seeds & Fruit....... 66
Beachcombing and Safety Tips............................................. 68
How to Preserve Your Specimens.......................................... 70
How to Enhance the Appearance of your Sea-beans............. 71
How to Grow your Seed....................................................... 73
Beachcombing Terminology................................................. 74
References............................................................................ 77
Websites............................................................................... 77
Checklist and Index to Species............................................. 79
For readers who wish to locate species in this book using their scientific names,
please see the Checklist and Index to species.
Foreword
Dr Grahaeme Henderson
Managing Director,
Brunei Shell Petroleum
C
are and concern for the environment is an integral part of Brunei Shell
Petroleum (BSP)’s business. Our efforts were duly recognised in 2008
when we won the prestigious Shell Chief Executive HSSE global award for
environmental performance. Everyone in Brunei Darussalam is proud of
this huge achievement.
BSP is the leader in the private sector in providing support for the
Government’s conservation efforts. We contribute significantly towards
the Government-led, landmark biodiversity conservation initiative, the
Heart of Borneo. We also partner the Government on a wide range of
initiatives, including the Anduki forest reserve biodiversity plan, Sungai
Seria wetlands, PRYNSA schools’ outreach programme, and numerous eco
tourism projects.
BSP is delighted to sponsor this series of booklets on the seashore life of
Brunei Darussalam written by our employees, along with contributors
from Panaga Natural History Society and others passionate about the
environment. Well researched and attractively illustrated, they will further
add to efforts to promote this country’s incredibly rich, hugely diverse and
largely pristine environment to a wider audience.
Looking after our environment is vital…for today, tomorrow and for future
generations.
Preface
Hans Dols
Honorary President,
Panaga Natural History Society
(PNHS)
M
any who visit Brunei’s tropical seashore will be quickly aware they
are entering a very special place. This is a new world with much to
be seen, touched and explored. All will be fascinated by the diversity of our
coastal ecosystem and want to find out why it is so important to them and
to Brunei.
What started as short leaflets to illustrate our beach excursions has grown
into a series of booklets presenting a whole gamut of information dealing
with our coastal flora, fauna, and the physical environment we all share.
Roger McIlroy compiled the information from various sources and with
the help of contributors from the PNHS and others involved in preserving
Brunei’s environment has spent many hours distilling the best information
on a multitude of topics and has managed to write all this down in a very
handy and readable format fit for a wide audience.
This series of booklets are only a start and the PNHS hopes that many
will be inspired by this work to create further editions on the seashore life
and indeed on other wildlife of Brunei to help sustain these wonders for
posterity.
Acknowledgements
W
e wish to acknowledge the pioneering work in this field of Marina
Wong, Aziah binte Hj. Ahmad and Esther Lee of the Brunei Museum
for their inspirational 1996 publication on the “Common Seashore Life of
Brunei”, the first widely available publication featuring the nuts, fruits and
seeds on Brunei beaches.
Thanks also to Serena Lee and her colleagues in the Herbarium at the
Singapore Botanic Gardens for their significant support. A large part of
Monique’s important collection of nuts and fruits from Brunei are in safe
keeping and available for study at the Herbarium.
Thanks also to Claudia Obendrauf, Jacqueline Henrot and Novi E. Yusniasita
Dols for botanical input, Jackie Maskall for editorial input, the BSP External
Affairs team, and the Brunei Press Commercial Printing Services team.
The Heart of
Borneo Initiative
T
he World Wide Fund for Nature
(WWF) has for many years
been driving initiatives to protect the
biodiversity of the Borneo rainforest.
In addition, efforts to promote
responsible forest trade have reached
new milestones.
In November 2003, the WWF
brought to Singapore groups such
as Conservation International (CI),
Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)
and The Nature Conservancy (TNC);
where it was agreed that the concept
of a transboundary conservation
area in Borneo should be promoted,
with WWF taking the lead. This area
became known as the Heart of Borneo,
and this programme is leading the
way to conserve one of the world’s
most precious biodiversity treasures.
The support of the three nations that
make up the island of Borneo, Brunei,
Brunei on NW Coast of Borneo
The signatories of the Declaration on the Heart of Borneo
Initiative: Three Countries, One Conservation Vision.
Brunei’s signatory, Pehin Dato Dr. Awang Haji Ahmad bin
Haji Jumat, on far left (Brunei Forestry Dept)
Indonesia and Malaysia, was
secured, culminating in the
Declaration on The Heart of
Borneo Initiative signed in
Bali, Indonesia, in February
2007. This wonderful fact
means that the rainforest is
within reach of everyone.
When you visit the seashore
in Brunei, you will find the
seeds and nuts of trees from
the deepest rainforest, so
instead of you going to the
rainforest, the rainforest has
come to you!..
The Heart of Borneo, with its message of: “Three Countries, One
Conservation Vision” covers a total of 220,000 square km of equatorial
The preliminary demarcation of the Brunei HoB rainforest showing it following the Belait River
reaching the South China Sea west of Kuala Belait (RM)
rainforest through a network of protected areas and sustainably-managed
forest, and through international co-operation led by the governments of
the three countries.
Brunei has the highest proportion of its land area covered by rainforest and
is unique and special in that the Heart of Borneo rainforest continues into
the lowlands. This means the HoB rainforest is never far from the coast
throughout Brunei, and actually reaches the seashore of the South China
Sea in the Belait District near Kuala Belait, and Brunei Bay in Temburong.
This the fourth volume in this series describes the treasures to be found from
beachcombing on this seashore and follows on from the booklets describing
the Physical Environment, Seashore Plants and Seashells.
Many of the varied seeds and nuts pictured in this booklet are gathered together here for a group
photo. (RM)
beachcombing
Beachcombing
Introduction
T
he Heart of Borneo coastline offers a world class location for the
collection and study of washed-up seeds and fruit (technically called
“drift disseminules”) and a wide selection of other flotsam and jetsam. The
orientation of the coastline means that both the SW monsoon and NE
monsoon winds can carry floating seeds and fruits ashore from all countries
surrounding the South China Sea and there are even ocean currents (see
below) that can bring examples from North and South America. Monique in
four years collected 138 different kinds of disseminules mostly on northern
Brunei beaches, with 118 of them being identified. Roger has collected
mostly between Kuala Belait and Seria. This book includes descriptions of
those seeds and fruits that can commonly be found on the heart of Borneo
beaches.
Ocean currents showing the North Equatorial currents that can carry seeds from South America to
South East Asia (Ref W16)
1
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
The seashore beside the Kuala Belait breakwater: prime beachcombing territory (BSP)
Of course, many of these seeds and fruits have derived from vegetation
beside the beach, or floated down the Sungai Seria or Sungai Belait, or
even the mighty Sungai Baram in Sarawak with its vast catchment area and
myriad tributaries that bring seeds from the very heart of Borneo.
One question some of us will ask is ”Why are these seeds here?” Why has
the parent plant put so much energy into generating so many seeds that are
waterproof, can float, and will end up on a beach where they will rot in the
sun to be picked over by crabs and other beach life.
The answer is that there must be an evolutionary advantage in producing
seeds of this type. It may not be obvious when we see some seeds germinate,
and grow quickly only to be washed away by the next high tide or king
tide. However, where a delta is growing as more sediments are brought
2
beachcombing
downriver, then the newly formed land will be quickly colonised by floating
seeds. Similarly, when sea levels fall during ice ages, newly exposed land will
be colonised by plants from floating seeds.
We have also recently seen the effect of tsunami, and know that these are
relatively common events geologically speaking. A tsunami wave will carry
floating seeds and fruit a mile inland or two or more up river systems (Ref
W13). The vegetation of this inundated land may be to a large degree
damaged due to the seawater content of the floodwater. Floating seeds
often have a high tolerance for salinity, and are often large, with lots of
stored nutrition for the embryo root system, and can then be the first to
colonise the area, thus establishing a dominant position, before conditions
restabilise.
Another opportunity for the floating seed to germinate comes after volcanic
Aceh West Coast, Sumatra after the 2004 Tsunami showing the wide strip of flattened coastal
vegetation, ready to be colonised by disseminules (Gregson Edwards, AusAID)
3
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Krakatoa in Feb 2008 still showing extensive ash deposits that smother previous vegetation and
allows seaborne seeds to take hold (Ref W28f ).
eruptions. Krakatoa, a volcanic island in the Sunda Strait between the
islands of Java and Sumatra in Indonesia is the most famous volcano in the
region, and has had repeated massive eruptions through recorded history.
The best known eruption was in 1883, which was among the most violent
volcanic events in modern times. With a “Volcanic Explosivity Index” of
6, it was equivalent to 200 megatons of TNT — about 13,000 times the
power of the atomic bomb that devastated Hiroshima, Japan in the second
world war (Ref W28f ).
In 1886 a botanist listed the wide range of stranded disseminules that had
come ashore, and by 1929 further study showed all the listed species had
taken hold and become an integral part of the island’s flora. The study
showed that about half of the flora had been introduced by drifting, more
than any other means of seed transmission (Ref 1 p36).
4
beachcombing
Orders
of
magnitude
greater
than
earthquake
t s u n a m i s
and
volcanic
eruptions in their
potential scale of
devastation are
meteor strikes.
