ly. Much of our work involved locating species already 

 identified. Samples of these (0.3-1 kg dry weight) were 

 collected for the biological tests. To make sure we had 

 identified the plants correctly, as well as provide for 

 future reference needs, additional specimens of the 

 same plants were collected for the herbarium. The 

 identity of these co-called "voucher specimens" was la- 

 ter confirmed or newly determined, and duplicates dis- 

 tributed to other botanical institutions. Collecting 

 such plant samples in the tropical rain forest presents 

 several challenges, such as on-the-spot identification 

 of specimens and logistics. Transportation of bulky par- 

 cels, the drying and processing of samples, and air car- 

 go dispatching were major logistical problems. 



Modern botanical exploration of Palawan had its 

 origins at the beginning of this century through the 

 work of a number of botanists and collectors, notably 

 the American botanists E. D. Merrill and A. D. E. 

 Elmer. By mid- 1980, about 1,500 flowering plant spe- 



cies (649 genera in 138 families) were known from 

 Palawan, of which 5 to 15 percent were believed to be 

 unique to this island. In 1984 a floristically oriented 

 three-month expedition was carried out by Sweden's 

 Hilleshog Forestry, and as a result of this expedition, 

 153 species new to Palawan — about 10 percent — were 

 added, so that at least 1,672 species are now known to 

 occur there. 



Getting to Our Collecting Sites 

 And Expedition Logistics 



Puerto Princesa, Palawan's capital, may be reached 

 from Manila by ship (one day) or by plane (2 hours). It 

 is a large city of more than 100,000 people, where 

 many items for our expedition could be purchased and 

 vehicles rented. There is a partially paved road con- 

 necting important towns along the east coast, from 

 Brooke's Point, near the southern tip, to Puerto Prin- 



Our Jeepney negotiating the Irawan River. 



