Ardisia agasthyamalayana (Primulaceae), a new species from the Western Ghats, India

ABSTRACT

Ardisia agasthyamalayana is described as a new species from the Chemunji hills of Agasthyamala, Western Ghats, India. The species is included in the subgenus Akosmos on account of the presence of the axillary and sub-terminal umbellate racemes with short peduncles, slightly shorter than the foliage and the styles shortly protruding above anthers. Detailed description, illustrations, colour photographs, phenology, distribution details and relevant ecological notes are provided, along with comparison with its closely allied species, A. rhomboidea and A. pauciflora

KEYWORDS:

• Primulaceae
• Ardisia
• new species
• Agasthyamala
• Western Ghats

Acknowledgements

The authors express their sincere gratitude towards Kerala Forest and Wildlife Department for granting permission to explore forests. Thanks are also due to the Director, JNTBGRI, Thiruvananthapuram for providing facilities, support and encouragement during the study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute, Trivandrum, Kerala, India [P009-1A]; JNTBGRI [P009-1A].