An asteroid a
few kilometers
in
diameter
may release as
much energy as
several million
nuclear weapons
detonating, one
after another. If
Artist’s impression of a meteor entering the upper atmosphere on the way
these strike the
to a major impact event (Ref W28g).
ocean, which is
quite likely as ocean covers 71% of the Earth’s surface, then a tsunami will
result. A recent discovery of chevrons of sediment reaching up mountainsides
in Madasgascar led to the finding of the huge (29km diameter) Burckle
Crater, 12,500 ft below the surface of the Indian Ocean. This is considered
to have produced a produced a mega-tsunami at least 180 m high and
took place only 4,500-5000 years ago. The rate of discoveries of craters
with improved imaging of the earth’s surface topography and subsurface
geology indicate that the rate of asteroid impacts may be much larger than
previously thought, and therefore be a key driver to evolution of coastal
flora (Ref W28g).
Many stranded seeds and fruits have been floating for months or even years.
Even after a long time in the sea many are still viable (Ref 1). In research
into flotation times, tests have demonstrated that a Barringtonia asiatica
5
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
can still float after fifteen years,
while a coconut may still float after
thirty-four years. As buoyancy aids,
seeds and fruits have evolved either a
lightweight fibrous, spongy or corky
coat, or lightweight cotyledonary
tissue, and very often feature an air
cavity within.
The Sea Heart is said to have inspired
Christopher Columbus, “discoverer”
of America, to search for undiscovered
lands across the Atlantic Ocean from
Europe. The mother plants of these
The father of beachcombing? Christopher mysterious gifts from the sea were
Columbus by the Florentine painter Ridolfo
unknown in Europe, (the sea heart
Ghirlandaio (1483-1561) (Ref W28e)
comes from a West Indies vine), yet sea
hearts were commonly washed up on European beaches, brought north (we
now know) by the Gulf Stream from the Caribbean. Columbus is believed
by some to have gained confidence from the sea heart that by sailing west
he would indeed reach new land, and not (as many thought at the time)
fall off the end of the world!
This legend is so strong, the
sea heart is called “favas de
Colom” - the “Columbusbean”, in the Azores. So it
could be said that America
would not have been
“discovered” when it was, if
not for beachcombing and
the humble sea heart.
This booklet will help
you to identify the most
distinctive items that you
6
Some people in the 14th Century still believed the Earth to
be flat. (Heikenwaelder Hugo, RefW28h)
beachcombing
will encounter while beachcombing, and their parent trees, which you can
identify when you explore more of the coastline, mangroves and rivers of
Brunei. Some of the seeds you find will actually germinate if planted; in fact
you will find that some have already germinated on the beach. Others can
be polished to make decorative jewellery or ornamentation.
Species are described with the common English name first (where available)
with the Malay name in brackets afterwards, then the scientific name in
italics and then the family name.
A “terminology” section is included at the end of this booklet where the
meanings of technical terms used can be found, and there is also a checklist
for recording your collecting successes.
Nypa Palm seed that has drifted so long it has been colonised by oysters (RM)
7
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Alexandrine Laurel (Penaga Laut)
Calophyllum inophyllum Fam. Clusiaceae
A
lexandrine Laurel
is a member of the
Clusiaceae family which
includes about 36 genera
and 1630 species of trees
and shrubs, often with
milky sap and fleshy
fruits called “drupes”.
A drupe (peaches and
plums are examples) has
a fleshy outer layer and
a single hard stone that
encloses the seed.
This attractive tree has
a round fruit, pingpong ball size, that starts
pinkish green, before turning bright green and ripening to dark grey-brown.
Under the leathery skin is a bony stone made of a cork-like substance that
holds one seed. The seed is slightly toxic.
Calophyllum inophyllum Round smooth and hard nut of a
yellow-brown colour about 2 cm long with a few fine fibres
adhering (RM)
A relative of this plant, the Bingtangor Tree (Calophyllum lanigerum var.
austrocoriaceum) produces a newly identified compound, Calanolide A, that
was found highly effective in controlling the AIDS virus in laboratory tests.
The compound was extracted from a twig and fruit of a tree growing in
Sarawak, Malaysia. When researchers returned to get more material, the
tree had already been chopped down! Fortunately, other trees of the same
species were found close by. Calanolide A has since been synthesised and is
still being tested as an AIDS control.
8
beachcombing
Artocarpus Fam. Moraceae
Chempedak (Pulutan) Artocarpus integer
Jackfruit (Nangka) Artocarpus heterophyllus
A
rtocarpus is a member of the Fig or Moraceae family which comprises
about 40 genera and over 1000 species of plants widespread in tropical
and subtropical regions, less common in temperate climates.
The fruit is large and distinctive, (an individual fruit can weigh up to 25
kg) with a thick knobbly skin, but it is a relatively uncommon find on the
seashore and may be a reject from a ship’s galley!
Chempedak Artocarpus integer on left, Jackfruit Artocarpus heterophyllus on right (RM)
Avicennia (Api-Api) probably Avicennia alba Fam. Avicenniaceae
T
he Avicennia family of
mangrove trees occuring in
the intertidal zones of estuarine
areas, and has characteristic aerial
roots. Species of Avicennia occur
worldwide south of the Tropic of
Cancer. It is the first mangrove tree
to appear on entering the Sungai
Seria from the sea. It has greyish
green leaves and vertical breathing Avicennia seeds (RM)
roots. The washed up fruit is heart
shaped with the seed often already germinating within.
9
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Barringtonia, Box Fruit, (Putat Laut) Fam. Lecythidaceae
Barringtonia asiatica
Barringtonia conoidea
Barringtonia racemosa
Barringtonia revoluta
Barringtonia Barringtonia asiatica fruits (RM)
B
arringtonia is a member of the Brazil Nut or Lecythidaceae family. This
family are among the most spectacular plants in the world because of
their showy flowers and large woody fruits. They are the dominant plant
species in the Amazonian forests and comprise a family of about 20 genera
and 250-300 species of woody plants native to tropical South America and
Madagascar (Ref W22).
Barringtonia species deliver an absolutely splendid range of seeds to the
10
beachcombing
seashore. Barringtonia asiatica is one
of the most widespread of all drifters;
so buoyant and durable are its fruit
that they were used in the past as
fishing floats. The enclosed seed
contains a toxin used to catch fish.
B. asiatica fruits are a very distinctive
“square cone” shape, green when fresh
becoming brown with age.
Barringtonia Barringtonia racemosa (RM)
Barringtonia racemosa is tear shaped
while Barringtonia conoidea has eight
“fins” or wings surrounding the fruit.
Barringtonia revoluta is another
distinctive Barringtonia with a square
shaped cross section but barrel shaped
and tapered at both ends rather than
lantern shaped like the B. asiatica.
The fibrous inner structure of
Barringtonia is exposed on maturity
to create one of the most attractive
beachcombing “finds”.
Fresh Barringtonia conoidea fruit (RM)
Barringtonia revoluta fruiting tree (MD)
Barringtonia revoluta showing semi-square cross
section (RM)
11
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Weathered Barringtonia conoidea with internal fibres exposed to display
the beautiful complex structure (RM)
12
beachcombing
Belian, Ironwood (Belian) Fam. Lauraceae
Belian Eusideroxylon zwageri
Belian (Malagangai) Potoxylon malagangai
The mystery seed, Belian (Ironwood) Potoxylon malagangai or is it Barringtonia sarcostachys or
Barringtonia lanceolata? (RM).
T
he Belian fruit disseminule is not common on the seashore, but the
author (RM) has found three in Panaga, two in March 2007 and one
in July 2007. This disseminule has generated a great deal of debate. It
was considered by Marina Wong (Ref 3) as “the most beautiful” in Brunei
but she could not identify it. Hans Hazebroek identified it in his Gunung
Mulu guide (Ref 2, p.71) as examples of the famous hardwood tree, Belian
Eusideroxylon malagangai. (He perhaps means Potoxylon malagangai as a
recent (2006) publication quotes two similar species of Belian as Eusideroxylon
zwageri and Potoxylon malagangai (W32)). Hjh Kamariah (Ref 9, pp. 55,
13
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
77) suggests it is a Barringtonia, Barringtonia
sarcostachys, while other experts have suggested
Barringtonia lanceolata. The Barringtonia
sarcostachys proposal was confirmed by a local
guide at Tasek Merimbun. (Ref 12)
The fruit is shaped like an avocado, 12.5 cm
long, 7 cm wide, and round in cross section and
so light it seems to be hollow and empty. The
outer layer consists of a distinctive intertwined
lattice system while some eight parallel ribs
can be seen at the top and between the veins.
It is a very beautiful and amazing fruit.
Fruit of Belian (Ref W20)
A second Belian species, Eusideroxylon zwageri, also produces a very attractive
seed but without the latticework.
Belian or ironwood is one of the most renowned timbers of Borneo due to
its toughness. Local pirate boats of the 18th century were built of ironwood
to resist cannon fire! However due to over exploitation in its lowland
primary rainforest habitat it is now on the IUCN Red List of endangered
species. Indonesia has banned the export of Belian and Sarawak has placed
restrictions on its export.
Belian: Eusideroxylon zwageri (RM)
14
beachcombing
Blumeodendron (Gangulang)
Blumeodendron tokbrai Fam. Euphorbiaceae
T
his attractive nut bears a
small keel, and is generally a
round (globose) shape. The keel
is distinctive in that it is often
folded over or flattened against
the surface of the nut at its end.
The nut is slightly spongy, and if
broken open, the buoyant thick
corky outer layer can be seen, and
the walnut shaped cream coloured
kernel exposed.
“Folded over” keel of this Blumeodendron tokbrai
(RM)
A Blumeodendron tree can be
inspected in Mulaut Park, Bandar
and fallen nuts collected at its
base.
