New distributional record of Gentiana tetrasepala Biswas (Gentianales: Gentianaceae) from the Valley of Flowers National Park, Garhwal Himalaya

Abstract

A threatened endemic Himalayan herb discovered from the Valley of Flowers National Park (VoFNP). Gentiana tetrasepala Biswas belonging to the family Gentianaceae was rediscovered by Rawat (2009) after a long gap of 123 years from Garhwal Himalaya. In our investigation of the climatic and glacial variation within VoFNP, Gentiana tetrasepala Biswas was recorded for the first time. The Valley of Flowers, a world Heritage site situated in the alpine meadows of District Chamoli in the state Uttarakhand. Recording of G. tetrasepala Biswas an alpine herb from VoFNP is good indication although, due to recent climatic and glacial variation the habitat of the species might be replace cause overlapping and vegetational adjustment in the form of upward shifting. In the present communication the manuscript deals G. tetrasepala conservation and probability of being disappearance along with valid taxonomical description for future reference, which will be useful to the botanist and environmentalist.