1 month ago
1
Two Botany students from Annamalai University successful Chidambaram and their usher person discovered a caller works taxon successful the grape family. Found successful the confederate Eastern Ghats of Tamil Nadu, successful Villupuram district, during a ascent up the 290-foot-tall Sanjeevi elevation for documenting plants, the taxon has been named Cyphostemma annamalaii aft the laminitis of the university, Rajah Sir Annamalai Chettiyar.
“It has a antithetic morphology from others successful allied species. For instance, Cyphostemma setosum, an allied species, starts with a azygous leafage and ends with 3 leaves, and has an ovate-shaped effect that is red. The petals are greenish-white connected the apical half, past becoming reddish brown. It besides has medicinal properties and is utilized to dainty tummy ulcers, and is antidiabetic and antimicrobial. Whereas Cyphostemma annamalaii is simply a climber with a circular effect that is yellow. The petals of the flowers are achromatic oregon yellow. It starts with 3 leaves and ends with 3 leaves. The phytochemical investigation of the works is nearing completion,” explained S. Akash, who, on with different PhD scholar, K. Manikandan, recovered the climber with its chiseled leaves and fruit. They are presently pursuing their PhDs nether A. Rajesh of the Department of Medicinal Botany, Siddha Medical College, Palayamkottai.
L. Mullainathan, a prof and HOD of Botany astatine Annamalai University, explained that the household Vitaceae Juss, commonly known arsenic the grape family, comprises implicit 1,000 taxon belonging to 20 genera, of which Cyphostemma is the 2nd largest genus, consisting of astir 250 species. It is recovered successful tropical and subtropical regions. “The students recovered the works astatine an elevation of 86 m successful that tropical adust wood successful Panaimalaipettai,” helium added.
Mr. Manikandan said that the works was increasing successful open, scrubby vegetation. It had a tuberous basal and climbed by utilising surrounding vegetation for support. “Over a play of 1 year, we documented 287 taxon recovered connected the hill. Locals usage a batch of these plants. Some are utilized for fodder and others for medicinal purposes. They besides cod wood for substance and chromatic from the gangly trees wrong the dense wood area. It is besides a ineffable grove and has 2 temples — 1 attributed to Perumal, which is located wrong a cave, and another, a Shivan temple. We saw animals including snakes specified arsenic the king cobra, porcupines, plot lizards, butterflies, and eagles. There are nary steps starring to the temples,” helium added.
Mr. Rajesh explained that the taxon was officially published successful the journal Phytotaxa in March 2026. “The herbarium with the dried plants has been submitted to St. Joseph’s College successful Tiruchi and to the Botanical Survey of India successful Coimbatore. This find has been reviewed by experts successful Vitaceae, which means Cyphostemma annamalaii is so a caller species. Even locals bash not person a sanction for it.”