Blumeodendron tokbrai nuts showing variations in the keel, and the “folded over” effect (RM)
15
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
In a brief respite between high tides, disseminules race their shoots upwards hoping
that they have discovered a secure substrate. Sadly here they will have no chance as
this ledge on Ringers’ Dyke, Seria will be swept clean during the NE Monsoon (RM)
16
beachcombing
Bruguiera (Lenggadai, Mata Buaya)
Bruguiera sexangula Fam. Rhizophoraceae
Bruguiera Bruguiera sexangula calyx and hypocotyl (usually found separately on the beach) (RM)
B
ruguiera is found higher up estuaries than Avicennia, where salinity
is lower. The seedling grows for some time as a hypocotyl, that is to
say the root grows while still attached to the parent plant giving it a better
chance of survival when it eventually drops off. The hypocotyl is green,
stubby and shorter than that of Rhizophora. The calyx (the holder for the
hypocotyl) is yellow or red. By the time it arrives on the beach the seedling
will usually have turned blackish in colour and lost the calyx.
Historically Bruguiera bark was used in the production of tannin, producing
“mangrove cutch” (Ref W27b). The tannin was extracted by boiling the
bark in large vessels and evaporating down to a solid brown-black mass, the
cutch. Boiled bark or dissolved cutch can both be used for dyeing textile
fibres and leather in various shades of orange to reddish brown.
Bruguiera Bruguiera sexangula calyx and hypocotyl in dehydrated form (RM)
17
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Cashew (Jagus)
Anacardium occidentale Fam. Anacardiaceae
A
lthough the plant is native to
northeastern Brazil. Vietnam
is the main producer today with
nearly a million tons/year (Ref
30). Its English name derives from
the Portuguese name for the fruit
of the cashew tree, “caju”. It is now
widely grown in tropical climates
for its cashew “nuts” (see below)
and cashew apples.
The fruit is very unusual, in that it
has an edible oval or pear-shaped
pseudofruit or false fruit called the
cashew apple, a yellow and/or red
structure about 5–11 cm long. It
is edible, and has a strong “sweet”
smell and a sweet taste. The true
fruit is the kidney or boxing-glove
shaped drupe that grows at the
end of the pseudofruit. Within
the true fruit is the cashew nut,
within which is the seed, which
confusingly is what we actually call
the “cashew nut”. The true fruit
has to be carefully handled as the
skin contains a potent skin irritant
toxin also found in the related
poison ivy, while the true nut
contains a toxic resin. Thankfully,
roasting the nut destroys the
toxins.
18
Mature Cashew fruit (Ref 29b)
Cashew nut (RM)
Immature Cashew fruit (CO)
beachcombing
Casuarina (Aru, Ru)
Casuarina equisetifolia Fam. Casuarinaceae
T
hese are the biggest
and fastest growing
trees on the seashore yet
the cones contain some
of the smallest seeds!
When you find a small
spiky pine type cone, a
few remaining tiny wind
dispersed seeds can often
be shaken out.
Casuarina Casuarina equisetifolia cone (RM)
Cones of Casuarina Casuarina equisetifolia on a dead tree toppled by beach erosion, Sg Seria (RM)
19
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Cerbera (Pong-Pong)
Cerbera odollam Fam. Apocynaceae
Cerbera (Pong-Pong) fruits in various stages of decay (RM)
N
amed after Cerberus, the hell hound from Greek mythology, this
poisonous tree has grapefruit sized fruit that are one of the commonest
finds on the beach.
Once ripe, when the
red/black skin and
the thin layer of white
flesh are gone, the
distinctive
spongy
brown fibrous interior
appears.
Twisting
the two halves apart
reveals in the centre
one or two poisonous
seeds. These are pure
white with a fragile
brown seed coat. They
can often be seen
germinated on the
upper beach between
Cerbera with skin still intact (RM)
spring tides.
20
beachcombing
Spectacular fibrous interior exposed in the Cerbera (Pong-Pong), a common
beach find (RM)
21
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
The coconut is a giant drupe, that is a “fleshy” fruit like a peach, with a single hard
stone or nut that encloses the huge seed. A coconut’s flesh of course being tough and
fibrous. The seed has a large store of food (the white coconut “meat” and coconut water)
to allow the young plant to dig its roots deep before its energy supply runs out. The
plastic bottle is another unfortunately too common beach sight. Why not take a plastic
bag and clear a few each time you visit the beach. If everyone did that, the beach will be
clean in no time! (NY)
22
beachcombing
Coconut (Kelapa)
Cocos nucifera Fam. Arecaceae
B
oth green and brown coconuts can be found. Green coconuts are
immature and do not fall off the tree by themselves so green nuts have
usually been picked for the coconut water. A big nut contains up to one litre
and it makes a refreshing drink. A few months later, when the outer husk
has turned brown and the nut has ripened, it will fall from the palm of its
own accord. By this time the coconut water has become somewhat bitter.
Coconuts Cocos nucifera mature on left and immature on right (RM)
Dalbergia, Coin Vine or Coin Plant
Dalbergia monosperma Fam. Leguminosae Subfam. Papilionoideae
D
a l b e r g i a’s
common
name of Coin
Vine or Coin
Plant is related
to its flattened
shape and its
papery brown case
which gives it the
appearance of a
large copper coin.
Dalbergia Dalbergia monosperma showing flattened shape and papery
brown case (RM)
23
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
The bright green endosperm (nourishment in the seed for the embryo plant)
inside easily splits in two. Many species of Dalbergia are important timber
trees, valued for their decorative and often fragrant wood, rich in aromatic
oils. The most famous of these are the rosewoods, so-named because of their
scent. Monique’s finds of Dalbergia sp. in Brunei has however always been
on a rather small vine.
Dioclea, Sea Purse
Dioclea hexandra Fam. Leguminosae Subfam. Papilionoideae
T
he “Sea Purse” is one of the classic disseminules of beachcombing
literature and is one of the group popularly called “sea beans” discussed
and much sought after by the beachcombing fraternity. The name “sea
purse” refers to its resemblance to the English version of a purse, i.e. a
small pouch for carrying money, rather than the American word meaning
a handbag.
Its specific name honours Diocles of Carystos, an Athenian in ancient
Greece who had such a great knowledge of plants that among the ancients
only the famous Hippocrates could be said to have known more.
Dioclea seeds from top and side. The dark brown line is called the “hilum” where the seed was
attached to the pod wall (the plant version of the belly button!) (Note the lower seed in the left
caption is Rubber (Hevea sp.)) (RM)
24
beachcombing
Dipterocarps (Pengiran)
Anisoptera sp. Fam. Dipterocarpaceae
Dipterocarp two winged fruit. Similar to Anisoptera reticulata (Ref 9 P66) (RM)
N
orth Borneo including Brunei is probably the richest area in the world
for dipterocarp species (Ref 8). The botanical name is derived from
Greek (di = two, pteron = wing and karpos = fruit) and refers to the famous
and distinctive two-winged fruit. Many form very tall emergent trees, the
Shorea (Shorea faguetiana) claiming to be the tallest at 88.3m (Ref 28c).
Unfortunately their size makes them a target for logging and many species
are becoming endangered.
DNA studies show that Asian dipterocarps share a common ancestor
with the Sarcolaenaceae, a tree family endemic to Madagascar, suggesting
that a common ancestor was present on the southern supercontinent of
Gondwana, and that this ancestor of the Asian dipterocarps was carried
northward by India when it broke off 167 milllion years ago, to collide
with Asia and allowed the dipterocarps to spread across Southeast Asia and
Malaysia (Ref 28c).
25
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Durian (Durian)
Durio zibethinus Fam. Durionaceae
A
nother unlikely find, and probably from a sailor’s lunch, but still an
interesting addition to the collection. The Durians are endemic to
South East Asia, with most species in lowland forest with a few adapted to
swamp forest conditions. There are six genera and forty-five species.
It is beyond doubt most widely known for its fruit. The taste of this (in)
famous fruit is “beyond compare” according to aficionados and “like eating a
sweet raspberry blancmange while sitting in a lavatory” by novelist Anthony
Burgess.
However.. be brave! Those who overcome the negative messages from their
nose often become lifelong addicts, and you may even become a Durian
connoisseur, able to detect the ripeness and quality of the inner pulp by
shaking the fruit and listening to the sound. You will know never to pick
a Durian, but rather to let it fall, and you will be rewarded with the edible
pulp, rich in vitamins B, C and E and a high iron content, with a further
bonus of having the reputation of being an aphrodisiac! (Ref 11)
Durian Durio zibethinus segment (RM)
26
beachcombing
Entada
Entada rheedii Fam. Leguminosae Subfam. Mimosoideae
Complete Entada Entada rheedii? seed pod (example not from Brunei) (Ref
W8)
T
hese brown pod segments have a tough paper Seaheart jewellery
card-like wrapper, and contain a black-brown seed (model also not from
similar to (although flattened in comparison) to the Brunei) (Ref W8)
famous “sea hearts” washed up on temperate shores and
often fashioned into jewellery (Ref W8). The example may be Entada rheedii
(sometimes spelled rheedei) known as the “Snuff Box Sea Bean”, as in
addition to being made into jewellery, they were, in olden days, cut in half,
hollowed out, hinged and decorated, often with gold and silver to make
boxes for snuff (powdered tobacco), and other powders.
The individual segments, when together, make up an Entada pod that can
extend to a metre or more in length.
