Confirmed: PNG home to world’s smallest vertebrate – a frog

Source: The National,Monday16 January 2012

IT is confirmed. Papua New Guinea is home to the world’s smallest vertebrate with the discovery of a new species of frog that is so small two of them could `squeeze’ onto a dime (US 10-cent coin).
The world’s leading media, including Time magazine, CNN news, the BBC,  Fox News, USA Today and number of internet news websites have reported the discovery of Paedophyrne amauensis which averages about 7.7mm long.
The new species is related to the Paedophryne dekot and Paedophryne verrucosa species which, last December, were identified as the smallest frogs in the world.
Both are also found in Papua New Guinea.
P. dekot inhabits the lower ranges, below about 1,200m of the western slope of Mt Dayman in Milne Bay and P. verrucosa lives on the southeastern slope of Mt Suckling near a region that joins Mt Dayman.
But compared with P. amanuensis, they average a “massive” 8.1mm to 9.3mm in size.
A team of American researchers from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge discovered the frog in the jungles of PNG in 2009.
The creatures are named after a Central village called Amau, which is near where they were found.It was only last week that the science journal, PLoS One, dubbed the frog with the teeny-tiny honour.
The frog beats the previous record for a tiny Indonesian fish (paedocypris progenetica) which average 7.9mm in length.
The tiny frogs are difficult to see but can be easily heard as they have high-pitched calls which make them sound like crickets.
Prof Chris Austin was part of the team that discovered the frog on a three-month field trip to Amau.
These creatures make their habitats on fallen leaves on the floor of tropical rainforests.
“After several failed attempts to find it, we ended up just scooping up a big handful of leaf litter where the call was coming from and putting it all in a clear plastic bag,” Austin said.
After sorting through the bag leaf by leaf, they “discovered the incredibly small frog making the call”.
The creatures will help scientists understand more about extreme body size.
The frogs are thought to have evolved “extreme miniaturisation” to fill a hole in the food chain which was not being exploited by others, perhaps to eat minuscule creatures such as mites unable to sustain larger frogs.
“We now believe they aren’t just biological oddities, but instead represent a previously undocumented ecological guild – they occupy a habitat niche that no other vertebrate does,” Austin said.
“(Papua) New Guinea is a hotspot of biodiversity, and everything new we discover there adds another layer to our overall understanding of how biodiversity is generated and maintained,” Austin adds.
Steven J. Beaupre, from the University of Arkansas and president-elect of the American Society of Icthyologists and Herpetologists, said that the discovery was a boon for scientists. He said the new species would help scientists better “understand the advantages and disadvantages of extreme small size and how such extremes evolve”.
“Fundamentally, these tiny vertebrates provide a window on the principles that constrain animal design.”

PNG is world’s orchid champ

MABONEIt is a first for Papua New Guinea and the win has surely put our country on the map as home to the world’s most elegant and stunning orchids. Be proud PNG for we are now the world orchid champions.
Source: Weekender, Post Courier, December 3-4, 2011

