Submitted:
23 August 2026
Posted:
25 August 2026
You are already at the latest version
Abstract
This paper presents photographic records of orchids observed along the trail of Mt. Opao, Igbaras, Panay Island, Philippines. At least seven species were documented, including four terrestrial taxa and three epiphytes. Moreover, photographic evidence of Appendicula laxifolia represents a new island record for Panay, extending the species’ known distribution. The documentation was conducted during a hiking event in August 2026 and highlights the value of mobile photography and community‑accessible digital platforms for rapid biodiversity documentation and for detecting range extensions that inform conservation and biogeographic research.
Keywords:
Central Panay mountains
; conservation
; orchids
; mobile photography
; botany
Copyright: This open access article is published under a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license, which permit the free download, distribution, and reuse, provided that the author and preprint are cited in any reuse.