Segments of Entada seed pod and the “sea heart” that was inside the one on the left (RM)
27
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Eugeissona (Tanjang Pipit, Rumbia Bukit)
Eugeissona utilis Fam. Arecaceae
Less weathered Eugeissona fruit showing lateral “cords” and fine surface texture (RM)
E
ugeissona is a stilt rooted member of
the palm family found in low-lying
heath (kerangas) forest (Ref 3). The name
Eugeissona actually means “good roof ” in
Greek, as the leaves were popular for roof
thatching.
The large black fruit, oval with a tufted top,
is a relatively common find. The Eugeissona
is locally well known as its stilt roots are used
for walking sticks, while its “rachis” (the part
in a palm between the leaves and the stem)
have been used for blowpipe darts. Trees can
be viewed in Lambir Hills National Park (Ref
W2).
Weathered Eugeissona seed (RM)
28
beachcombing
Excoecaria (Gurah, Apid-apid)
Excoecaria indica Fam. Euphorbiaceae
T
he spherical seed comprises what
appears to be four, six or eight
segments and easily splits to reveal
one shiny caramel brown seed nested
in between each double segment.
The green fruit was formerly used
to create a poison for fish and other
creatures.
Excocaria Excoecaria indica with six segments (RM)
Excocaria Excoecaria indica, an eight segment example (RM)
29
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Heritiera (Itik-itikan, Dungun laut)
Heritiera littoralis Fam. Sterculiaceae
Heritiera Heritiera littoralis seeds showing characteristic keel. (RM)
T
his plant is apparently common on tropical SE Asian shores, for
instance in Sabah, but none are known to the authors locally. It occurs
on the landward side of mangroves, where fresh water mixes with sea water
or predominates. The seed is very conspicuous with a smooth shiny surface,
and a very prominent keel on one side, the depth of which varies according
to species.
If cut open, the seed has a thick light brown corky layer with an internal light
brown kernel, which appears to darken with age. The seeds are apparently
popular with foraging large crabs, monkeys and wild pigs (Ref W27a).
Heritiera old and worn nut with a chestnut brown walnut shaped kernel. (RM)
30
beachcombing
Hodgsonia
Hodgsonia macrocarpa Fam. Cucurbitaceae
A
t five to eleven
cm long, four
cm at the widest, this
impressive seed is
elliptical with a straight
side and tear shaped in
cross section. It is dark
greyish brown to black
in colour, dull to very
shiny and smooth with
several vein like grooves
running from hilum to
tip. The hilum, three
to four cm long, is
prominent, resembling
lips. The seed can be
polished to a very shiny
finish. It is empty when
open, and the woody
wall is up to eight
mm thick. Common
locally.
The parent plant is
a gigantic climbing
vine with magnificent
fringed white and
yellow flowers and large
pumpkin-like
fruit,
each containing six
beautiful large woody
seeds.
Hodgsonia Hodgsonia macrocarpa (RM)
31
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Intsia (Merbau, Ipil, Kwila)
Intsia bijuga and Intsia palembanica Fam. Leguminosae
Subfam. Caesalpinoideae
I
t is always a pleasure to find these vegetal sea-shore “pebbles”, seeds of the
famous Merbau timber tree. They come in many different shapes: ovate,
triangular, rectangular, elongate, always with rounded angles and a very
smooth, dull or lustrous dark reddish
brown surface with faint thin lines.
The species I. bijuga and I. palembanica
are very alike; the largest thinnest and
flattest ones are I. palembanica.
If they are whitish or dull (depending
on the time they stay in salt water and
sun) you can polish them to obtain a
very shiny surface.
Intsia Intsia bijuga and Intsia palembanica
(MD)
Intsia beans are produced by a huge tree and come in large pods containing
2 to 6 beans.
Kapayang (Kapayang)
Pangium edule Fam. Flacourtiaceae
T
he kapayang tree grows near
rivers. It is sometimes called
“killer kapayang” because of the
lethal hydrocyanic acid present in
the oily kernel. Even so, it is sold in
the market and is edible as long as
it is boiled and rinsed several times.
It is cream when young but becomes
dark brown to black after floating in
the water for a while.
32
Kapayang Pangium edule (MD)
beachcombing
Kulim (Kulim, Bawang hutan)
Scorodocarpus borneensis Fam. Olacaceae
T
he kulim fruits, also called wild garlic,
look like ping-pong balls with radiating
meridians.
In the forest, the mother tree can reach 40m
high and is easy to locate due to the strong
garlic smell exuding from the leaves and
fruits (even the wood smells of garlic when
cut). It was once used to flavour food and as
an antidote for poisoned blowpipe darts. The
timber is valuable and widely used for beam
and boat making (Ref W18).
Lithocarpus (Mempening)
Lithocarpus spp Fam. Fagaceae
Kulim fruits Scorodocarpus borneensis
(MD)
Kulim Scorodocarpus borneensis as
disseminules (MD)
L
ithocarpus is a
member of the
group of oak trees
typical
of
lower
mountain forest but
with at least one species
in Brunei (Lithocarpus
dasystachyus),
living
in the peatswamp.
Being oak, they not
surprisingly produce
acorns, which is often
a surprise to visitors
Lithocarpus acorns from above (RM)
who associate oaks
and acorns with temperate climates. Actually the majority of oaks inhabit the
tropics!
33
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Lithocarpus acorns from below (RM)
Mallotus (Mallotus)
Mallotus muticus (Mallotus paya) Fam. Euphorbiaceae
O
ne of the dominant trees of freshwater swamp, as it can withstand
inundation, Mallotus has small nuts, about 2cm wide and distinctly
trilobal, ie with three seed bearing lobes.
Mallotus muticus gains its important niche in Borneo’s ecosystem by being
the dominant low supporting tree in sustainable rattan farming “rotan irit”
gardens in central Kalimantan.
Mallotus Mallotus muticus (RM)
34
beachcombing
Mango (Mangga)
Mangifera indica Fam. Anacardiaceae
T
he “King of fruits”. Many people claim that more mangos are eaten
fresh all over the world than any other fruit! The mango is a drupe,
having a single hard stone that encloses the seed. It is indigenous to the
Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Cultivated in many tropical regions
and distributed widely in the world, mango is one of the most extensively
exploited fruits for food, juice, flavour, fragrance and colour.
Fresh Mango, with the endocarp opened up showing
the seed (Ref W31)
The ripe fruit is variable in size
and colour, and may be yellow,
orange, red or green when ripe,
depending on the cultivar. The
flesh is peachlike and juicy, with
more or less numerous fibres
radiating from the husk of the
single large kidney-shaped hairy
and fibrous stone.
Mango Mangifera indica disseminules showing varying degrees of wear (RM)
35
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Mucuna
Mucuna sp. Fam. Leguminosae Subfam. Papilionoideae
T
his is a tropical vine with long lianas that twine through rain forest
trees in South America and SE Asia. Mucuna pods are covered with
dense whisker-like stinging hairs (trichomes) to discourage predators, so
handle with care.
If they get into your
eyes they can cause
intense pain. This
irritation from these
trichomes has been
put to good use in
villages in India
to control gastrointestinal parasites
in livestock. The
hairs are scraped off
the Mucuma pod
and fed to goats and
large
ruminants.
The hairs don’t
seem to affect the
digestive
system Mucuna pod and seed (RM)
of the animals but
parasites are impacted by it, resulting in significantly faster growth rates and
lower mortality of the animals. The seed is a large mottled dark brown or
black compressed bean called a “Burney bean” amongst beachcombers.
The term “Burney beans” comes from the ability of this, and other nuts to
achieve a high temperature if rubbed vigorously on cloth. This makes them
very popular amongst children playing tricks on unsuspecting adults!
36
beachcombing
Mengkulat (Mengkulat, Buak-buak jari itik)
Teijsmanniodendron pteropodum Fam. Verbenaceae
T
his is a relatively common nut, with an attractive solid feel, and an
indented pear to barrel shape surrounding a greasy solid black kernel.
The seed is medicinal, used in Indonesia to normalise gastric problems.
Mengkulat Teijsmanniodendron pteropodum (RM)
Nickar Nut (Sapang) Caesalpinia bonduc
Fam. Leguminosae Subfam. Caesalpinoideae
N
ickar Nuts are globular or eggshaped, very hard, shiny and marble
like. The surface is very smooth green to
grey with faint concentric fracture lines.
They are difficult to find on the beach,
but can often be collected at the shore
line from the straggling shrubs with
hooked spines on which they grow. The
pod is covered with prickles and contains
one to three seeds.
The seeds are used for a huge range of
alternative medicine therapies (Ref W19)
and as beads, as weights, and as counters
in board games.
Nickar Nuts Caesalpinia bonduc (MD)
Nickar Nut pods Caesalpinia bonduc (MD)
37
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Nypa Palm (Apong Nipah)
Nypa fruticans Fam. Arecaceae
T
he seeds of this prolific mangrove palm
are very distinctive and common, and
often show sprouting shoots and roots from
the tip. During the summer months when
sand piles up on the beach, many Nypa Palm
seeds take root... only to be swept away again
as the beach level recedes in the winter. It is
not, however, common to see the entire seed
head as shown here.
Nypa Palm huge complete aggregate
fruit or seed head (RM)
Large stands of Nypa are often visible floating
down the Sg. Belait later to be washed up
along with piles of roots, either attached
or not, on local beaches. You can see some
beautiful complete fruit in the market on
Friday mornings during Ramadan, the
gelatinous pulp inside each immature fruit
being edible as a local delicacy.
