Journal of Threatened
Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 November 2022 | 14(11): 22179–22183
ISSN 0974-7907
(Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print)
https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.7751.14.11.22179-22183
#7751 | Received 16
November 2021 | Final received 01 August 2022 | Finally accepted 25 October
2022
The new addition of Blue
Pimpernel of Primulaceae to the state flora of Assam,
India
Sushmita Kalita
1, Barnali Das 2 & Namita Nath 3
1,2,3 Department of Botany, Gauhati University, Gopinath Bordoloi
Nagar, Guwahati, Assam 781014, India.
1 sushmitakalita333@gmail.com, 2
barnalidas@gauhati.ac.in, 3 nathnamita1@gauhati.ac.in
(corresponding author)
Editor: K. Haridasan, Palakad, Kerala,
India. Date of publication: 26
November 2022 (online & print)
Citation: Kalita,
S., B. Das & N. Nath (2022). The new
addition of Blue Pimpernel of Primulaceae to the
state flora of Assam, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 14(11): 22179–22183. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.7751.14.11.22179-22183
Copyright: © Kalita
et al. 2022. Creative Commons Attribution
4.0 International License. JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproduction, and
distribution of this article in any medium by providing adequate credit to the
author(s) and the source of publication.
Funding: None.
Competing interests: The authors
declare no competing interests.
Acknowledgements: The authors are grateful to
Rakesh Talukdar of Department of Chemistry, Gauhati
University for his assistance in capturing scanning electron microscopic images
of pollen grains. The authors are also thankful to BSI and CNH, Kolkata for
providing the digital herbarium photographs for references. The authors are
thankful to DST, Govt. of India for providing DST-FIST support to Department of
Botany, Gauhati University, where this research work
has been carried out.
Abstract: Lysimachia arvensis var. caerulea
(L.) Turland & Bergmeier,
a variety belonging to the family Primulaceae is
reported as new to the state flora of Assam, northeastern India. The authors encountered the specimen during
field survey at Kamrup Rural District of Assam in
2020. This manuscript describes taxonomy
and morphology details along with pictorial illustration of the specimen.
Keywords: Assam, diversity, floristic, Lysimachia arvensis var. caerulea, new addition, palynology.
The genus Lysimachia Tourn. ex
L., of Primulaceae, has approximately 180
species of plants with an almost cosmopolitan distribution (Hu & Kelso
1996; Liu et al. 2014). Assam, also
known as the floristic gateway of northeastern India, consists of two species
of this genus. Several floristic works
have been done on this rich biodiversity of Assam, among which contributions of
Kanjilal et al. (1934–1940), Chowdhury (2005), and Barooah & Ahmed (2014) are noteworthy.
During a floristic survey of Kamrup (R) District of Assam in 2018–2021, a distinct plant
population was observed. All the petals of the flowers were covered with
marginal hairs and were bright blue in colour. After referring to taxonomic literatures and
critically investigating and examining of herbarium samples, a variety, Lysimachia arvensis var. caerulea
(L.) Turland & Bergmeier,
was identified as new addition to the flora of Assam. For easy identification of the species,
detailed taxonomic description and other pertinent information along with clear
photographs have been provided here.
Additionally, palynological data have also been incorporated along with
scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of pollen grains to assist in future palyno-taxonomic research.
Materials And Methods
Study Area
Kamrup is one of Assam’s oldest
districts, with a 1,000-year history dating back to the ancient age. It is a one-of-a-kind administrative unit,
with jurisdiction on both sides of the great Brahmaputra. The district is presently an administrative
district in western Assam, with its headquarters in Amingaon. According to 2011 Census of India report, the
district covers a total geographical area of 3,105 km2 and is
situated in between 25.46–26.49 0N and 90.48–91.50 0E
(Figure 1).
Methods
Several field visits were
conducted throughout the Kamrup (R) District during
2018–2021. The specimens were gathered
from the fields for comprehensive morphological analysis and mounted onto
standard herbarium sheets according to the procedure of Jain & Rao (1977). Multiple copies of the plant species were
collected preferably in flowering and fruiting condition. The plant specimens were identified
consulting various relevant taxonomic literatures. They were also compared with herbarium microfilms
available online at the virtual sites provided by Royal Botanic Gardens- Kew
Herbarium Catalogue & New York Botanical Garden, ;also with the digital
photographs provided by Central National Herbarium (CNH), Howrah. The voucher specimen has been deposited at
the Gauhati University Botanical Herbarium (GUBH), Gauhati University for future reference. Photographs were taken in the field and after
dissection as well. Fresh pollen samples
were collected and dried with the help of silica gel and images were captured
using the SEM.
Results And
Discussion
Lysimachia arvensis var. caerulea
(L.)
Turland & Bergmeier,
Willdenowia 41: 185 (2011).
Anagallis caerulea L., Amoen.
Acad. 4: 479 (1759); Anagallis arvensis var. caerulea (L.) Gouan,
Fl. Monsp.: 30 (1764); Parmar, Nelumbo
54: 131 (2012); Patel & Bihola, Life Sciences
Leaflets 59: 150 (2015). Anagallis arvensis f. azurea Hyl.,
Uppsala Univ. Årsskr. 7: 256 (1945).
