Forest Herbarium (BKF)

Forest Herbarium (BKF)
Name	Forest Herbarium (BKF)
Established	1954
Location	Bangkok, Thailand
Type	Herbarium
Collection size	~2 million specimens

Forest Herbarium (BKF) is the national botanical repository for Thai and Southeast Asian vascular plants, bryophytes, fungi, and allied groups, housed in Bangkok and central to regional biodiversity documentation. It serves as a reference center for taxonomic verification, conservation assessment, and phytogeographic studies across Indochina and Sundaland, supporting botanical research, forestry management, and international treaties. The institution interfaces with academic, governmental, and non-governmental organizations to contribute to floristic inventories, red lists, and ex situ conservation.

History

The founding and development of the herbarium intersect with postwar botanical expansion in Southeast Asia, influenced by figures and institutions such as Royal Forest Department (Thailand), Pridi Banomyong, Siam, and collaborations with United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and Food and Agriculture Organization. Early collections reflect expeditions contemporaneous with collectors linked to Kew Gardens, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, and Smithsonian Institution fieldwork, and later growth paralleled surveys by Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Arnold Arboretum, and Oak Spring Garden Foundation. During the Cold War period botanical exchanges connected BKF with projects involving Mekong River Commission, International Union for Conservation of Nature, and researchers from Harvard University, University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, and University of Tokyo. Landmark initiatives included floristic treatments akin to those by Flora of China, Flora Malesiana, and influences from monographs published by Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and Missouri Botanical Garden staff. The herbarium expanded its holdings through cooperative agreements with collectors associated with Kansai University, Australian National University, National University of Singapore, and fieldwork linked to regional parks such as Khao Yai National Park, Doi Inthanon National Park, and Kaeng Krachan National Park.

Collections and Specimens

BKF's collections encompass vascular plants, bryophytes, lichens, fungi, and wood samples, with specimens from Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo, Sumatra, and nearby islands. The holdings include types and isotypes collected by botanists connected to H. T. Clifford, E. J. H. Corner, Doorenbos, M. Hotta, and colleagues who worked with institutions like Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Naturalis Biodiversity Center, and Botanische Staatssammlung München. The repository houses annotated sheets related to floras such as Flora Malesiana, Flora of Thailand, and specimen exchanges with Herbarium Bogoriense, National Herbarium of the Netherlands, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and New York Botanical Garden. Wood collections and timber reference samples have been used by forensic timbers scientists affiliated with CITES enforcement, TRAFFIC, and universities including Cornell University and University of Copenhagen. The herbarium preserves type specimens named in papers by researchers from University of Wisconsin–Madison, University of California, Berkeley, University of Melbourne, and Tokyo Metropolitan University. Collections are curated with standards shared by Index Herbariorum, Global Biodiversity Information Facility, and International Plant Names Index collaborations.

Research and Publications

BKF staff and collaborators produce taxonomic revisions, regional checklists, and conservation assessments cited in outlets like Phytotaxa, Blumea, Kew Bulletin, and Thai Forest Bulletin. Research outputs address systematic botany, floristics, and phylogeography, often involving molecular labs at Max Planck Society, Smithsonian Institution, Harvard University Herbaria, and Natural History Museum, London. Publications include contributions to monographs comparable to those from Missouri Botanical Garden Press and to red-list assessments coordinated with IUCN Red List. Collaborative studies with universities such as Chulalongkorn University, Kasetsart University, Mahidol University, and Chiang Mai University have generated species descriptions, DNA barcoding datasets, and ecological metadata uploaded to Global Biodiversity Information Facility and cited by global syntheses involving IPBES, Convention on Biological Diversity, and Ramsar Convention documentation.

Facilities and Infrastructure

The herbarium maintains climate-controlled compactor systems, digitization suites, molecular labs, and a wood anatomy reference collection comparable to facilities at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, and Missouri Botanical Garden. Imaging workflows follow protocols used by Biodiversity Heritage Library partners and digitization projects coordinated with GBIF and iDigBio. Infrastructure supports loans and exchanges governed by standards from Index Herbariorum and specimen handling practices shared with New York Botanical Garden and Naturalis. Field station links facilitate specimen flow from protected areas such as Doi Suthep–Pui National Park, Erawan National Park, and Phu Kradueng National Park to BKF repositories.

Outreach, Education, and Collaboration

BKF engages in training programs, workshops, and joint projects with academic institutions including Chulalongkorn University, Kasetsart University, Mahidol University, Prince of Songkla University, and with conservation NGOs like Fauna & Flora International, World Wide Fund for Nature, and BirdLife International. Public exhibitions and citizen-science initiatives mirror efforts by Natural History Museum, London, Singapore Botanic Gardens, and Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew to raise awareness on Thai flora and threatened habitats. Collaborative networks include specimen sharing and databasing with GBIF, taxonomic partnerships with Flora Malesiana Foundation, and capacity-building with regional herbaria at Herbarium Bogoriense, Phnom Penh National Herbarium, and Laos National Herbarium.

Governance and Funding

Administration aligns with Thai ministries and agencies such as Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (Thailand) and coordination with Royal Forest Department (Thailand)],] while funding stems from government budgets, competitive grants from organizations like National Science Foundation, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, and international donors including Global Environment Facility, United Nations Development Programme, and philanthropic support modeled after gifts to Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden. Project funding and governance mechanisms interface with multilateral agreements such as the Convention on Biological Diversity and Nagoya Protocol frameworks for access and benefit-sharing, and with regional conservation programs under the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity.

Category:Herbaria