Extended distribution of Dipcadi concanense (Dalzell) Baker - a highly threatened plant taxon of the family Asparagaceae

The genus Dipcadi Medik. (Asparagaceae) is distributed from Africa, and the Mediterranean region to India (Mabberley 1997) and comprises 41 species worldwide (The Plant List 2013). Manning et al. (2004) considered it under Ornithogalum L., but in his revised classification (Manning et al. 2009), treated it as a distinct genus, which was supported by Martínez-Azorín et al. (2011). In India it is represented by 11 species (Rao et al. 2016).

Dipcadi concanense (Dalzell) Baker, one of the long flowered species, is endemic to the Konkan region in Sindhudurg and Ratnagiri districts of Maharashtra State (Deb & Dasgupta 1981; Karthikeyan et al. 1989; Lakshminarasimhan, 1996; Deshpande et al. 2015a,b; Patil 2015). This was considered as “possibly extinct in the wild” and was known from only two gatherings by Stocks & Law (Dasgupta & Deb 1987) until Mistry & Almeida (1988) recollected the species from Shivaji Nagar in Ratnagiri, Maharashtra after a gap of 123 years. Mishra & Singh (2001) assessed it as critically endangered.

In the present study, it is reported from the Mopa Plateau, Goa, thus extending its distribution further south. A total of 10 patches have been observed, which are part of the larger population. The area of occupancy of each patch was calculated using Garmin Montana 650 handheld receiver. The total area of occupancy was calculated by adding the areas of all the sub-populations. The extent of occupancy (EOO) of all the populations has been calculated.

Dipcadi concanense (Dalzell) Baker.

in J. Linn. Soc. 11: 399. 1871; Hook. f., Fl. Brit. India 6: 346. 1892; Cooke, Fl. Bombay 2: 769. 1907; Deb & Dasgupta in J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 75: 69. 1978 & Fasc. Fl. India 7: 3, f. 1-2. 1981; Kulkarni, Fl. Sindhudurg 452. 1988; Lakshminarasimhan in Singh et al. Fl. Maharashtra 3: 130. 1996. Uropetalon concanense Dalzell in Hooker Kew J. Bot. 2: 143. 1850 as Uropetalum concanense.

Habitat: The species is found growing on an open plateau of Mopa. It is about 53km (aerial distance) away from the earlier recorded southernmost locality near Malvan, Maharashtra. It grows along streams and near ditches, also sparsely distributed on the plateau. A total of 10 patches were identified (Table 1, Image 1, Fig. 1) in the new locality. About 8,000 individuals have been estimated from these patches. The total area of occupancy is about 14,400sq.m. The extent of occurrence including all the populations including Maharashtra was observed to be 6,732km2 approximately. This plateau has been marked for the construction of a new airport (Anonymous 2014).

Distribution: Earlier records—Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts, Maharashtra State. New record—Mopa Plateau, Pernem Taluka, Goa State.

Note: The average length of scape and perianth are lesser than the individuals found in other localities from Maharashtra, though it is within the recorded range.

Conclusion: The new locality extends the distribution of species further south considering the earlier records. Though, about 8,000 individuals have been estimated from the new locality, the population is under threat as the habitat is a proposed site for a new airport.

References

Anonymous (2014). Environmental impact assessment study for the proposed Greenfield International Airport at Mopa, Goa. Enginees India Ltd. (submitted to Government of Goa). http://dstegoa.gov.in/MopaAirport_EIAReport17Nov2014.pdf

Dasgupta S. & D.B. Deb (1987). Dipcadi concanense (Dalz.) Baker. In: Nayar M.P. & A.R.K. Sastry (eds.). Red Data Book of Indian Plants - Vol. 1. Botanical Survey of India, Calcutta, 175pp.

Deb, D.B. & S. Dasgupta (1981). Fascicles of Flora of India: Fascicle 7 - Liliaceae: Tribe - Scilleae. Botanical Survey of India, Calcutta, 3pp.

Deshpande, A.S., S. Krishnan & & M.K. Janarthanam (2015a). Systematic position of two endemic species of Dipcadi (Asparagaceae) from northern Western Ghats of India using molecular markers Rheedea 25(2): 97–102.

Deshpande, A.S., S. Krishnan & M.K. Janarthanam (2015b). Lectotypification of Uropetalon concanense (Asparagaceae): An endemic species from Western Ghats, India. Rheedea 25(2): 123–124.

Karthikeyan, S., S.K. Jain, M.P. Nayar & M. Sanjappa (1989). Florae Indicae Enumeratio: Monocotyledonae. Flora of India Series 4. Botanical Survey of India, Calcutta, 93pp.

Lakshminarasimhan, P. (1996). Monocotyledones, In: Sharma, B.D., S. Karthikeyan & N.P. Singh (eds). Flora of Maharashtra State. Botanical Survey of India, Calcutta, 130pp.

Mabberley, D.J. (1997). The Plant-Book. A Portable Dictionary of The Vascular Plants - 2nd Edition. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 232pp.

Manning, J.C., F. Forest, D.S. Devey, M.F. Fay & P. Goldblatt (2009). A molecular phylogeny and a revised classification of Ornithogaloideae (Hyacinthaceae) based on an analysis of four plastid DNA regions. Taxon 58: 77–107.

Manning, J.C., P. Goldblatt & M.F. Fay (2004). A revised generic synopsis of Hyacinthaceae in sub-Saharan Africa, based on molecular evidence, including new combinations and the new tribe Pseudoprospereae. Edinburgh Journal of Botany 60(3): 533–568; http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0960428603000404

Martínez-Azorín, M., M.B. Crespo, A. Juan & M.F. Fay (2011). Molecular phylogenetics of subfamily Ornithogaloideae (Hyacinthaceae) based on nuclear and plastid DNA regions, including a new taxonomic arrangement. Annals of Botany 107: 1–37; http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1093/aob/mcq207

Mishra, D.K. & N.P. Singh (2001). Endemic and Threatened Flowering Plants of Maharashtra. Botanical Survey of India, Calcutta, 414pp.

Mistry, M.K. & S.M. Almeida (1988). Some rare, endangered and threatened plant species from Ratnagiri District, Maharashtra. Journal of Bombay Natural History Society 86: 478–479.

Patil, S. (2015). A note on occurrence and distribution of Dipcadi concanense (Hyacinthaceae). Nelumbo 57: 60–63; http://dx.doi.org/10.20324/nelumbo/v57/2015/87096

Rao, B.R.P., K. Prasad, D. Veeranjaneyulu, M.C. Naik, S. Salamma & A. Narayanaswamy (2016). Dipcadi krishnadevarayae (Asparagaceae), a new species from Andhra Pradesh, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 8(13): 9562–9567; http://dx.doi.org/10.11609/jott.3039.8.13.9562-9567

The Plant List (2013). Dipcadi concanense (Dalzell) Baker http://www.theplantlist.org/ Electronic version 1.1 accessed on 18 August 2015.