Additions to angiosperm diversity in Bhadrak region of Odisha, India

This paper deals with the list of flowering plants from the Bhadrak district, Odisha, India. A total of 141 taxa (81 native species and 60 exotic species) have been recorded comprising 81 herbs, 22 climbers, 21 trees, and 17 shrubs that are distributed in 115 genera, represented in 48 families, three major clades, and 23 orders as per the APG IV classification. Lamids account for about 33.3% of the taxa. The family Fabaceae is the most species-diverse (14 species), followed by Convolvulaceae (10 species), Acanthaceae (9 species) and Poaceae (7 species). Of the total 141 plant species, most are economically useful as medicinal plants, and others are valuable as edible fruits, ornamentals, and fodders. It is believed that this inventory of angiosperm plant resources of the district provides a comprehensive and updated checklist of the floristic diversity of the Bhadrak district, Odisha.


Introduction
The state of Odisha (81º 43' and 87 º 29' east longitudes and 17º 49' and 22 º 34' north latitude), India, consisting of 30 districts and geographically situated at the head of the Bay of Bengal, has a coastal stretch of around 482 km.It extends over an area of 155,707 sq. km accounting for about 4.87% of the total area of the country.Based on physico-geographical characteristics, the state has been divided into 5 major regions i.e.,the coastal plain in the east, the middle mountainous and highlands region, the central plateaus, the western rolling uplands and the major flood plains. The varying climatic condition provides suitable habitats for supporting rich flora and fauna in the region 32 .Furthermore, the Eastern Ghat range of hills runs through the heart of Odisha i.e., it starts from north of Similipal and runs through Malkangiri crossing 17 districts of the state harbouring primarily moist deciduous vegetation 7 .The state encounters a hot and humid climate round the year with short winters.
As far as the floristic study of the state of Odisha is concerned, it is in scattered form. The reports are available 12,14,15,27,39 . The Flora of Orissa work that dealt with 2727 plant species included 2576 species of angiosperms belonging to 159 families. 41 Recently some publications were made on floristic inventory and conservation aspects. 1,4,5,18,19,24,25,28,29,37,38,40 A project was initiated to record the occurrence of species to supplement the angiosperm flora of Bhadrak district, Odisha, India.

Study site
Bhadrak district (20° 43¢-21° 13¢N and 86° 6¢-87° E) is located in northeast Odisha. It spreads over 2505 km 2 with 1.507 million inhabitants (2011 Census). Rice (Oryza sativa) is the major cereal crop cultivated by most of the people of the district. The district is located in the deltaic region close to the Bay of Bengal. Obviously, it has all the features of a coastal climate, i.e., saline weather, the influence of coastal wind,thunder storms

Data collection
To assess the diversity of angiosperms, field surveys were conducted monthly in different seasons (rainy, winter and summer) from July 2016 to July 2020. During field visits, plant samples were collected and photographs of plant species were taken from agricultural lands, wastelands, roadsides, railway tracks, parks, lawns, ponds, river banks and other appropriat places to cover almost whole district in a systematic manner. Information was collected from the respondents, especially the local farmers, elderly people, and local healers through interviews following standard procedures 16,26 . The questionnaire used was a semi-structured type followed by free interviews and informal conversations.Plant species were identified with the help of previous scientific literature 12,41 and with live specimens on the field itself. However, plant samples were identified in the laboratory. During the survey,important taxonomic parameters such as vernacular names, botanical names, flowering time, and family were recorded from the respondents.The ecological parameters noted were the habit and habitat of the species.The economic uses of these species if any were discussed with the local people. The plant list was categorized according to their systematic positions following the APG IV 3 classification system.
Altogether 141 species (81 native species and 60 exotic species) belonging to115 genera distributed in 48 families from 23 orders and three major clades      (monocots, superrosids and superasterids) according to Angiosperm Phylogeny Group IV Classification (2016) 3 were recorded during the present study from Bhadrak district (

