Eriocaulon madayiparense
| Notice: | This page is derived from the original publication listed below, whose author(s) should always be credited. Further contributors may edit and improve the content of this page and, consequently, need to be credited as well (see page history). Any assessment of factual correctness requires a careful review of the original article as well as of subsequent contributions.
If you are uncertain whether your planned contribution is correct or not, we suggest that you use the associated discussion page instead of editing the page directly. This page should be cited as follows (rationale):
Citation formats to copy and paste
BibTeX: @article{Swapna2012PhytoKeys10, RIS/ Endnote: TY - JOUR Wikipedia/ Citizendium: <ref name="Swapna2012PhytoKeys10">{{Citation See also the citation download page at the journal. |
Ordo: Poales
Familia: Eriocaulaceae
Genus: Eriocaulon
Name
Eriocaulon madayiparense Swapna, Rajesh, Manju & Prakashkumar sp. nov. – Wikispecies link – IPNI link – Pensoft Profile
Diagnosis
Eriocaulon madayiparense is allied to Eriocaulon eurypeplon Koernicke, but differs mainly in having black, glabrous, acute-acuminate involucral bracts, pedicels of female flowers hairy at base, female sepals oblance-ovate or oblaceolate, cuneate, conduplicate, keeled, irregularly toothed towards apex, yellow seeds with solitary appendage arising from transverse radial walls, curved and connate with the adjacent ones of the same vertical row forming longitudinal parallel ribs on the surface of seeds.
Type
INDIA. Kerala, Kannur District, Madayipara, 40 m alt., 5 September 2011, K.P.Rajesh & C.N.Manju 5610 (Holotype: MBGS! Isotypes: MBGS!, MH!, CALI!, K!)
Description
Acaulescent herbs. Root stock absent. Leaves linear-lanceolate, acute or acuminate, ca. 10–12 × 0.5–0.7 cm, glabrous. Peduncles erect, 2- many, ca. 7–13 cm long, rigid, glabrous. Sheaths ca. 5–7 cm long, glabrous; limb ovate, acuminate, entire. Heads globose-ovate, ca. 8 × 6 mm, grey. Receptacle cylindrical, sparsely pilose. Involucral bracts erect, ovate or obovate, acute-acuminate, ca. 1.1 × 1.2 mm, chartaceous, black. Floral bracts closely imbricated, obovate, base cuneate, apex acuminate, ca. 1.8 × 1.3 mm, coriaceous, minutely hoary dorsally towards apex, black. Male flowers: Pedicels minute. Sepals 2, free, oblanceolate, obtuse or acute, keeled, ca. 1.2 mm long, minutely hoary along keels towards apex, black. Stipe of corolla ca. 0.9 mm long. Petals 3, equal, minute, oblong, minutely hoary and minutely toothed at apex with a black gland, anthers 6, black. Female flowers: Pedicels minute, hairy at base. Sepals 2, free, similar, oblanceolate-ovate or oblanceolate, cuneate, conduplicate, keeled, irregularly toothed towards apexon keel,ca. 1.5 mm long, minutely hoary along keels towards apex, black. Petals 3, linear, subequal, ca. 0.6 to 0.8 mm long, hyaline, barbate towards apex, with or without a black gland, not stipitate between sepals and petals. Ovary sessile, globose, stigmas 3. Seeds ca. 0.6 × 0.3 mm, yellowish, cells of seed coat transversely elongated, aligned in vertical rows, appendages solitary from the middle of the transverse radial walls, curved and connate with the adjacent ones of the same vertical row forming longitudinal parallel ribs on the surface of the seed (Fig. 1 A–F).
Distribution
It is distributed in the laterite hills of Northern Kerala in Peninsular India.
Ecology
The specimens were collected from the Madayipara, a lateritic hillock in Kannur District of Kerala, at latitude 12°2'N and longitude 75°16'E (12°2'N, 75°16'E), and with an altitude of 40–47 msl. It is a notable area being the type locality of some narrow endemics such as Nymphoides krishnakesara (Joseph and Sivarajan 1990[1]), Rotala malabarica (Pradeep et al. 1990[2]), Justicia ekakusuma (Pradeep et al. 1991[3])and Lepidagathis keralensis (Madhusoodanan and Singh 1992[4]). The lateritic outcrops of this area support a grassland-scrub system, unique in its ecology, being active along with the monsoon rains, supporting rich assemblages of many aquatic and semi-aquatic plants and animals, and remaining as barren land as the rain recedes (Palot and Radhakrishnan 2002[5], 2005[6], Balakrishnan et al. 2010[7]). More than 500 species of plants were recorded from the area, which includes 59 Peninsular Indian endemics, of which 14 are narrow endemics of Kerala state, confined to the laterite hillocks (Balakrishnan et al. 2010[7]). Eriocaulon is also well represented in Madayipara with five species, viz., Eriocaulon cuspidatum, Eriocaulon heterolepis, Eriocaulon lanceolatum, Eriocaulon parviflorum and Eriocaulon xeranthemum. The present species is growing in wet areas of Madayipara, along with species such as Utricularia reticulata, Rotala malabarica, Rotala malampuzhensis, Rhamphicarpa longiflora, Oryza rufipogon, etc.
Flowering and fruiting
August–December.
Etymology
The species is named after the type locality, Madayipara.
Conservation status
The laterite hillocks in general and the Madayipara in particular are facing high degree of danger of habitat degradation due to ignorance by the public and administrators. The areas are being heavily converted to building sites, mining grounds, dumping sites, etc. The uncontrolled tourist activities are also damaging this fragile ecosystem. The present species, like other narrow endemics mentioned earlier, is also confined to the seasonal pools or wet areas of the lateritic hills. The habitat may be lost irrecoverably, if proper conservation measures are not taken.
Specimens examined
INDIA, Kerala, Kannur District, Madayipara, 40 m alt., 5 September 2011, K.P.Rajesh & C.N.Manju 5610.
Original Description
- Swapna, M; Rajesh, K; Manju, C; Prakashkumar, R; 2012: Eriocaulon madayiparense (Eriocaulaceae) – A new species from the foot hills of the Western Ghats of India PhytoKeys, 10: 19-23. doi
Other References
- ↑ Joseph K, Sivarajan V (1990) A new species of Nymphoides from India. Nordic J. Botany 10: 281-284. doi: 10.1111/j.1756-1051.1990.tb01773.x
- ↑ Pradeep A, Joseph K, Sivarajan V (1990) Rotala malabarica a new species of Lythraceae from India. Bot. Bull. Acad. Sinica 31: 51-61.
- ↑ Pradeep A, Joseph K, Sivarajan V (1991) Justicia ekakusuma a new species of Acanthaceae from Peninsular India. Rheedea 1: 40-43.
- ↑ Madhusoodanan P, Singh N (1992) A new species of Lepidagathis (Acanthaceae) from south India. Kew Bulletin 1: 19-22
- ↑ Palot M, Radhakrishnan C (2002) Herpetofauna of Madayipara hill, Kannur district, Kerala. Cobra 48: 3-6.
- ↑ Palot M, Radhakrishnan C (2005) Faunal diversity of a laterite hill system at Madayipara, Kannur district, Kerala State, India. Rec. Zool. Surv. India Occ. Paper No. 242. Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, 1–98.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Balakrishnan V, Palot M, Rajesh K (2010) Observations on the flora of Madayipara a midland laterite hill in Kannur district, Kerala. Malabar Trogon 8 (2&3): 14–29.
Images
|
