Innovation Agency (BRIN) has identified a new spiny eggplant species
from Kalimantan, highlighting Indonesia’s rich but still underdocumented
biodiversity, with the findings published in the international journal
Taprobanica in 2026.
The species, named Solanum kalimantanense T.
Djarwaningsih, E.L. Agustiani and M.R. Hariri, was identified by
researchers from BRIN’s Research Center for Biosystematics and Evolution
and the Research Center for Ecology.
The name honors the team’s
scientists, including Research Center for Biosystematics and Evolution
researchers Esthi L Agustiani, Tutie Djarwaningsih and Muhammad Rifqi
Hariri, as well as Research Center for Ecology researcher Siti Susiarti.
In
a statement issued in Jakarta on Sunday, Research Center for
Biosystematics and Evolution researcher Muhammad Rifqi Hariri said the
species has distinct morphological traits that set it apart from related
species in the Solanum genus native to Southeast Asia.
Its
characteristics include leaves with nearly equal length and width, very
shallow leaf lobes, sparse fine hairs on mature fruit surfaces and
larger fruit than Solanum lasiocarpum, Hariri said.
“This finding
shows Indonesia still holds enormous biodiversity potential that has
not been fully documented scientifically, including among plant groups
already known and used by local communities,” he said.
He said
DNA analysis using Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) markers confirmed
significant genetic differences between the new species and its closest
relatives.
Research Center for Biosystematics and Evolution
researcher Tutie Djarwaningsih said local communities have long known
the plant as “terong asam” or “terong dayak” and used it as food.
Its fruit is widely sold at Banjarmasin’s floating markets and commonly cooked as a vegetable dish in South Kalimantan.
In
East Kalimantan’s Kenohan district, local residents also use the leaves
and young fruit buds in traditional remedies known locally as “wikat”
for cancer treatment.
Research Center for Biosystematics and
Evolution researcher Esthi L Agustiani said Solanum kalimantanense grows
across sandy loam to acidic black soils at elevations ranging from 9 to
1,700 meters above sea level.
The species has been recorded in parts of East and South Kalimantan and is found across diverse habitats.
Initial
assessments indicate the species has a limited population and could
qualify as vulnerable under criteria set by the International Union for
Conservation of Nature.
“An integrative approach combining
morphological observation and DNA barcoding allowed us to distinguish
this species more accurately from its close relatives,” Agustiani said.
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