Jakarta, June 9 -- Indonesia's Forestry Ministry announced the discovery of two new species of Begonia plants native to Kalimantan Island, named Begonia bukitrayaensis and Begonia kalimantana.

Satyawan Pudyatmoko, the ministry's director general for natural resources and ecosystem conservation, stated that the discovery was made during a biodiversity expedition in June 2024 and was recognized by the systematic botany journal "Phytotaxa" on June 6.

"We laud the Bukit Baka Bukit Raya National Park Office for its initiative and dedication, through collaboration with Indonesian researchers, on the expedition that resulted in the discovery of the new species," Pudyatmoko noted in his written statement, on Monday.

He noted that Begonia bukit...