While I was walking around the campus of Papua university, I saw some flowers. I didn't know their name at that time but Mr. Robert Power - an Australian tourist who was walking with me said that its name was naked lady. It's a beautiful flower isn't it? Inside the tropical rainforest of West Papua, if we go hiking in the morning, we can see various kinds of flowers. From the grass to the branches of big trees, flowers bloom and attract insects such as bees and butterflies to them. I don't know whether these naked lady flowers are endemic species from New Guinea or not but they really look beautiful when planted at the front yard of our homes.
At coastal lowland areas, bougenville, hibiscus and paradise birds flowers dominate the front yard of the houses in Manokwari city. But inside the rainforest, orchids are the most common species that we can see. The price of orchids from West Papua is expensive in big cities in Indonesia triggering extensive hunting by the local people who want to make money from selling flowers. I hope that through the promotion of eco-tourism, the destruction of rainforest in West Papua can be minimized. by Charles Roring
Also read:
Rainforest Flowers as Medicinal HerbsRainforest Flowers Pictures