By TRAVERTZ MABONE

AS beautibeautiful and luring as our orchids can be, their unique elegance showcased to the world during the 20th World Orchid Conference in Singapore this month reaped eminence as the World Orchid Champions. Not too bad for first timers on the scene, something I know the PNG Gardener would say ‘You’re too good you are!’ The Orchid Society of Papua New Guinea is the new number 1 World Orchid champions and can be now claimed as the best Orchid Society in the World. Going in with nothing but the best orchids in bloom that Papua New Guinea had to offer, the Orchid Society of Papua New Guinea Inc. (OSPNG) overwhelmingly went, displayed and left with a boom. All the more experienced Orchid Growers and the Societies from around the world and spectators had their winning hopes tattered just at the sight of the elegant display headed by none other than the PNG Gardener Justin Tkatchenko. Tkatchenko who is also the president of the OSPNG revealed that the spoils which the Orchid Society of Papua New Guinea took out included the prize for the best 100 square metre display which had our beautiful traditional carvings decorated with orchid spikes, a bird of paradise sculpture beautifully arranged with orchid blossoms from the highlands and the lowlands of Papua New Guinea. “Also in the display showcased individual orchid plants that won over 15 Awards with Pint Kupal one of our Orchid Society members from Mt Hagen taking out five of those awards for his Highlands Orchids,” Tkatchenko said. And the awards don’t stop there, the Orchid Society also received ‘Reserved Champion’ over all for the best display in the whole show; this includes all the displays from professional orchid growers’ nurseries, organisations and the likes. Mr Tkatchenko said; “For the efforts of the Orchid Society of Papua New Guinea and planning for the event, which took us nearly 18 months to organise, the society won the two top major awards with the major one being the Gold Medal for the 100 meter square display which has created history for Papua New Guinea as a first time entrant. We’ve never won anything like this before.” He stated that this result would not have been possible without the assistance and contribution of many corporate and private businesses, the Department of Environment and Conservation and NAQIA, who have always provided their full support to us of the Patron Sir Rabbie Namaliu, who has enabled the OSPNG to reach their goals and dreams and to the People of Papua New Guinea, thank you for always supporting us by turning up to our Orchid Shows and showing your keen interest and the enjoyment you have for our orchids. Papua New Guineans is proud to know that we are now officially recognised as the world’s best. PAPUA New Guinea’s debut in the 20th World Orchid Conference in Singapore earlier this month toppled 86 countries hands down with their beautifully ordained 100 metre square masterpiece display. President of the Orchid Society of PNG Justin Tkatchenko said “It took us around 18 months to prepare and organise the display and because it was our first appearance I wanted the display
to have the “Wow!” factor, and I got it.” Imagine specially contracted carvers from East Sepik, from Angoram to be exact, carving their masterpieces which were then shipped by a barge to Wewak finding their way to Port Moresby on a Steamships vessel before taking another long boat ride to Singapore in a 20 foot container taking up to six months.
Designing and organising complementary features depicting the strong Papua New Guinean culture and lifestyles to showcase the rare and endemic orchids that are globally
adored and most sought after. Also with organising a team of floral experts to arrange the display, and handpicking specific orchids and complementing plants, getting sponsors on board and doing all this and more in 18 months to get into the 20th World Orchid Conference in Singapore was a feat that paid off dividends with unimaginable world credibility and recognition. Tkachcenko stated that only eight countries, including PNG, took part in the 100 metre square display while the rest showcased theirs in the 50, 40 and 30 metre square displays. He added that the Orchid Society of Papua New Guinea had 30 species of orchids on display which was very good because it was during a time when PNG had most of its orchids in flower. “After 18 months to prepare the show and coordinate the event, all went extremely well with the OSPNG taking out the top prize along with other individual prizes,” Mr Tkachenko said. He said that the next World Orchid Conference which he described as the ‘Olympics for Orchids’ will be held in South Africa. When asked if the OSPNG had plans to take part, he sighed the OSPNG’s intention of attending as it would prove to be quite a handful considering the amount of work done just to get over to Singapore. And for some of the OSPNG’s complementing features such as the carvings and the sculpture, they have been left behind with new homes leaving behind a legacy that the Orchid Society of PNG had created. As eye-catching as our orchids, all carvings too found their place with other green-fingers. The carvings were bought by the Singapore Government on request to find permanent residence in a new park, a botanical garden in Singapore called ‘Gardens by the Bay’. The bird of paradise sculpture that stood as the centrepiece was purchased by Thailand to feature in the Thai Orchid show and the Thai King’s royal birthday next year. What a spectacular ending for an elegant show by the Orchid Society of Papua New Guinea. They should be applauded for stamping the country’s unique beauty on the world’s corneas. It’s a pity that South Africa looks too far now for any chance of retention but hey, they say this is the land of the unexpected.

Orchid farm helps Central school

Source: The National, Monday 12th December 2011

A SMALL orchid farm in the Rigo area of Central province has gone to the aid of the Lebogoro primary school with a donation of K2,000 for the school’s project fees for next year.
NON’s managing director Gitu Lago told The National that he felt compelled to help the school in his village because the government’s free education policy only covered school fees and not project fees.
NON’s assistance will ensure the parents do not pay anything next year, he said.
Lago also revealed a problem at the Lebogoro school.
The headmaster of the school had left the school without organising a change of signatories in the school’s bank account, preventing the caretaker teacher from accessing the funds for school supplies.
He said all school subsidies funds for next year had been released and were deposited into their respective bank accounts.
The company – Native Orchid Nursery (NON) – specialises only in local orchids which are becoming popular at the Ela Beach craft market.
It had customers flying to Port Moresby from as far away as Kimbe in West New Britain to buy the orchids.
He explained that NON would buy orchids from the villagers who harvested them from the jungles.
NON also specialised landscaping and hired out its plants to company and government offices.
Customers interested in purchasing native orchids could contact Lago on 76707163/71927070 or email gitulago@gmail.com
“Education is important in today’s world and I will always invest in the future of children in my community so that they will realise their dreams,” he said

Bird Species of Enga Province

Birds of Paradise from the Enga Province. Images courtesy of Tim Laman.com

These photos courtesy of Super stokes photography