Dacrydium pectinatum at a highland heath swamp
Dacrydium pectinatum (family Podocarpaceae ) is a tropical conifer with a widespread distribution, from Hainan to Sabah and Sarawak, and to Kalimantan and Sumatra. In the Philippines, it is known from the islands of Mindoro, Palawan, and the Zamboanga Peninsula on Mindanao (all in the west), and Sibuyan and eastern Luzon, where it has so far been found only from the province of Aurora's section of the Sierra Madre, the longest mountain system in the Philippines. A recent hike to Mt. Anacuao in the town in Dinalungan in Aurora yielded observations of this species. Developing seeds. Cone of D. pectinatum . The trees were prevalent in a swampy heath at about 1100 m elevations. Grasses, members of the Cyperaceae , ferns ( Blechnopsis orientalis , Dipteris conjugata and Sticherus truncatus ), lycopodids, rushes ( Equisetum sp.), and of course, ericaceous shrubs dominate this flat area. Also notable were the bright red rosettes of Drosera spatulata - these num...