Unique flowers of Malaysia

Malaysia Post pleased to launch a set of four stamps feature the unique flowers on October 9, 2008.

The issue stamps depicts the unique flowers of Malaysia, Kembang Songsang or Gloriosa superba, Goniothalamus tapis  or Kenerak, Quisqualis indica  or Akar dani,  Michelia figo or Cempaka Pisang.

Kembang Songsang or Gloriosa superba is A scandent plant, climbing by leaftip tendrils. The perianth segments, which are accrescent during anthesis and become reflexed, are striking in color, yellow proximally and at margins and dark red in the median portion.

Gloriosa superba is the national flower of Zimbabwe and it is also the state flower of Tamil Nadu state in India, and was the national flower of Tamil Eelam. This is a species of the genus Gloriosa.

Gloriosa is a genus of ten species in the plant family Colchicaceae.They are native in tropical and southern Africa to Asia. They are tender, tuberous rooted deciduous perennials, adapted to summer rainfall with a dormant dry season.

Frogs of Malaysia

Malay Post  has issued regularly the stamp set features of Malayan fauna. On May 3, 2007, they issued  three postage stamps and one souvenir sheet stamp. The Malayan frog depicted  are Kodok Pokok,  Katak Perang, and Katak Tanduk on single stamps and Katak Paya on souvenir sheet stamp.

The souvenir sheet consist of one postage stamp depicts Katak paya (Rana laterimaculata) and have background of another species of frog,  Katak Pokok Terbang Wallace or Wallace's flying frog (Rhacophorus nigroplamatus).

Katak paya (Rana laterimaculata) is a species of frog in the Ranidae family and found in Indonesia,Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical swamps, rivers, swamps, rural gardens, and heavily degraded former forest. Katak paya (Rana laterimaculata) is threatened by habitat loss.

Seashells of Malaysia

In year 2008, Malay Post issued the stamp set features seashells of Malaysia that comprises of one souvenir sheet and 4 single postage stamps. The species of seashells have depicted are Venus comb murex (Murex pecten), Horned helmet (Cassis cornuta), Burnt murex (Chicoreus brunneus), Frog shell (Tutufa rubeta), and Triton’s trumpet (Charonia tritonis).

The Venus comb murex, or  Murex pecten, is a species of large predatory sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Muricidae, the rock snails or murex snails. The shell of this Indo-Pacific species has a very long siphonal canal, and numerous spines.

The shell has over one hundred spines, which provide protection from predation, and prevent the snail from sinking in the soft mud. 

Like many other murex snails, it feeds on other mollusks. The Venus comb murex is a common species, but perfect specimens of the shell are not easily found because of the fragility of the numerous long spines. The species grows to between 10 and 15 cm in length.

Ferns on Malaysia stamps.

Malaysia Post Issued stamps series of Ferns on stamp set and souvenir sheet on year 2010. The stamps featured many type of fern available in Malaysia, like : Sakat sakat (Asplenium nidus), Matonia pectinata, Bua cek (Dipteris conjugata) depicted on souvenir sheet, and other type like : Tunjuk Langit (Helminthoslachys zeylanica), Paku miding (Stenochloena palustris), Tanduk rusa (Platycerium coranarium), Resam, Paku Sungai (Diplazium esculentum) depicted on the set of 5 individual stamps.