Journal of Threatened
Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 December 2025 | 17(12): 28140–28143
ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print)
https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.9985.17.12.28140-28143
#9985 | Received 07 June 2025 | Finally accepted 07 December 2025
Cardamine fragariifolia O.E.Schulz
(Brassicaceae): a new addition to the flora of Sikkim, India
Srijana Mangar 1 , Rohit Dutta 2 , Phurba Lhamu Sherpa 3 , Arun Kumar Rai 4 & Arun Chettri 5
1–5 Department of Botany, Sikkim
University, 6th Mile Tadong, Gangtok District, Sikkim 737102, India.
1 srijanamangar31@gmail.com, 2
duttaksh67@gmail.com, 3 plsherpa34@gmail.com, 4 akrai@cus.ac.in,
5 achettri01@cus.ac.in
(corresponding author)
Editor: Afroz Alam, Banasthali
Vidyapith, Rajasthan, India. Date of publication: 26 December 2025 (online & print)
Citation:
Mangar, S., R. Dutta, P.L. Sherpa, A.K. Rai & A. Chettri (2025). Cardamine
fragariifolia O.E.Schulz (Brassicaceae): a
new addition to the flora of Sikkim, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 17(12): 28140–28143. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.9985.17.12.28140-28143
Copyright: © Mangar et al. 2025. 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 express gratitude to
the head, Department of Botany, Sikkim University, Gangtok, for providing
research support; The Forest and Environment Department, Government of Sikkim, for granting necessary permission and help during the field surveys.
India is recognized as one of the 12 mega-biodiversity
countries of the world with approximately 47,000 plant species and is rich in
threatened and endemic plants (Singh et al. 2013). The eastern Himalaya span
approximately 1,500 km2 across the Indian states of Sikkim, West
Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh, and Nagaland (Chettri et al. 2012). Sikkim is a
small state covering an area of 7,096 km2 with a unique habitat that
supports a variety of rich flora and fauna throughout the region. The genus Cardamine
L., belongs to the family Brassicaceae. It is a cosmopolitan genus with over
280 species (Marhold et al. 2021), mainly distributed in the temperate
regions. The genus Cardamine is a taxonomically problematic, widespread
genus with over 200 arctic, alpine, and boreal taxa, and is one of the largest
genera of the family in terms of number of species (Hewson 1982; Al-Shehbaz
1988; Webb et al. 1988; Al-Shehbaz et al. 2006; Carlsen et al. 2009). In India,
the genus comprises about 14 species (Sharma & Balakrishnan 1993), of which
12 are reported from Western Ghats (Nayar et al. 2014) and later three species
from Maharashtra (Dalavi et al. 2019). Therefore, total 15 taxa are reported
from India so far. The genus harbours 12 taxa of Cardamine from Sikkim
Himalaya (Gogoi et al. 2021).
During the routine field survey of Maenam Wildlife
Sanctuary (MWS), South Sikkim, specimens of Cardamine were collected in
this subtropical forest. Upon a thorough examination of the collected
specimens, including type specimens from BM, E, IBSC, K, KUN, GH, W, WU and
additional specimens from BSHC, CAL, L and KUN, ARUN, and comparative analysis
with present literature (Hooker & Anderson 1875; Smith 1913; Hara 1966;
Grierson 1984; Polunin & Stainton 1984; Singh et al. 2019; Gogoi et al.
2021), the species has been identified as Cardamine fragariifolia O.E.Schulz. In India, while
literature records indicate the presence of Cardamine fragariifolia in Arunachal Pradesh (Hajra &
Chowdhery 1993; Hajra et al. 1996), a critical examination of specimens
has not been observed till date (Al-Shehbaz & Guang 1998). Therefore the present collection from MWS Ravangla, South Sikkim marks the addition of a new record to state flora. Herbarium specimens were prepared using standard
procedures following Jain & Rao (1977), and Bridson & Forman (1998).
Voucher specimens are deposited in the Department of Botany, Sikkim University,
Gangtok Sikkim.
Taxonomic
description
Cardamine fragariifolia O.E.Schulz, Bot. Jahrb. Syst.