Taxonomic description
Description: Annual creeping
herb, 10---–30 cm in height. Stem quadrangular, branched from base, nodes often
swollen. Leaves simple, opposite, each
pair equal in size, sessile; lamina narrowly ovate to ovate, 0.7–1.8 × 0.3–1.2
cm with entire margin, apex obtuse to acute.
Inflorescence racemose or solitary.
Flowers axilary, actinomorphic, bisexual,
hypogynous, pentamerous, attractive blue, pedicellate, pedicel recurved in
fruit, ca 1.6 cm long. Sepals 5, gamosepalous, 3.7 × 0.8 mm, connate at the base,
segments linear-lanceolate, margins hyaline, persistent. Petals 5, united, rotate, blue, 4.5 × 3.1 mm,
margin minutely glandular-ciliate.
Stamens 5, epipetalous arranged opposite to the petals, almost of same
length, basally connate, filaments purplish, with long glandular articulate
trichomes; anthers bithecous, sagittate shaped, dorsifixed, oblong.
Gynoecium ca 2.8 mm, carpels 5, syncarpous,
ovary superior, stigma slightly capitate, style linear, lower part hairy, ovary
superior, 5 lobed; placentation free central; bitegmic. Fruit capsule 1–3 cm long, 5-ridged,
many-seeded, angular, subglobose, 4–5 mm across,
glabrous, tuberculate- rugose (Image 1& 2).
English name: Blue Pimpernel.
Native to: Mainly distributed in
European countries as well as middle eastern region and western Himalaya.
Distribution status in the State:
Distributed sporadically (Altitudinal Range: 64–48 m approx.)
Flowering and Fruiting: January
to August
Habitat: It is found along
roadsides with lightly shaded habitats and in crop fields like that of Brassica.
Associated with Vicia sativa, Vicia hirsuta, Fumaria
indica, Orobanche
aegyptiaca, Solanum nigrum,
Brassica nigra, and Cannabis sativa.
Availability status (at the study
area): It is found in some localities seasonally; particularly in crop fields
or along roadsides.
Specimen examined: Srinagar,
Kashmir, 1891, G.A. Gammie, CAL0000031110, image!; Barni village, Rajasthan, 1973, B.V. Shetty, CAL0000052632,
image!; Ranchi, Bihar, 1981, K.C. Mallick & R.N. Banerjee, CAL0000009231,
image!; Tikamgarh, 1990, MP, M. Kishore & M. Prasad, CAL0000013112, image!;
Hajo, Kamrup (R), 2021, S. Kalita & B. Das, SK-29, 26.20040N, 91.63460E
(GUBH!).
Pollen characters: Pollen unit
monad, tricolporate, and prolate in shape. The polar axis (P) length is 34.76 µm and the
equatorial axis (E) is 17.56 µm; P/E ratio is 1.98. Pollen class is mediae. The exine
sculpturing (tectum ornamentation) is reticulate (Image 3).
Note: It is noteworthy mentioning
that L. arvensis is sometimes mistaken with L. foemina, although the species differ in the morphology
of petal margins. L. arvensis has
numerous marginal hairs, whereas, L. foemina
has glabrous petals with very few or without marginal hairs (Haines 2011). Furthermore, whereas, L. arvensis has
ovate leaves, longer pedicels and overlapping corolla lobes, L. foemina has narrowly lanceolate leaves, shorter
pedicels and non-overlapping corolla lobes (Manns
& Anderberg 2007). According to our findings, the new variety
has blue-coloured, ciliate petals, confirming the
specimen’s unique identification.
Significance: The present
record of a new variety is significant in taxonomy since it might lead to the
development of a new species. The
findings of the present investigation with flower colour
polymorphism are significant, since flower colour
serves as a characteristic in diversity of angiosperms and plays a critical
role in evolution (Narbona et al. 2021). The present work therefore will embellish the
floristic diversity of the entire state that is yet to be documented
completely. This will further enrich the
floristic composition of Assam and will aid in the conservation of native, rare
and threatened species that are struggling to survive owing to habitat
degradation caused by anthropogenic interference. Furthermore, the ability of L. arvensis
var. caerulea to indicate the weather as well
as the time of day is widely recognized which can aid in revealing the
mechanisms of developing folk botanical awareness. Besides, it is also a source of scientific
data concerning plant physiology and phenology.
Farmers frequently employ such indicator plants in crop planning,
particularly when no other signs are accessible (Gibbs & Talavera 2001;
Acharya 2011). Thus, realization and
conservation of such weather indicator plants are crucial at the time when
there is increasing global concern about climate change and its impact on life.
Key to the species
1a. Pedicels longer than subtending leaves, petals with marginal hairs
…............................................................ Lysimachia arvensis
1b. Pedicels shorter or equal to subtending leaves, petals with few or
no marginal hairs ................................... Lysimachia
foemina
Key to the variety
1a. Flower colour orange or reddish
……….....................………..........................................................
Lysimachia arvensis var. arvensis
1b. Flower colour dark blue or purplish
……...…..........…………...........................................................
Lysimachia arvensis var. caerulea
For figure &
images - - click here for full PDF
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