Results and Discussion
Commelinids (25 spp.), and Malvids (12 spp.) were the major groups representing a total of 116 taxa that constitute 82.3% of the flora. An analysis of the floristic diversity denoted that the family Fabaceae dominated the flora with 14 species, followed by Convolvulaceae (10 species), Acanthaceae (9 species) and Poaceae 7 species.The predominance of the family Fabaceae is also reported. The dominant genus of the flora was Ipomoea (6 spp.). The life form composition analysis showed that herbs dominated the flora of Bhadrak district with a total of 81 species (57.4%), followed by climbers with 22 species (15.6%), trees with 21 species (14.9%) and shrubs with 17 species representing 12.1% of the flora.Worldwide, a good number of plant species are in multipurpose use for instance as food, fodder, medicine, rituals and many more 13 . In the present study, out of 141 species, 63% were used for medicinal purposes. Prominent species among them were Basilicum polystachyon, Commelina diffusa, Desmodium gangeticum, Euphorbia prostrata, Hyptis suaveolens, Ipomoea hederifolia L., I. nil, I. obscura, Ipomoea quamoclit, Suregada multiflora, Luffa cylindrica, Melia azedarach, Phyla nodiflora, Physalis minima, Sphenoclea zeylanica. These plants are utilized to cure various ailments such as anthelmintic, antiinflammatory, asthma, cough, colic and stomach ache, diabetes, eye irritation, conjunctivitis and other eye problems like ophthalmia, fever, gastrointestinal disorders, gynaecology, leprosy, nausea, skin diseases, sores, swellings, ulcers, urinary disorders, rheumatism, wounds, and vomiting. The medicinal properties of the reported plants are also recorded in other studies 8,9,20,22,23,30,36,42 . Similarly, some of the reported species, for instance, Amaranthus tricolor, Carissa carandas, Cucumis melo, Garcinia xanthochymus, Phyllanthus acidus, Sauropus bacciformis, Telosma pallida were used for edible purposes. The edible uses of different parts such as leaves, flowers, and fruits of these plants were reported by various scholars 6,10,21,35 . It was observed that 14.2% of recorded species were used for ornamental purposes; examples include, Aglaonema commutatum, Dieffenbachia seguine, Epipremnum aureum, Licuala grandis and Syngonium podophyllum. My findings in the current investigationare concomitant with previous studies 17,31,34 . Similarly, plant species such as Alternanthera philoxeroides, Alysicarpus vaginalis, Brachiaria mutica, Lindernia antipoda, Myriostachya wightiana. were used as feed for animals.The line of my results substantiates the earlier studies 11,33 . Plant species like Saccharum munja Roxb. and Cordia myxa L. have great significance attached to the traditional agricultural rituals of the district. These plants are put by the farmers in the rice field during Garbhana Sankranti (Tula Sankranti) festival; celebrated on the first day of the solar month of Kartika. The name GarbhanaSankranti is attributed to the time of fertilization of the rice in the fields. The farmers pray to the goddess Lakshmi, believed to be the authority for the rice plants' wealth, prosperity, and fertility. This creates a linkage between agriculture and the rituals of the district.

Conclusion
The present study makes a significant contribution towards understanding floristic richness in Bhadrak district along with traditional knowledge-based information which can be helpful in providing sustainable utilization of resources.Despite the multipurpose significance, several ongoing anthropogenic factors (urbanization, overexploitation, deforestation, and habitat destruction) play a negative role in the survival of common taxa. Moreover, the recurring natural calamities that occur regularly on the Bay of Bengal coast also affect plant diversity. Biodiversity conservation requires balancing the needs of people and long-term sustenance within the natural habitats, which requires implementation of effective protection measures. It is imperative to develop strategic steps such as the involvement of local communities in management, regular monitoring, awareness programmes and collaborative research for the conservation of the phytodiversity of the region.