32(4): 446. 1903. Type: China: Hubei, 1885–88, A. Henry 5803 [K: K000697727 digital image! Holotype; GH: Isotype]. Cardamine scoriarum
W.W.Sm., Notes Roy. Bot. Gard. Edinburgh 11: 203. 1920. Type: China: Yunnan:
flank of volcanic mountain to Northwest of Ten-yueh, 25° N, 7,000 ft, vi.1912,
G. Forrest 8201 [E: E0015541 digital image! Holotype; K: K000697741 image!
Isotype]. Cardamine
smithiana Biswas, J. Bot. 76: 22. 1938. Type: China. Tibet
(Xizang): Cong La, 2,900 m, 25.vii.1933, F. Ludlow & G. Sherriff 324 [BM: 000536045 digital image!
Holotype]. Cochlearia alatipes Handel-Mazzetti, Symb. Sin. Pt. vii: 370.
1931. Type: China. South West
Hunan. In monte Yiin- schan prope urbem Wukang, 1,000 m, 12.vi.1918,
Handel-Mazzetti 12097 [WU: 024357
digital image! Holotype; E: E00386079 digital image! WU: 024348 digital image!
Isotypes] (Image 1
& 2).
Spreading perennial herbs up to
120–130 cm high. Rhizomes 2–5 × 0.2–0.8 cm, sometimes stoloniferous. Stems
prostrate or decumbent, simple at base or branched above, often stout or
slender, sometimes rooting from proximal nodes, usually glabrous or sparsely
puberulent. Basal leaves wither after flowering. Cauline leaves 10–20 × 7–12
cm, petiolate, usually lowermost trifoliolate or sometimes lowermost leaves
with 4–5 leaflets, articulated at base; petiolules 6–11 mm long, leaflets
subequal 3–8 × 1–4 cm, terminal leaflet slightly larger, ovate to lanceolate, 5–10 × 2–5 cm, base of terminal leaflet cuneate to
obtuse, base of sub-leaflets oblique, margin coarsely or minutely serrate to
crenate, apex usually acute to acuminate, rarely caudate-acuminate, glabrous to
sparsely appressed. Inflorescence ebracteate, 40–60-flowered corymb; pedicel
slender, divaricate up to 13 cm long, usually glabrous or sparsely puberulent.
Sepals greenish-white, with dark brown to purplish tips sometimes, oblong,
0.2–0.4 × 0.1–0.2 cm, erect, glabrous or sometimes with few glandular hairs.
Petals obovate or obovate-oblong, 0.6–0.8 × 0.4–0.5 cm, purple, lavender or
pink, rarely white, apex rounded, claw 0.1–0.2 cm. Stamens six, tetradynamous;
filaments white, median filaments 4–5 mm long, lateral filaments 3–4 mm long;
anthers oblong, up to 2 mm long. Pistil glabrous; style slender, 5 mm long;
siliques linear.
Phenology: Flowering
during July to September; fruits not seen
Specimen examined: INDIA, Sikkim,
South Sikkim, Ravangla, 22.406º N, 088.393º E, 2,323 m, 14.viii.2024, S.
Mangar, 00507 (Sikkim University Herbarium, Accession No. 793).
Distribution: India: Sikkim
(South Sikkim, Ravangla: Maenam Wildlife Sanctuary, Arunachal Pradesh), Bhutan,
China, and northern Myanmar.
Notes: The specimens are usually found in the
wet areas near streams of broad-leaved temperate forests. It is associated with Rohdea nepalensis (Raf.) N.Tanaka, Codonopsis
gracilis Hook.f. & Thomson, Chamabainia cuspidata Wight, Pilea
umbrosa Wedd. ex Blume, Impatiens uncipetala C.B.Clarke ex Hook.f., Chrysosplenium
nepalense D.Don, Elatostema nasutum Hook.f., Hydrocotyle
himalaica P.K.Mukh., Begonia cathcartii Hook.f. &
Thomson, and Galium asperifolium Wall. Locally, it is referred as
"Kanchi saag" and its young tender leaves are consumed as
vegetables and considered a local delicacy.
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