Philippine Journal of Science
150 (5): 1121-1129, October 2021
ISSN 0031 – 7683
Date Received: 08 May 2020

Kandelia candel (L.) Druce,
a True Native Species in the Philippines

Pastor L. Malabrigo Jr.^1,2,4*, Gerald T. Eduarte^3,4,
Laarni D. Malabrigo⁴, and Ericson E. Coracero⁵

¹Department of Forest Biological Sciences, College of Forestry and Natural Resources
²Museum of Natural History; ³Graduate School
University of the Philippines Los Baños, Laguna 4031 Philippines
⁴Pro-Seeds Development Association Inc.
Batong Malake, Los Baños, Laguna 4031 Philippines
⁵Department of Forestry and Environmental Sciences
Aurora State College of Technology (Baler Campus), Aurora, Philippines

*Corresponding author: plmalabrigo@up.edu.ph

 

ABSTRACT

Kandelia candel (L.) Druce is a true mangrove species under the family Rhizophoraceae. It is distributed throughout southeast Asia to south China, the Ryukyu Island and southern Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. In the Philippines, its only known area of occurrence is the province of Aurora, the central easternmost coast of Luzon island. However, there has been a long-standing debate on the presence of natural populations of Kandelia candel in the Philippines. Adding to the confusion, a number of molecular studies reported that the Kandelia populations from north of the South China Sea (SCS) are a genetically different species – Kandelia obovata – making the genus non-monotypic. Some mangrove biologists hypothesized that Kandelia populations in Aurora might have been introduced to the province by some fishermen from Taiwan. On the other hand, some papers suggest that Kandelia populations in the Philippines were shaped by the founders from the populations in Southern SCS. A recent population inventory conducted by the authors, complemented by taxonomic characterization, strongly suggests that Kandelia candel is native in the province of Aurora, Philippines.