Nypa Palm roots (RM)
Sprouting Nypa seed (RM)
38
Nypa clump probably washed down the Belait (RM)
beachcombing
Oil Palm (Kelapa sawit)
Elaeis guineensis Fam. Arecaceae
O
Oil palm Elaeis guineensis (RM)
il palms are widely grown
in S.E. Asia. They are a very
important source of edible and
inedible oils and as an additive to
fuels to make biofuels. The seeds look
like very small stony coconuts with a
“funny face (E.T)” appearance. They
are extremely hard with cream colour
striations, their hardness meaning
they can be polished and used in seabean jewellery.
Quassia (Manuggal)
Quassia indica Fam. Simaroubaceae
Quassia indica flowering tree (MD)
Q
uassia indica is a tree that
grows to about 10m high,
and provides a number of useful Quassia sp seeds about 3cm long (RM)
extracts called Quassins, that
have proved effective as insecticides used in organic orchards, and may also
have anti-tumour effects (Ref 7). Quassia indica seeds roasted and pounded
and oil from the seed kernel applied to the affected area are considered a
treatment for rheumatism in Philippines alternative medicine, and if the
39
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
seeds are worn round the neck they are considered effective against asthma
(Ref W26).
Quassia indica semicircular nuts are about 7cm long and 4 cm wide, are light coloured and light
weight with a papery feel.
When you open up Quassia nuts you find a corky layer and a darker brown kernel inside.
Quassia indica on the left, Quassia sp. on the right (RM)
40
beachcombing
Rattan (Ratan) and Asam Paya (Asam Paya)
Fam. Arecaceae Subfam. Calamoidea
Asam Paya Eleiodoxa conferta
Rattan Calamus sp.
T
The edible fruit of the Asam Paya palm,
Eleiodoxa conferta
Rattan Calamus sp. (RM)
hese two related palms have
similar scaly fruit although the
Asam Paya fruit is larger and edible,
and can be found in local markets.
If you look closely, you can see the
scale patterns are slightly different
between the two fruits. The Asam
Paya is a classic spiny peatswamp
palm, and has an underground
trunk from which spring the fronds
armed with whorls of spines.The
infloresecence emerges at ground
level, bearing either male or female
flowers in the latter forming the
scaly, red-brown fruit.
The Rattan is a vine-like palm with
slender stems that can grow to
enormous lengths up to hundreds
of meters. Many rattans are spiny
and are a real hazard to the unwary
rainforest walker. As it can be
harvested and transported easily, it is
a key to the preservation of forest land
in providing one alternative income
to logging. Rattan “gardens” are
sustainably farmed in Kalimantan.
It is used extensively woven into
furniture as it is lightweight, durable
and flexible.
41
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Rengas (Rengas Ayer)
Gluta renghas Fam. Anacardiaceae
R
Dried specimens of Rengas Gluta renghas (RM)
engas is a very
common seed. It
is brown and potatolike with a solid white
to cream coloured
core that turns red on
exposure to air. When
it sprouts it puts out
red-brown coiled roots.
Unfortunately a high
proportion of these
seeds downstream is
not good news from
the rainforest. Rengas
is quick to colonise
logged and degraded
forest so finding Rengas
seeds often means
logging has taken place
upstream (Ref 4).
Rengas Gluta renghas on the seashore, showing sprouting coiled roots, starchy internals, and red
colouration on oxidisation (RM)
42
beachcombing
Rhizophora (Bakau Kurap and Bakau Minyak)
Rhizophora mucronata and Rhizophora apiculata Fam. Rhizophoraceae
45-50 cm long Rhizophora
hypocotyl (RM)
Rhizophora hypocotyl growing on the parent plant (RM)
T
his unique mangrove plant produces a long pendulous hypocotyl seed
while still attached to the parent plant. On Rhizophora mucronata
(Bakau Kurap) trees, the hypocotyl is between 30-60 cm long and has on its
surface prominent wart like lenticels which allow for gas exchange (oxygen
out, carbon dioxide in) with the atmosphere, while on Rhizophora apiculata
(Bakau Minyak) trees, the hypocotyl is shorter and smooth.
43
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Rubber (Pokok getah)
Hevea brasiliensis Fam. Euphorbiaceae
T
he rubber tree is native to South America but is widespread in Asia
having been famously introduced from Brazil via Kew Gardens in
London to the Singapore Botanic Gardens. A fine exhibition of this story
of the introduction can be viewed in the environmental garden at the
Singapore Science Centre.
The large trilobal seed capsules have air spaces to help them float, and
capsules are found intact and in fragments.
Each rubber fruit capsule explodes loudly when ripe to disperse the three
shiny mottled oily and poisonous
seeds. It is fun to hear them explode
when you walk in the jungle or
through a rubber plantation, but
not so much fun if one of your finds
explodes during the night in your
kitchen!
Rubber Hevea brasiliensis seeds (RM)
Rubber Hevea brasiliensis three lobed capsules (RM) & (HD)
44
beachcombing
Saga, Red Sandalwood, Coral Tree (Saga)
Adenanthera pavonina Fam. Leguminosae Subfam. Mimosoidea
T
he Saga tree is a member of the Leguminosae or legume family, and
typical of the family, hosts symbiotic bacteria in its roots which convert
nitrogen from the air into usable nitrate. This means the plant is common
in the sandy soils along the seashore where it can win the competition for
space. Also typical for a legume it produces a pod that “dehisces” or splits
along one side, in this case in spectacular fashion by coiling up the splitting
to reveal the light-coloured pod lining and contrasting famous bright scarlet
seeds.
These attractive seeds
are used as beads in
jewellery, but are
perhaps most famous
for their use in ancient
times for weighing gold.
The seeds are curiously
similar in weight, four
seeds making up about
one gram. In fact the
name “saga” derives
from the Arabic term
for goldsmith.
Saga Adenanthera pavonina showing coiled and split pods with
bright red seeds (MD)
Interestingly, the seeds
can only germinate if
they are scratched (scarified), boiled for one minute, or dipped in sulphuric
acid. This suggests that in nature, they must be eaten and go through the
digestive system of an animal before germination (Ref W15).
The seeds are toxic, but edible when roasted or boiled. In Java, they are
roasted, shelled, then eaten with rice. They are said to taste like soy bean
(Ref 15).
45
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Sea Almond (Talisai Ketapang)
Terminalia catappa Fam. Combretaceae
T
he sea almond is a very
common tree locally, and
therefore it is not surprising
to find examples of the seed
on the beach. There are a
number of good specimens of
the tree alongside the Panaga
Beach Shelter, where fruit in
various degrees of ripening
can be collected. The tree has
a characteristic horizontally
layered appearance with a
sprinkling of the large leaves
turning bright red before they
fall. The nut is apparently
edible like commercially
grown almonds, but it is hard
to separate the nut from the
flesh.
Sea Almond Terminalia catappa (RM)
Sea Lettuce (Ambong-ambong)
Scaevola taccada (formerly Scaevola sericea) Fam. Goodeniaceae
S
ea Lettuce grows along local beaches as a shrub with a squat conical
shape. The small flowers are very distinctive with five petals only on
the underside. The fruit is a snow-white spherical and buoyant little berry,
inside which there is an almond shaped seed. The berry goes brown and
wrinkles with age, and eventually shivels away leaving the cream coloured
fissured seed.
46
beachcombing
Sea Lettuce Scaevola taccada seeds in various stages of decomposition provide
a varied mosaic of texture and colour. (RM)
47
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Sea Randa
Guettarda speciosa Fam. Rubiaceae
T
his evergreen seashore tree
distributed in South East Asia
and Pacific Islands is famous for its
beautiful fragrant white trumpet
flowers. The flowers are used to make
fragrant oil, strung into necklaces or
placed in the hair.
The Sea Randa fruit is a green drupe
containing a hairy and very hard Sea Randa Guettarda speciosa (MD)
woody spherical stone. Inside there
are four to six seeds enclosed in separate compartments.
Seashore Screwpine (Pandan)
Pandanus tectorius Fam. Pandanaceae
T
he individual fruits, called “keys” or carpels, of the Seashore Screwpine’s
compound fruit are commonly found on beaches locally. The brilliant
colours of the ripe fruit have usually faded and the soft tissue gone leaving
a seed head of brown shaving brush appearance comprised of the fibrous
cores of the carpels.
Seashore Screwpine “Shaving brush” phalanges (left) and original phalanges (right) (RM)
48
beachcombing
Seashore Screwpine Pandanus tectorius “Shaving brush” phalange. (RM)
49
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Silingi (Silingi, Sapang)
Caesalpinia crista Fam. Leguminosae Subfam. Caesalpinoideae
T
Silingi Caesalpinia crista pod (MD)
his spiny vine produces a fairly common
indehiscent (indehiscent means the
pod does not open on maturity) pod with a
very hard smooth black outer coat with web
lines. The pod contains one or two jet black
seeds which are
sometimes
used
in necklaces and
in Colombia used
to make maracas
“rattle” (Ref W17).
It is a famous medicinal plant with many uses
including as an anti malarial agent. The oil from
the seeds is also said to soften the skin and remove
pimples.
