Updated Diversity of Costaceae in Java with the First Record of Monocostus K.Schum.

Muhammad Hisyam Baidlowi (Botani Tropika Indonesia Foundation)
Arifin Surya Dwipa Irsyam (Herbarium Bandungense, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Institut Teknologi Bandung)
Muhammad Rifqi Hariri (Pusat Riset Biosistematika dan Evolusi, -BRIN)

Floribunda
Vol. 9 No. 1 (2026): Floribunda

Muhammad Hisyam Baidlowi, Arifin Surya Dwipa Irsyam, Muhammad Rifqi Hariri 2026. Updated diversity of Costaceae in Java with the first record of Monocostus K.Schum. Floribunda 9(1) 9—13 — Costaceae Nakai comprises eight genera distributed throughout tropical regions, but in Java the family was previously represented by only two genera, Costus and Hellenia. Recent studies have updated the diversity of Costaceae in Java, particularly within Costus, by documenting newly cultivated, naturalized, and escaped introduced species based on field surveys, herbarium studies, and morphological analyses, increasing the number of recorded species to 15. Field investigations conducted between 2023 and 2025 further revealed the occurrence of an additional genus, Monocostus, in Java, currently known only from cultivated specimens. This finding expands the generic representation of Costaceae on the island and provides an important baseline for monitoring introduced ornamental taxa, assessing their potential for naturalization, and supporting  future floristic, taxonomic, and conservation studies.