Oberonia mucronata (D. Don) Ormerod & Seidenf. (Orchidaceae), new addition to the flora of Gujarat, India

 

Mital R. Bhatt 1 & Padamnabhi S. Nagar 2

 

1,2Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Vadodara, Gujarat 390002, India

1 mitalbhatt1990@gmail.com (corresponding author),

2 drnagar@gmail.com

 

Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.11609/jott.1816.8.1.8412-8414

Editor: Pankaj Kumar, Kadoorie Farm and Botanic Garden Corporation, Hong Kong. Date of publication: 26 January 2016 (online & print)

Manuscript details: Ms # 1816 | Received 06 February 2015 | Final received 30 December 2015 | Finally accepted 02 January 2016

Citation: Bhatt, M.R. & P.S. Nagar (2016). Oberonia mucronata (D. Don) Ormerod & Seidenf. (Orchidaceae), new addition to the flora of Gujarat, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 8(1): 8412–8414; http://dx.doi.org/10.11609/jott.1816.8.1.8412-8414

Copyright: © Bhatt & Nagar 2016. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. JoTT allows unrestricted use of this article in any medium, reproduction and distribution by providing adequate credit to the authors and the source of publication.

Funding: Gujarat Biodiversity Board.

Conflict of Interest: The authors declare no competing interests.

Acknowledgements: The authors are thankful to Dr. A.P. Singh, Member Secretary, Gujarat Biodiversity Board (GBB) for financial assistance. The authors are also thankful to Dr. Dinesh Agrawal (BSI Sikkim) and Dr. Jeewan S. Jalal (BSI Pune) for their assistance in the authentication of plant material. We are thankful to the reviewers of the manuscript for their critical comments and suggestions. The laboratory studies were supported by Prof. Sandhya Kiran Garge, the Head, Department of Botany, the Maharaja Sayajirao University Baroda.

 

 

The genus Oberonia, belonging to the family Orchidaceae, subfamily Epidendroideae, tribe Malaxideae and subtribe Malaxidinae was described by John Lindley in 1830. It comprises between 329 species distributed from South Africa through Asia to Australia and the Pacific islands with a single species in Madagascar and tropical Africa (Pearce & Cribb 2002; Govaerts et al. 2015).

The genus is epiphytic, rarely lithophytic, easily recognized by its clustered, fleshy, laterally compressed, ensiform, distichous leaves; terminal racemose inflorescence and small, numerous, non-resupinated flowers. In India, Oberonia is represented by 68 species (Ansari & Balakrishnan 1990; Misra 2007; Narayanan et al. 2010) and in Gujarat by two species (Anonymous 1996).

During the field survey for orchids of Gujarat, the first author collected a few plants of the genus Oberonia when it was flowering during the month of October 2014 from Dang District of southern Gujarat. On critical observation and perusal of the relevant literature (Santapau & Kapadia 1964; Abraham & Vatsala 1981) the specimens were identified as Oberonia mucronata (D. Don) Ormerod & Seidenf. After a scrutiny of the significant literature (Suryanarayana 1968; Desai 1976; Shah 1978, 1983; Vora 1980; Reddy 1987; Bole & Pathak 1988; Anonymous 1996, 1998–2002, 2001; Tadvi 2014), it was found to be a taxon hitherto not recorded from Gujarat State, hence it is reported here as a new distribution record for the state. The present location in Gujarat is also the western most geographic range for this species. The voucher specimen is deposited in the herbaria of The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda (BARO), and the Botanical Survey of India, Jodhpur (BSJO). With the current report, the genus Oberonia is now represented by three species, viz., O. falconeri Hook.f., O. brunoniana Wight and O. mucronata (D. Don) Ormerod & Seidenf. in Gujarat.

Globally the species has a wide range of distribution. In India it is distributed in Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Orissa, Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand. In Gujarat very few individuals of this species were seen at Ahwa, Dangs District (Fig. 1). A detailed taxonomic description and images are provided here along with its habitat, regional distribution and geographical distribution to authenticate the new distribution record. An easy identification key to Oberonia species of Gujarat is provided.

Oberonia mucronata (Image 1)

(D. Don) Ormerod & Seidenf. in G. Seidenfaden, Contr. Orchid Fl. Thailand. 13:20 (1997). Stelis mucronata D. Don in Prodr. Fl. Nepal. 32. 1825; Cymbidium iridifolium Roxb. in Fl. Ind. ed. 1832, 3: 458 (1832); Oberonia denticulata Wight in Icon. P1. Ind. Orient. 5: t. 1625 (1851); Malaxis denticulata (Wight) Rchb.f. in Ann. Bot. Syst. 6: 208 (1861); O. iridifolia var. brevifolia Hook. f. in Fl. Brit. India 5: 676 (1890); O. iridifolia var. denticulata (Wight) Hook. f. in Fl. Brit. India 5: 676 (1890). O. denticulata var. iridifolia (Roxb.) S. Misra in J. Orchid Soc. India 3: 69 (1989); O. denticulata var. brevifolia (Hook.f.) S. Misra in J. Orchid Soc. India 3: 70 (1989); O. brevifolia (Hook.f.) Panigrahi in S.K. Murti & G. Panigrahi, Fl. Bilaspur Distr. 2: 591 (1999); O. smisrae Panigrahi in S.K. Murti & G. Panigrahi, Fl. Bilaspur Distr. 2: 593 (1999).

