Pyrostria laljii
GS PAPER II: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.
Context: 15-metre tree Pyrostria laljii discovered in Andaman & Nicobar Islands.
Pyrostria laljii
- 15-metre tree Pyrostria laljii discovered in Andaman & Nicobar Islands
- It is also the first record of the genus Pyrostria in India.
- Plants belonging to genus Pyrostria are usually found in Madagascar but the recently discovered species is new to science.
- It belongs to the genus of the coffee family has recently been discovered from the Andaman Islands by a team of researchers from India and the Philippines.
- The tree is distinguished by a long stem with a whitish coating on the trunk, and oblong-obovate leaves with a cuneate base, and was first reported from South Andaman’s Wandoor forest.
- The other places in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands where the tree could be located are the Tirur forest near the Jarawa Rerserve Forest and the Chidia Tapu (Munda Pahar) forest.
- Pyrostria laljii has been assessed as ‘Critically Endangered’ based on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List criteria.
- The species has been named Pyrostria laljii after Lal Ji Singh, Joint Director and Head of Office, Andaman and Nicobar Regional Centre, Botanical Survey of India.
- Studies should be carried out to ascertain whether Pyrostria laljii could have some economic value.
- Other physical features that distinguish the tree from other species of the genus is its umbellate inflorescence with 8-12 flowers.
- The colour of the flowers varies from white to cream, and turns brown after pollination. The fruit drupes of the tree are obovoid or subglobose, green to yellow or white, when mature turning pale yellow to brown.
New pokeweed species
- A new species of pokeweed named Rivina andamanensis is discovered.
- This discovery of new species, representing the first record of the pokeweed family Petiveriaceae in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, adds one more family to the islands’ flora.
- It was found growing under large trees, shaded and rocky areas, along with herbs and shrubby plants.
- The total number of listed flora on the islands is approximately 3,410 plant species under 1,281 genera and 303 families belonging to Angiosperms, Gymnosperms, Pteridophytes, Bryophytes, and Lichens.
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