Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 April 2024 | 16(4): 25114–25116

ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print)

https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.8834.16.4.25114-25116

#8834 | Received 15 November 2023 | Final received 13 March 2024 | Finally accepted 02 April 2024

Extended distribution of Ceropegia bhatii S.R.Yadav & Shendage (Apocynaceae)—an endemic plant from Haveri District, Karnataka, India

Ningaraj S. Makanur ¹ & K. Kotresha ²

^1,2 Taxonomy and Floristic Laboratory, Department of UG, PG and Research in Botany, Karnatak University, Karnatak Science College, Dharwad, Karnataka 580001, India.

¹ ningarajsm18@gmail.com (corresponding author), ² kotresh_sk@yahoo.com

Editor: Mandar Nilkanth Datar, MACS-Agharkar Research Institute, Pune, India. Date of publication: 26 April 2024 (online & print)

Citation: Makanur, N.S. & K. Kotresha (2024). Extended distribution of Ceropegia bhatii S.R.Yadav & Shendage (Apocynaceae)—an endemic plant from Haveri District, Karnataka, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 16(4): 25114–25116. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.8834.16.4.25114-25116

Copyright: © Makanur & Kotresha 2024. 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: We are grateful to the PCCF (Wildlife) and Chief Wildlife Warden, Forest Department, Government of Karnataka, Bengaluru for permitting us to conduct this work and thankful to Mr. Abdulkhadarjilani Nadaf, deputy range forest officer for support and assistance during fieldwork.

The genus Ceropegia L. (Apocynaceae: Asclepidoideae: Ceropegieae) comprises 450 species in the world, distributed in Africa, Canary Islands, Arabia, India, China, Madagascar, New Guinea, and Australia (Bruyns 2014; Mabberley 2017; POWO 2024). The majority of Ceropegia species in India are distributed in the peninsular part where they occur along steep hill slopes, rock crevices at low to high-elevation lateritic plateaus, along with bushes, forest margins, grasslands of dry deciduous forests, shola forest margins and still others prefer to grow at drier habitats. Out of 61 Indian taxa, 44 (72%) are endemic (Kambale & Yadav 2019). In Karnataka, the genus was represented with 16 species, out of which 11 are endemic (Singh et al. 2015; Sanjappa & Sringeswara 2019).

Ceropegia bhatii S.R.Yadav & Shendage, an endemic plant was first time reported from its type locality Davangere-Malebennur Ghat (14.3112⁰N, 75.7251⁰E) in the year 2008, Shendage 2550 & 2551, holotype CAL0000006905; isotypes BSI0000000171 (Yadav & Shendage 2010). The species is now recollected after 14 years for the first time outside its type location from the dry deciduous forest of Kanavisiddageri hillock of Jokanal beat of Hirekerur forest range in Haveri district, Karnataka state, and herbarium was submitted to the Herbarium of Karnatak College Dharwad (HKCD).

Taxonomic Treatment

Ceropegia bhatii S.R.Yadav & Shendage, Kew Bull. 65(1): 107 (2010); S.S. Kambale & S.R. Yadav, Rheedea 29(1): 01–115 (2019) (Image 1).

Holotype: India, Karnataka, Davangere district, Malebennur Ghat, 14.3112⁰N, 75.7251⁰E 15.ix.2008, Shendage 2550. CAL0000006905.

Perennial twining herbs with tuberous rootstock. Roots a few, fibrous. Stem 1–2 mm diam., twining, terete, slightly pubescent towards base, glabrous at tip. Leaf linear-lanceolate, 3.0–7.5 × 0.3–0.8 cm, dark green above, pale below, hairy entirely, petioles ciliated 5 mm long, channeled above. Flowers solitary or 2-flowered cymes; peduncles c. 6 mm long, glabrous; bracts c. 4 mm, linear-subulate, glabrous; pedicels c. 1.0 cm long, glabrous, terete. Sepals c. 5 mm, subulate. Corolla c. 4.2 cm long; tube c. 2.5 cm long, slightly curved, gradually dilated at base, throat with funnel-shaped, narrow at middle, lower portion with purple blotches within, upper portion striated with dark purple lines up to the throat within (at the mouth of tube blotching is deep purple otherwise tube is yellowish-green within); lobes c. 2.2 cm long, linear, glabrous, slightly reflexed to their back, connate at the tip forming an ovoid cage. corona 2-seriate, stipitate, c. 5 mm long; outer lobes 5-bifid, c. 2.3 × 3 mm long, saucer-shaped, green, ciliate along margins, yellow; inner lobes 5, c. 2.8 mm long, deep purple, sparsely hairy at the tip.

Flowering & fruiting: September–November.

Habitat: Grows in slopes of grasslands in dry deciduous forests, close association with Cymbopogon coloratus (Hook.f.) Stapf., Blepharispermum subsessile DC., Argyreia cuneata (Willd.) Ker Gawl., Terminalia anogeissiana Gere & Boatwr., Lagerstroemia parviflora Roxb. and Soymida febrifuga (Roxb.) A. Juss.

Distribution: In Karnataka, Haveri district, around 15–20 individuals were observed (present study) and in Davanagere district.

Specimen examined: 20907 & 20908 (HKCD) (Image 2,3), 12.ix.2022 India, Karnataka, Haveri district, Hirekerur Forest Range, Rattihalli taluka, Kanavisiddanagiri hillock; 718 m, coll. Ningaraj S. Makanur & Kotresha K. 1162.

Threat status: The species was evaluated as critically endangered by Yadav & Shendage (2010). Since it has been recollected again from a locality other than its type location, threat status needs to be assessed again in the light of new data.

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References

Bruyns, P.V. (2014). The Apocynaceae of Namibia. Strelitzia 34. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria, 158 pp.

Kambale, S.S. & S.R. Yadav (2019). Taxonomic revision of Ceropegia (Apocynaceae: Ceropegieae) in India. Rheedea 29(1): 1–115. https://doi.org/10.22244/rheedea.2019.29.1.01

Mabberley, D.J. (2017). Mabberley’s Plant Book: a portable dictionary of plants, their classification and uses. 4^th edition. Cambridge University Press, 1102 pp. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316335581

POWO (2024). Plants of the World Online. Facilitated by the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew. Ceropegia L. https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:328162-2. Accessed on 10 January 2024.

Sanjappa, M. & A.N. Sringeswara (2019). Flora of Karnataka – A Checklist. Volume 2: Gymnosperms & Angiosperms. Karnataka Biodiversity Board, Bengaluru, 1002 pp.

Singh, P., K. Karthigeyan, P. Lakshminarasimhan & S.S. Dash (2015). Endemic Vascular Plants of India. Botanical Survey of India, Kolkata, xvi + 339 pp.

Yadav, S.R. & S.M. Shendage (2010). Ceropegia bhatii, a new species of Apocynaceae: Ceropegieae from Karnataka, India. Kew Bulletin 65: 107–110. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12225-010-9189-0