New plant species found in An Toan Nature Reserve

The new plant species was discovered by biologists from the Center for Ecology and Resources (Institute of Advanced Technology) in the An Toan Nature Reserve, An Toan Commune, Gia Lai Province. The new species has the scientific name Billolivia antoanensis, with the Vietnamese name Luu hoa antoan, belonging to the family Thuong tien (Gesneriaceae). Luu hoa antoan has a short stem, thick leaves with rough serrated edges, and a cluster of 3-8 characteristic purple flowers.

A new species of safe flowering plant was discovered in An Toan Nature Reserve. Photo: Institute of Advanced Technology.

An Toan flower is the 17th species of the endemic genus Billolivia - Flower recorded in Vietnam and was discovered by biologists at An Toan Nature Reserve in 2021; specimens will continue to be collected and studied in 2023. Information about the new plant species will be officially published in the Journal of Biology (Volume 47, No. 3, September 2025).

Sharing with Gia Lai newspaper, Associate Professor, Dr. Luu Hong Truong, Deputy Director of the Institute of Advanced Technology, said that the discovery of the An Toan flower species not only contributes to the list of endemic species in Vietnam but also shows that the An Toan Nature Reserve is an important habitat, still preserving many rare and precious primary values that need to be protected and studied further in the future.

An Toan Nature Reserve has an area of over 22,000 hectares. The reserve is located in two important ecological regions of Vietnam: the high mountain rainforest ecological region of the southern Truong Son range and the lowland dry forest ecological region of southern Vietnam. Initial surveys of biodiversity in the area have recorded 300 animal species with 83 mammal species, 141 bird species, 47 reptile species and 29 amphibian species; 547 plant species belonging to 304 genera and 110 families of higher plants. Of these, 32 rare animal species are classified from vulnerable to critically endangered, including 3 critically endangered species: the grey-shanked douc langur (Pygathrix cinerea), the yellow-fronted box turtle (Cuora Galbinifrons) and the Vietnamese pond turtle (Mauremys Annamensis).

Accordingly, the Conservation Area plays an important role in preserving the biodiversity values of Gia Lai province as well as of Vietnam.