Seventy-two extracts (methanol) obtained from the leaves, barks, and roots of 50 plant species used in the traditional medicine of Perak, Peninsular Malaysia, have been screened for antibacterial and antifungal activities. Peristrophe tinctoria, Polyalthia lateriflora, Knema malayana, Solanum torvum, Celosia argentea, Eclipta prostrata, Ancistrocladus tectorius, Dillenia suffruticosa, Piper sty...

A riparian zone is the land adjacent to streams and rivers, known to be one of the most important habitats in the tropical forest. However, not many studies have been done in Peninsular Malaysia and no information particularly in lowland forest. The purpose of this study was to characterize the plant communities where two sites were chosen, Pasoh Forest Reserve (PFR) which includes two logged-o...

Tetrasticta gnatha sp. n., collected under the bark of a rotten fallen tree in Peninsular Malaysia, is described. A habitus photograph, line drawings of diagnostic characters, and a diagnosis are provided. The new species is readily distinguished from all known congeners by having long mandibles, and long, curved maxillary palpi.

Four new species from three genera of Agraeciini from Malay Peninsula are described: Paragraecia temasek sp. n., Peracca mirzai sp. n., Peracca macritchiensis sp. n. from Singapore, and Lichnofugia malaya sp. n. from Peninsular Malaysia. The first records and descriptions of the female of Liara alata Ingrisch, 1998 and the male of Paragraecia gracilis Ingrisch, 1998 are given.

The 1999 outbreak of Nipah virus encephalitis in humans and pigs in Peninsular Malaysia ended with the evacuation of humans and culling of pigs in the epidemic area. Serologic screening showed that, in the absence of infected pigs, dogs were not a secondary reservoir for Nipah virus.

The fruit fly Bactrocera caudata is a pest species of economic importance in Asia. Its larvae feed on the flowers of Cucurbitaceae such as Cucurbita moschata. To-date it is distinguished from related species based on morphological characters. Specimens of B. caudata from Peninsular Malaysia and Indonesia (Bali and Lombok) were analysed using the partial DNA sequences of cytochrome c oxidase sub...

Blood cockles are among the most economically important brackish water invertebrates found in Malaysia. However, our knowledge of blood cockle phylogeny and systematics is rudimentary, especially for the species Tegillarca granosa. It is unclear, for instance, whether the cockles occurring on the west coast of peninsular Malaysia constitute a single species, or multiple, phylogenetically distin...

Worldwide estimate of acid sulfate soils is 12–14 million ha. In Malaysia, they occur mainly along the coastal plains of Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak. The soils are characterized by very low pH and high amounts of exchangeable Al, resulting from oxidation of pyrite when the soils are drained. This paper explains the transformation of pyrite when the soils undergo weathering due to drainage. ...

Taxonomists have described more than 5,000 species of frogs (Duellman and Trueb, 1994). Disease has been a factor in the decline of amphibian populations worldwide, although other factors including habitat loss and fragmentation, chemical pollution, climate changes, introduction of exotic species, increased ultraviolet radiation, and natural pollution have also been responsible for the decline ...

Morality in Peninsular Malaysia has reached a level that is quite similar to that prevailing in the low mortality countries. This article systematically documents changes in mortality levels and differentials in Malaysia over time and relates these to changes in development indicators and health-related policies. Remedial measures undertaken by the authorities including the expansion of hospi...