Silingi Caesalpinia crista seeds
(MD)
Sonneratia, Mangrove Apple (Perepat, Pedada)
Sonneratia alba Fam. Sonneratiaceae
S
Sonneratia Sonneratia alba fruit with red inner surface of the
sepals (RM)
50
onneratia is another
mangrove
species
(along with Avicennia)
characterised by vertical
breathing roots, though
these are thicker than
the pencil-like Avicennia
roots. Several species
exist, all with similar
fruit although the colour
and angle of the sepals
differs (Ref W7).
beachcombing
Vatica (Resak)
Vatica umbonata syn. V. cupularis Fam. Dipterocarpaceae
V
atica is a Malaysian species, widely distributed from Peninsular Malaysia
to Borneo (its typical locality) and the Philippines. It is common in
peatswamps, on river banks, but even occurs scattered on hillsides up to
1,300 m (Ref W23). It reaches 40m tall.
The Latin name umbonata, means “with button in the centre” referring to
the belly button type appearance of the fruit (Ref W24).
Vatica umbonata, one of the most common finds during some parts of the year (RM)
51
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Wattle (Akasia)
Acacia auriculiformis and Acacia mangium Fam. Leguminosae
Subfam. Mimosoideae
A
cacia is a member of the Leguminosae or legume family. This is the third
largest family of flowering plants (after Orchidaceae and Asteraceae)
with 730 genera and over 19,400 species.
Acacia is one of the most common and successful trees locally, considered
by many to be too successful and invasive. They are successful due to their
ability to tolerate poor soils through fixing nitrogen. Acacia auricoliformis
(Auri), one of the most common species, has coiled and contorted seed
pods that split open allowing the black seeds to fall out and be suspended
from short curled orange stalks. A second common species, Acacia mangium
(Mangium) has more tightly coiled seedpods.
Acacia auriculiformis seed pods (RM)
52
Acacia mangium seed pods (RM)
beachcombing
Xylocarpus (Nyireh Bunga)
Xylocarpus granatum Fam. Meliaceae
Xylocarpus granatum (Nyireh Bunga) segments (RM)
T
Xylocarpus granatum seedling
making a brave attempt to get
its roots down before the tide
washes it away (RM)
his small mangrove tree has a reddish papery
flaking bark and characteristic plank roots that
rise above the mangrove mud. These flattened,
snaking and undulating buttress roots are an
adaptation to allow root aeration and help the tree
to anchor itself in the unstable mud. The fruit is
large and roughly spherical, growing to about the
size of a large pomelo. It contains 4-16 irregularly
shaped mottled coloured segments. Entire fruits are
rarely washed ashore, it is the separated segments
that are usually found. Reassembling the pieces is
a major challenge! The segments are commonly
found rooted and sprouting between spring tides.
53
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Resin
Dammar Gum (Mata Kucing)
D
ammar is a Malay word meaning “resin” or “torch made from resin”.
Dammar gum is obtained from Dipterocarp trees, principally those of
the genera Shorea, Balanocarpus, or Hopea. Most is produced by tapping
trees, however some is collected in fossilised form from the ground. The
gum varies in colour from clear to pale yellow, while the fossilized form is
grey-brown.
There are two further types of Dammar, besides the gum: “Mata kucing”
(“cat’s eye”) is a crystalline resin usually in the form of round balls. “Batu”
(“stone”) is the name given to the stone or pebble-shaped opaque Dammar
collected from the ground.
Crystallised piece of resin (Mata kucing?), some 3 cm in length (RM)
54
beachcombing
Seaweed
Sargassum (Rumput Laut)
Sargassum sp. Fam. Sargassaceae
S
eaweed is not routinely found on local beaches, however during the NW
Monsoon when a big sea is running, the wave base runs deep enough
to break fronds from the offshore seaweed beds carrying them onto the
windward shore.
The most common seaweed species that appears on the beach is Sargassum.
These brown algae are easily recognised by the air-filled flotation bladders
(vesicles) which help keep them upright in the water to make the most of
the light.
Sargassum seaweed with light green air filled vesicles (RM)
55
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Logs and Timber
M
ost
of
the
numerous logs
and assorted timber
found on the beach
have probably come
from logging activity
in the hinterland of
the Baram. These are
usually rotten timber
or misshapen branches
or roots that have been
rejected, often clearly
displaying their source
by chain-saw cuts.
Accumulation of timber debris during the NE Monsoon near
Some may have come Panaga Beach Shelter (RM)
down the Belait. Views
of the Baram from the ASEAN Bridge near Miri reveal the large scale of
logging activity as there is a regular passage of barges loaded with timber
from the rainforest.
Bamboo stump (RM)
56
Abstract weathering pattern on
timber (RM)
beachcombing
Carving from driftwood in the forecourt of the Singapore Botanic Gardens Herbarium (RM)
Bamboos are often seen,
sometimes reaching to six metres
long or more, along with stumps
with buttress roots discarded by
loggers as not worth keeping.
There are plenty of abstract forms
to tempt the photographer.
Discarded by man, the logs
provide homes for barnacles,
teredo worms, and fungi of
various types.
Detail of fungi on decaying logs (RM)
Stunning carvings and other
decorative features and artifacts from timber flotsam can be inspected in the
forecourt of the Singapore Botanic Gardens Herbarium.
57
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
More fungi, creamy pink variety, probably Schizophyllaceae Schizophyllum commune (RM)
Yellow fungi Calocera (CO)
58
beachcombing
Bracket fungus, Polyporella on driftwood (RM)
59
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Fishing Equipment
T
he South China Sea is teeming with sea life and the offshore fishermen’s
equipment often ends up on local beaches, possibly from offcuts
discarded by fishermen or from snagging on subsurface objects, like the
offshore coral reefs but also BSP’s pipelines!
Fishing “prahu” damaged and abandoned after a storm at Sungai Seria (RM)
60
beachcombing
Fishing net and Vietnamese lifejacket (RM)
Brightly coloured floats and rope characterise this net (RM)
61
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Footprints and Trails
T
Wild boar tracks, near Sg Tujoh (RM)
lizard, hermit crab and
other visitors can still be
spotted. Hermit Crabs
often emerge from the
vegetation at the top of
the beach and you can
follow their wanderings
over surprisingly large
distances as the animal
looks for food or a new
more spacious home. The
trail is characterised by
a linear central imprint
which is the trail of the
shell itself, and the curved
walking leg prints to each
side.
62
he beach is a
favourite haunt
for many animals that
forage for titbits after
dusk when the coast is
clear. Their footprints
can often be found. In
the more remote areas,
wild boar prints can
be found while closer
to human habitation,
evidence of monitor
Lizard trail (left) and Hermit Crab (right) near Sg. Bera, note
the rain drop craters speckling the surface.
beachcombing
UFOs
(Unidentified Floating Objects)
T
he database of identified and named disseminules is so immature, the
authors feel that relatively common yet unidentified specimens should
be included in a UFO section. This will allow debate to take place amongst
interested readers and will accelerate the identification and transfer of these
finds into their rightful place in the body of the text in future editions.
1
Three forms of this
find, about the size of a
small potato, in brown and
yellowish brown, sometimes
with a thin brown papery
seed coat but also perhaps the
the same species in a fresher
state where the endosperm
is a bright green colour.
63
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
2
This fruit is also the size and shape of a small potato, medium brown
in colour, flaking thin outer skin, and inner endosperm turning red on
exposure to air (RM)
3
This large thick and heavy
seed is 8-9 cm across, 1.5
cm thick. Light brown with
smooth shiny skin (RM)
4
64
Seeds about 4-7 cm in
length, of a flattened oval
potato-like shape with rough
sandpaper-like skin and very
characteristic cracks on its
surface originating from
where the stalk was attached.
(RM)
beachcombing
5
This shell of this hard nut is about
the size of a ping-pong ball (RM)
6
Pointed nut about 8cm long
perhaps originally covered
with fibres worn off in the lower
example (RM)
7
White exterior and pinkish red interior of this 2cm wide mystery
object.. it took Roger months to figure it out (RM) (see Checklist for
the answer!)
65
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Where to Find Out More About
Tropical Seeds and Fruit
Singapore Botanic Gardens Herbarium, Singapore
T
he Herbarium is situated at the
southern end of the Gardens where
the Gardens were established in 1859. The
complex houses the heritage collections of
the herbarium and library and new facilities
for education and research laboratories.
Visitor amenities include a basement car
park, food garden and a Public Reference
Centre at the Library of Botany and
Horticulture. The latter provides visitor
access to reference materials that include
books, magazines, CDs as well as herbarium
specimens.
Public Reference Centre
Changing displays give added insight into
tropical plants and their seeds and fruits.
Botany Centre Displays with complete
Nypa seed head.
The courtyard leading to the Botany Centre
has spectacular wood carvings from timber
driftwood, stumps and buttress roots.
66
beachcombing
Sungai Liang Forestry Centre, Brunei Tel 00673 3230767
T
here is a small but interesting Forestry Museum open to the public.
There are six categories of exhibit at the museum, namely the different
types of forests; history of forestry; commercial woods and their uses; forestry
products; types of rattan, bamboo and “bamban” and wildlife.
The herbarium located at the end of the road is also very interesting but to
gain entry you need to write a letter to the Director of Forestry Department.
There is also an Arboretum and Palmetum here with boardwalk access.
Semenggoh Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre and Sarawak Biodiversity
Centre, Kuching, Sarawak
I
n addition to the wildlife sanctuary, there is a botanical research centre
and a seedling centre as well as a seed bank. The seed bank has been set
up to facilitate reforestation projects. Adjacent is the Semenggoh Arboretum
and a Seed Production Area (SPA) that will serve as the seed source for some
indigenous tree species.
