Expeditions and other exploration

The Kwae Noi River basin, WNW of Bangkok, close by the forested Bilauk Taung range along the frontier with Burma, has again attracted the attention of botanists. In 1926, Kerr collected c. 558 numbers; in 1946, Kostermans, Bloembergen & Den Hoed over 1200. From 1 November 1961 to 24 February 1962, an exploration in this area was made by Mr. Kai Larsen of Copenhagen and Mr. Tem Smitinand of Bangkok. They collected in various forest types, also on limestone and in swamp vegetations, about 2000 numbers. The material is at the Copenhagen Museum, the second set, after identification, will go to Bangkok; duplicates are available to the institutes where specialists assist in the identification and as exchange material. In Mr. Larsen’s brief account, Nat. Hist. Bull. Siam Soc. 20 (1962) 109-119 + map + 9 phot., we are pleased to read that the Erawan area, with its travertine formations and rich fern vegetation, is planned by the Royal forest Department to be safeguarded as a national park.