GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews / 28 November) — When a 93-centimeter Rafflesia schadenbergiana was documented inside the Allah Valley Protected Landscape (AVPL) in South Cotabato earlier this month, the photos quickly went viral on social media. For conservationists and botanists, the bloom is more than a curiosity; its appearance in a Strict Protection Zone (SPZ), where human activity is restricted to research and monitoring, indicates that pockets of old-growth or relatively undisturbed forest still survive in parts of Mindanao. On November 25, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Soccsksargen (DENR-12) reported that personnel from AVPL’s Protected Area Management Office recorded the bloom during routine biodiversity monitoring, highlighting the importance of protected landscapes in conserving Mindanao’s unique flora.
The 93-centimeter Rafflesia schadenbergiana is among the largest ever recorded in the Philippines, with DENR-12 describing it as the largest within the protected landscape. Endemic to Mindanao, R. schadenbergiana can reach diameters of about 0.8 meters, making the Allah Valley bloom exceptionally large by Philippine standards. Rafflesia species are obligate parasites, living as microscopic tissue inside host vines from the grape family (Tetrastigma) and only blooming briefly before decaying.
R. schadenbergiana disappeared from scientific records for decades and was once feared extinct before being rediscovered in South Cotabato in the 1990s. Despite its rediscovery, most Rafflesia species are on the brink of extinction, with about 60% facing severe risk, as highlighted in a 2023 global assessment. Two-thirds of known Rafflesia habitats lie outside protected areas, leaving them vulnerable to deforestation and land conversion.
The Allah Valley bloom, documented within an SPZ, serves as a reminder that well-managed conservation zones can support rare species. Its brief appearance underscores the survival of Mindanao’s old-growth forests and the importance of enforcing protection measures for some of the world’s rarest plants. (Guia A. Rebollido / MindaNews)