There is also a fruit garden with many of the wild fruit trees found in the
jungles of Borneo, and an ethnic botanic garden containing herbs (many of
traditional medicinal value) and spices.
Other Locations to find out more on tropical seeds and fruits
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Bako National Park near Kuching
Bukit Timah Nature Reserve in Singapore.
Bogor Botanic Gardens, West Java, Indonesia
Sabah Agricultural Park, Tenom
Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM), Bukit Lagong Forest
Reserve (16km NW of KL)
Manukan and Sapi islands, by boat from Tanjung Aru or Sutera
Harbour Hotels, KK Sabah (Guided nature walk available).
Shangri-La Rasa Ria Resort Nature Interpretation Centre, Sabah
67
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Beachcombing
and Safety Tips
1
Wear
-
-
-
-
- -
2
Large hat (some people prefer an umbrella)
Sunglasses
Sunscreen
Insect repellent
Sensible footwear
Pair of cotton gloves if you are concerned about skin irritation from
some seeds.
Prepare a backpack with
-
-
-
-
-
-
3
Large bottle of water
Towel
1 or 2 plastic containers (for fragile winged seeds)
Several plastic bags to carry your seeds
Camera and binoculars are useful to check on the vegetation close to
the beach and record your finds in-situ
Charged mobile phone (in case of emergency)
Choose the time
-
-
-
68
Check the weather forecast (not too windy, not too wet)
The tide not too high
Remember 11 to 3 pm is really hot!
beachcombing
4
Be aware of what is around you
If you are a solitary beachcomber and very quiet you can meet:
- monitor lizard or snakes sleeping between logs. Crocodiles or turtles have
been reported but are very rare.
- packs of starving wandering dogs (they could be a problem) lift a stick
and they will leave you alone.
- sand flies are probably your greatest hazard, use insect repellent and if
bitten, rub with an anaesthetic cream or Tiger Balm. Never, never
scratch a sand fly bite, they are easily infected.
- enjoy the company of the crabs and the birds. Ocypode crabs will be
scurrying around, and the kingfishers, swallows and swifts, egrets and
eagles may be active.
- stay clear of unstable cliffs and rock falls.
5
Use a stick
To pick among patches of accumulated debris. You can come across almost
anything: ropes, bottles, plates, plastic toys, shoes, balloons, combs, furniture,
tools but also hazards like, rusted nails, broken glass and syringes.
6
Be sensible in what you take home with you
-
-
Do not disturb wild life, don’t collect live plants or sea life.
If you can, stockpile rubbish and collect it on your way back. If everyone
collected just one bag of rubbish each trip, the beach would be so much
nicer.
7
Consider wearing gloves when handling the seeds
Optional, but are very useful to dust away sand or mud from the seed as
you pick it up. They are also good protection against the sun and sand flies
(a sting between fingers is really painful). In addition some sea-beans have
irritating components or hairs. While handling seeds, children should be
told not put their fingers into their mouth or eyes.
69
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
How to Preserve
Your Specimens
W
hen you get your finds home, they should be hosed down or ideally
washed in hot water several times.
-
-
-
-
-
-
70
Plastic gloves are advisable as juice leaking from partially decomposed
pong-pong, box fruit and other disseminules can contain toxins,
tannins, and oils which can irritate the skin.
Scrubbing and brushing will remove sand and small organisms.
Expose collection to the sun until completely dry. All the sea-beans
(Entada, Mucuna, Dioclea, Intsia) are waterproof and do not
require further treatment.
Store all the other drift fruits and seeds in a plastic bag and deepfreeze
for one week to kill any small living organisms, worms, eggs and
bugs and let dry again in the sun. Your specimen should ideally be
refrozen every year or two to avoid reinfestation.
Repeat this operation if not perfectly clean.
Any fleshy or softer inner parts should be completely dry by leaving
them in a dry spot under cover but still getting the rays of the sun
for part of the day.
beachcombing
How to Enhance the
Appearance of your Sea-beans
Y
ou can use different coloured shoe polish to preserve and enhance your
seeds, eg Barringtonia in brown, Hodgsonia macrocarpa does pretty well
in black, Xylocarpus with colourless. Teak oil or any product for leather or
wood should enhance the beauty of your collection. Some collectors spray
with clear varnish and achieve a nice effect.
Why not experiment a little? You can use
chlorine to bleach Pong Pong, Mengkulat,
Alexandrine Laurel and more. Some
species without tannins bleach better
than others. Add them to a pot pourri or
display them in a large bowl with some
black sea-beans.
Chlorine bleached Mengkulat (MD)
You can also use silver or gold spray to make original Christmas tree
decorations.
Displaying your sea-beans in a nice glass bottle in their natural state also
looks super, while placing them in a large basket allows people to pick them
up and enjoy their feel and texture. It will probably open their eyes to this
71
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
new world and perhaps encourage them to take a closer look at nature.
If you are very patient you can try to polish your beans. Entadas, Diocleas,
Coconut shells and Intsia give amazing results. They become so shiny and so
beautiful that no one will believe your “gem” is vegetable and not mineral.
There are several polishing methods you can try. The primitive one will
try your patience: it takes about 3 hours for one Entada! You just need
sand paper: use grade 300, then 500
, then 1000 and finish with a nail
polishing block “four steps to nail
heaven” available at the Body Shop.
Do not try to go too fast and do not
skip one step if you want to get a
really smooth and shiny surface.
If you have a Dremel type power tool
it is time to use it! It is much faster
and the result is quite good. There
are a range of suitable attachments.
Power tool for seed work. (MD)
Some people use a gem tumbler machine: it is automatic and the result is
quite good with very hard beans, but for the softer ones you will get a poor
potato shape!
You can also be very inventive and create a wreath, a mirror frame, necklaces
or many other masterpieces!
72
beachcombing
How to Grow your Seed
T
his is another fun activity to do with
your seeds. Remember the solid seed
coat that preserved the seed in seawater
is now a barrier to freshwater. Sandpaper
may be enough to prepare some, others
will require the use of a file or hacksaw to
make a notch in the seed coat. Place the
scarified seed in fresh water for 24 hours
to soak, and then place in good potting
soil 3-5 cm from the surface. In only 4 to
5 days you may see your plant germinate
and start growing. Entada can grow up
to a very impressive 20 cm a day, a good
experience to share with children! Mind Entada sp. after only 10 days! (MD)
you, often you can find part germinated
or part rooted seeds on the beach already.
You can find further information in www.seabean.com
We hope that all these tips will help you!
Good luck for wonderful discoveries!
Happy beachcombing!
73
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Beachcombing Terminology
Bean Dehiscent Disseminule Drift Seed Drupe Embryo
Endocarp Endosperm
Exocarp Flotsam and
jetsam Fruit
74
general term for the seeds of many plants such as soybeans,
peas, lentils, kidney beans, coffee beans, and cocoa beans.
opening naturally along a seam on two sides. The majority
of legumes are dehiscent, the pea pod is an obvious
example.
general term for a seed, fruit, or spore, that is modified for
dispersal, also called a drift disseminule or diaspore.
a floating seed or fruit of any part of a tropical plant growing
in coastal areas that are “disseminated” round the world by
ocean currents and winds.
a fleshy fruit, such as a peach, plum, or cherry, usually
having a single hard stone that encloses a seed. Also called
stone fruit. A coconut is a fibrous drupe.
the baby plant that will develop into the mature plant. It
has one or two cotyledons (embryo leaf ) and one radicle
(embryonic root). The embryonic stem below the
cotyledon(s) is the hypocotyl while above is the epicotyl.
the hard shell enclosing the seed in a fruit.
the supply of nutrients for the embryo, rich in oil, starch or
protein
the skin of a fruit.
nowadays used generically for any washed up sea-borne
debris.
the ripened ovary bearing the seeds of a flowering
plant. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants
disseminate seeds. Some fruits ripen to form sweet
and juicy flesh enclosing the seeds while others form hard
nuts and grains enclosing the seed.
beachcombing
Globose
having the shape of a globe, ie spherical.
Indehiscent the fruit does not open at maturity to release its seeds, eg
the acorn or coconut.
Keel
elongated ridge or projection along a nut, (from the keel of
a ship)
Mesocarp the flesh of a fruit
Nut a dry one-seeded (rarely two) indehiscent (i.e. non splitting
at maturity) fruit with a woody pericarp such as almond,
chestnut or walnut.
Pod a dry many-seeded dehiscent fruit characteristic of
leguminous plants (i.e. peas, beans)
Sea Bean another term used for a disseminule but usually more
specifically to hard rounded “beans” like Entadas and
Diocleas.
Seed a mature fertilised ovule as per schematic below.
Seed Coat
or testa
covering to avoid the endosperm drying out, which can be
paper thin like on a peanut or thick and hard, like a coconut
shell.
75
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Avocado, (flesh removed) showing a typical seed structure of embryo, endosperm and seedcoat (Ref
W11).
Peach, a drupe, showing tough endocarp surrounding the seed and sweet fleshy outer layer (mesocarp)
and skin (exocarp) (Ref W28).
