o_19ko2dt161ng2j4e1tgnoqv1s45a.pdf

SHAWN CHENG & LAURENCE G. KIRTON (2007)
STATUS OF BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY IN MALAYSIA &
THREAT ASSESSMENT OF PLANT SPECIES IN MALAYSIA
OVERVIEW OF INSECT BIODIVERSITY
RESEARCH IN PENINSULAR MALAYSIA
1
Shawn Cheng & 2 Laurence G. Kirton
ABSTRACT
Malaysia’s commitment to implement the Convention on Biological Diversity has provided
fresh impetus for the documentation of the country’s flora and fauna. Insects greatly outnumber
other major lifegroups in terms of diversity and numbers, but an assessment of the degree to
which the biodiversity and taxonomy of insects have been researched in Malaysia indicates
that there are still great needs. In a survey of institutions in the vicinity of the capital city of
Malaysia, 25% of 387 entomology dissertations and articles written over the last decade were
on the subject of insect diversity, with many of the studies being of the numerical kind, while
only 4% were on taxonomy and systematics – the science of describing biological diversity.
In addition, the taxonomy and diversity of only a few major insect orders, such as Lepidoptera
(butterflies and moths), Isoptera (termites) and Phasmida (stick insects), have been relatively
well studied in Malaysia. Little is known of other important insect orders, such as Coleoptera
(beetles), Hymenoptera (bees, wasps and ants), Diptera (flies) and Hemiptera (bugs). We argue
that if any effective inventory of Malaysia’s insect fauna is to take place, sustained interest
and funding needs to be devoted to the study of their diversity and taxonomy.
INTRODUCTION
Biodiversity is often broadly defined as the different forms of plants, animals and
microorganisms that exist, the levels at which they occur (e.g., species, population and
ecosystem levels) and the different ways in which organisms, climate and geology combine to
form functioning ecosystems. Approximately 1.8 million living species have been named and
described and, of these, one million are insects (May 2002). It has also been estimated that
invertebrates represent more than 90% of the planet’s 10 million or so animal species (Erwin
1983, Wilson 1992).
Insects are ubiquitous in the environment and play important roles in maintaining the stability
of ecosystems by being part of the food chain, mediating decomposition processes and through
various ecological interactions, such as pollination, predation and herbivory. Large-scale
anthropogenic activities such as forest clear-cutting extirpate insect species and destroy
ecosystem dynamics and interactions that have been in place for millennia.
Forest Research Institute Malaysia, 52109 Kepong, Selangor, Malaysia. 1 shawn@frim.gov.my; 2 laurence@frim.gov.my
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