BOOK REVIEW: ORCHIDS OF PALAU: A FIELD GUIDE

Abstract

Orchids of Palau: A field guide by Ann Hillmann Kitalong and Makoto Uesugi. Middletown, DE: The Environment, Inc., 2017. 112 pp. Soft Cover. ISBN 978-982-98016-5-4. £19.00 Micronesian orchid communities are gaining attention from researchers and enthusiasts alike (see, e.g., Raulerson & Rinehart, 1992; GPEPP, 2017; Crain, 2018), however, readily accessible field guides for many of the individual islands or archipelagos are limited in availability. Moreover, 30 to 100 years have passed since much of the literature on Micronesian orchids has been published (e.g., Schlechter, 1921; Tuyama, 1939; Fosberg & Sachet, 1987), during which time numerous changes have taken place in orchid taxonomy that have not been compiled in an easily manageable source. Orchids of Palau: A field guide proficiently fills this void for an important component of orchid diversity in Micronesia. Palau's orchid flora is rich with showy, rare, and endemic species, but given that the islands’ remarkable marine environments often overshadow potential interests in their plant communities, it is encouraging to see that their orchids are being documented and showcased for a broad audience in a convenient field guide. Following the preliminary material [Credits, Acknowledgements, Table of Contents], an Introduction is presented that includes brief sections on Physical Geography, Vegetation of the Islands, History of Palauan Orchids (which includes an interesting list of botanists that have made taxonomic contributions), The Orchid Flora, The Structure of Orchids, The Flower, The Inflorescence, The Seed Capsule, and Vegetative Morphology, most of which include color photos. The main body of the text (Species Descriptions) follows the Introduction and consists of 39 species accounts, organized alphabetically. Each account includes two sections with information on the species’ distribution and habitat (globally and locally) and a species description that includes information on synonymy (in some cases), growth form, stems, leaves, flowers, and phenology. Multiple color photographs of growth form, leaves, flowers, and capsules from co-author Makoto Uesugi and several other contributors also accompany each species account and offer sufficient detail to permit recognition of plants in the field. Although the guide is limited in that it only provides descriptions for less than half of the known orchid species in Palau, it makes up for this in part through a subsequent section of Orchid Plates that includes photos of an additional 12 species. Furthermore, a checklist of 80 recorded species follows the plates section and is a very useful element for consolidating information on the orchids specifically found in Palau. The checklist includes details on phenology (including a monthly calendar) and information on distribution status (Native, Endemic, Introduced, Invasive). The field guide concludes with a Glossary emphasizing orchid morphology and a References section. As with any first edition book, particularly those that cover subjects such as floristics and taxonomy, which are continuously in flux and subject to updates, occasional limitations and errors have inevitably found their way into the publication. In a few instances, photos appear to be captioned incorrectly (e.g., Taeneophyllum palawense, p. 13). Another limitation is that some of the more cryptic species are not included in the Species Descriptions section or in the Plates Section, making it difficult to compare and differentiate closely related species in the field based on the information and photos provided, particularly in the absence of a dichotomous key. In some cases, the taxonomic nomenclature needs to be updated as well, although some of the potential changes are currently under debate (e.g., Oberonia spp., Moerenhoutia spp.). The caption for the checklist also has some missing information for species status symbology (status G), which is omitted. Lastly, it should be noted that the phenology dataset is incomplete, something the authors recognize, and thus it only documents when a species has been observed in bloom by the authors, but not necessarily the true seasonality of the species. Nevertheless, the authors acknowledge that the guide is a work in progress and assert that they are gathering new photographs and added information on seasonality for updated volumes in the future. Despite minor issues with the first edition, I strongly recommend this field guide for any biology department or natural history institute with interests in the flora of Micronesia or southeast Asia. I believe that this book is a valuable resource for botanists focusing on the orchids or flora of Micronesia and a convenient field guide for ecotourists and natural history guides in the Republic of Palau.