76
beachcombing
References
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
10)
11)
12)
13)
14)
15)
16)
C.R. Gunn and J.V. Dennis, World Guide to Tropical Drift Seeds and Fruits, Krieger
Publishing Florida 1999 ISBN 1-57524-147-1
Hans P. Hazebroek and Abang Kashim bin Abang Morshidi, A Guide to Gunung Mulu
National Park, Natural History Publications (Borneo), 2002. (p. 71)
Marina Wong and Aziah binte Hj. Ahmad, Common Seashore Life of Brunei, Brunei Museum
1996
David Edwards et al. (editors), Peat swamp Forest Dynamics in Kalimantan, p413, from
Tropical Rainforest Research – Current Issues
Dr Leo W.H. Tan and Peter Ng, A Guide to Seashore Life, Singapore Science Centre 1988
ISBN 981-00-0254-8
Peter Ng and N. Sivasothi, A Guide to the Mangroves of Singapore II, Raffles Museum of
Biodiversity Research, 1999 ISBN 981-04-1308-4
Bajaj W.P.S, Medicinal and Aromatic Plants VI Page 317
Ashton, Dipterocarpaceae, In Tree Flora of Sabah and Sarawak, Volume 5, 2004
Wong and Kamariah, Forests and Trees of Brunei Darussalam
Heywood et al, Flowering Plants of the World, Culham and Seaberg, 2007
Desmond Tate, Tropical Fruit 2000
Novi E. Yusniasita Dols (personal communication)
Martin Cheek, The validation of two new family names in Malvales: Durionaceae and
Brownlowiaceae, Kew Bulletin 2006
Y.F. Lee, Preferred Check-List of Sabah trees. Sabah Forestry Department. Sandakan 2003
Hsuan Keng, The Concise Flora of Singapore. Gymnosperms and Dicotyledons. Singapore
University Press. 1990.
Hsuan Keng, S.C. Chin & H.T.W.Tan. The Concise flora of Singapore. Vol II. Monocotyledon,
Singapore University Press. 1998
Websites
W1)
W2) W3) W4) W5) W6)
W7)
W8)
W9) W10) http://www.flickr.com/
Palm and Cycad Society of Australia
http://www.pacsoa.org.au/palms/Eugeissona/minor.html
The Conservancy Association of Hong Kong
http://www.conservancy.org.hk/conser/Ramsar/mangrove01C.htm
Waynesword, Online Textbook of Natural History
http://waynesword.palomar.edu/mucuna.htm
General overview of nuts and seeds http://waynesword.palomar.edu/pldec398.htm
Mark Logan Bartlett, The World is my Garden
http://www.markloganbartlett.com/seabeans.html
Guide to the Mangroves of Singapore, (Excellent description of mangrove species)
http://mangrove.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/text/flora2.htm
The “Seaheart” Site, http://www.seaheart.com/pages/seaheart/about.php
The Seabean Site.
Although US oriented, this is a “must see” site for nut and seed enthusiasts with
the biggest collection of information, quarterly newsletters and an annual convention! See
the Image Gallery. http://www.seabean.com/index.htm
Botanical Beads of the World, http://www.botanicalbeads.com
77
The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
W11) W12)
W13) W14) W15) W16)
W17) W18) W19)
W20)
W21) W22)
W23)
W24)
W25)
W26)
W27)
W28)
Wikipedia commons (public domain)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Avocado_seed_diagram.svg
http://www.seedbiology.de/evolution.asp#evolution
Tsunamis, http://library.thinkquest.org/04oct/01085/Geology.html
Village saved from Tsunami by Trees,
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4269847.stm
Ria Tan’s website, http://www.naturia.per.sg
http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/plants/
Case Western Reserve University Physics Forum
Webster’s Online Dictionary, Caesalpinia crista
USDA Forest Service, http://www2.fpl.fs.fed.us/techsheets/Chudnoff/SEAsian_Oceanic/
htmlDocs_seasian/Scorodocarpusborneensis.html
Ayushveda, India’s alternative health portal, http://www.ayushveda.com/herbs/caesalpiniabonduc.htm
Ho Wei Seng et al, UNIMAS Research Update Vol 2 No.2 Jan05,
http://www.unimas.my/research/rimc/bulletin/bulletin3/plant3.htm
L. Watson and M. J. Dallwitz, The Families of Flowering Plants,
http://delta-intkey.com/angio/www/guttifer.htm
Scott A. Mori and Ghillean T. Prance, Lecythidaceae - the Brazil Nut Family,
http://sweetgum.nybg.org/lp/index.html
Thailand National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Dept,
http://www.dnp.go.th/botany/publication%20online/RP_thesis/taxonomy/Vatica.htm
Nationaal Herbarium Nederland, http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl
Vatica umbonata,
http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/sungaiwain/Dipterocarpaceae/Vatica umbonata.htm
Quassia indica, http://www.phylodiversity.net/borneo/delta/Itemscan/quassia.gif
Philippine Medicinal Plants (Quassia indica), http://www.stuartxchange.org/Manunggal.html
Prota (Plant Resources of Tropical Africa), http://www.prota.org/uk/about+prota/
a) Heritiera littoralis
b) Bruguiera gymnorrhiza
c) Mucuna gigantea
Wikipedia
a) Drupe_fruit_diagram-en.svg by LadyofHats (public domain)
b) Gui1 cashewfruit2.jpg by L Lartique (public domain)
c) Dipterocarpaceae
d) Quassia
e) Christopher Columbus (public domain)
f ) Krakatoa, by Flydime (creative commons 2.0)
g) Impact event (public domain, NASA)
h) Myth of Flat Earth (by Heikenwaelder Hugo, 1998, creative commons 2.5)
i) Avicennia
W29) W30)
W31)
W32)
CRN India, http://www.crnindia.com/commodity/cashew.html
Discover Life. This is a rapidly expanding superb source of information with high quality
images of plants and their seeds. http://www.discoverlife.org/
Ctdayori livedoor blog
Ho Wei Seng (UNIMAS) et al, Molecular Techniques for Belian (Borneo Ironwood)
Conservation (2006)
(Note overleaf ) It is planned to be able to provide certificates to readers, and particularly schoolchildren
who achieve certain percentages of observations in the Checklist.
Please check the PNHS website for details: http://www.bsp.com.bn/panagaclub/pnhs/
78
beachcombing
Checklist and Index to Species
Species
Nuts, Seeds and Fruits
Alexandrine Laurel Calophyllum inophyllum
Artocarpus
Chempedak Artocarpus integer
Jackfruit Artocarpus heterophyllus
Avicennia Avicennia alba
Barringtonia
Barringtonia asiatica
Barringtonia conoidea
Barringtonia racemosa
Barringtonia revoluta
Belian Eusideroxylon swageri
Belian (Malagangai) Potoxylon malagangai
or Barringtonia sarcostachys Blumeodendron Blumeodendron tokbrai
Bruguiera Bruguiera sexangula
Cashew Anacardium occidentale
Casuarina Casuarina equisetifolia
Cerbera Cerbera odollam
Coconut Cocos nucifera
Dalbergia Dalbergia monosperma
Dioclea Dioclea hexandra
Dipterocarps Anisoptera sp.
Durian Durio zibethinus
Entada Entada rheedi
Eugeissona Eugeissona utilis
Excoecaria Excoecaria indica
Heritiera Heritiera littoralis
Hodgsonia Hodgsonia macrocarpa
Intsia
Intsia bijuga
Intsia palembanica
Kapayang Pangium edule
Page
Location
Date
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8
9
9
10
13
15
17
18
19
20
23
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
32
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The Seashore Life
of the Brunei Heart of Borneo
Species
Kulim Scorodocarpus borneensis
Lithocarpus Lithocarpus spp
Mallotus Mallotus muticus
Mango Mangifera indica
Mucuna Mucuna sp.
Mengkulat Teijsmanniodendron pteropodum
Nickar Nut Caesalpinia bonduc
Nypa Palm Nypa fruticans
Oil Palm Elaeis guineensis
Quassia Quassia indica
Rattan Calamus sp.
Eleiodoxa conferta
Rengas Gluta renghas
Rhizophora
Rhizophora mucronata
Rhizophora apiculata
Rubber Hevea brasiliensis
Saga Adenanthera pavonina
Sea Almond Terminalia catappa
Sea Lettuce Scaevola taccada
Sea Randa Guettarda speciosa
Seashore Screwpine Pandanus tectorius
Silingi Caesalpinia crista
Sonneratia Sonneratia alba
Vatica Vatica umbonata
Wattle Acacia auriculiformis
Acacia mangium
Xylocarpus Xylocarpus granatum
Dammar Gum
Sargassum Sargassum sp.
White and Creamy Fungi
Schizophyllaceae Schizophyllum commune
Yellow Fungi Calocera
Bracket Fungus Polyporella
Page
Location
Date
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37
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58
Footnote: UFO 7 is actually the base of a badminton shuttlecock (without the feathers)!
80
About the Authors:
R
oger McIlroy has lived in Brunei
Darussalam with his wife and children
since arriving from their home country of
Scotland in 2001. Roger holds degrees in
Geology and Petroleum Engineering and has
managed to combine his work in this field with
a keen interest in the environment. This series
of books draws on his documentation of the
facts and images of the natural history around
the Panaga area of Brunei which has been their
home.
He sees this series as a fitting gift to the
people and wildlife of Brunei Darussalam in
recognition of their hospitality and friendship
during his stay.
M
onique Desvoyes comes from France.
Her numerous travels around the world
have allowed her to develop a passion for seeds.
Monique is fascinated by the way nature has
given us an astonishing diversity of fruits inside
which the precious seeds are protected and
nicely packaged. The seeds come in an endless
variety of colours and shapes.
The Brunei forests and beaches gave her the
opportunity to find and record a vast array of
new and spectacular specimens, and she hope
this booklet will prompt the readers to have
a closer look at nature when walking on the
beaches and in the jungle.