 

 

 

 

 

 

Isotype: 1832, Sillet, Bangladesh, N. Wallich, # 1948b (P00404924) (P!).

Erect or pendulous epiphytic herb, 19–22 cm long with inflorescence. Leaves 4 to 5, clustered, 7–9.5×1.5–1.7 cm, distichous, laterally compressed, thick, fleshy, pale green, oblong-ensiform with acute apex. Scape 3–4×0.3 cm, flattened, adnate to the upper leaf in young plants, Inflorescence 16–19 cm long, decurved, densely flowered. Flowers pedicelled, 2–2.5 mm long, golden yellow, bracteate. Bracts equaling the size of ovary, 1.3×0.7 mm, ovate to oblong, acute or obtuse, irregularly denticulate along the margin. Dorsal sepal 1–1.2×0.8 mm, ovate, acute, entire along the margins; lateral sepals narrower with acute apex. Petals 1×0.5, ovate to oblong, obtuse with irregularly erose margin. Lip quadrate in outline, glabrous or sparsely hairy, gland-dotted, 5×5 mm, 3-lobed, lateral lobes oblong, deeply dentate, spreading in flower except for the incurved distal end; middle lobe two-lobuled, lobules triangular, acute, deeply dentate. Ovary with pedicel 1.2–1.5 mm long, glabrous. Column 1 mm long, subglobose, sessile. Capsule 0.3× 0.1 mm, ellipsoid with a short pedicel (Image 1).

Specimen Examined: 0094 (BSJO!), 28.x.2014, 20043’39.72”N & 73040’22.86”E, 297m, Ahwa, Dangs, Gujarat, India, coll. Mital R. Bhatt.

Flowering & Fruiting: August–December

Habitat and Ecology: Oberonia mucronata was mostly observed on the tree trunk of Terminalia crenulata in moist deciduous forest, in association with other members of Orchidaceae like Oberonia falconeri, Vanda tessellata and Vanda testacea.

Global distribution: India (Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand), Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Indonesia, Jawa, Laos, Malaya, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

 

 

 

References

 

 

Abraham, A. & P. Vatsala (1981). Introduction to Orchids. Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute, Trivandrum, 414–428pp.

Anonymous (1996). The Biological Diversity of Gujarat. Gujarat Ecology Commission, Vadodara, India, 149–150pp.

Anonymous (1998–2002). Conservation of Rare and Endangered Biodiversity of Gujarat, Gujarat Ecology Commission, Vadodara, India, 156–139pp.

Anonymous (2001). Threatened Biodiversity of Gujarat, Gujarat Ecology Commission, Vadodara, India, 18–103pp.

Ansari, R. & N.P. Balakrishnan (1990). A revision of the Indian species of Oberonia (Orchidaceae). Orchid Monographs 4: 1–82.

Bole, P.V. & U.M. Pathak (1988). Flora of Saurashtra. Botanical Survey of India, iii+305–306pp.

Desai, M.J. (1976). A Contribution to the Flora of Bansda Forest. PhD Thesis, Sardar Patel University, Valllabh Vidyanagar, 520–528pp.

Govaerts, R., M.A. Campacci, D.H. Baptista, P. Cribb, A. George, K. Krenuz, J. Wood, P. Bernet, K. Kartochvil, G. Gerlach, G. Carr, P. Alrich, A.M. Pridgeon, J. Pfahl, H. Tigges & J. Shaw (2015). World Checklist of Orchidaceae. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Garden, Kew Published on the internet; http//apps.kew.org/wcsp/ Accessed on May 2015.

Misra, S. (2007). Orchids of India - A Glimpse. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, Dehradun, India.

Narayanan, M.K., M. Manudev, P. Sujanapal, N.A. Kumar, M. Sivadasan & H.A. Ahmed (2010). Oberonia swaminathanii sp. nov. (Orchidaceae) from, Kerala, India. Nordic Journal of Botany 28: 713–715; http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1756-1051.2010.00822.x

Pearce, N. & P.J. Cribb (2002). Flora of Bhutan. The Orchids of Bhutan - Vol. 3, Part 3. Royal Botanical Garden, Edinburgh.

Reddy, A.S. (1987). Flora of Dharampur forests. PhD Thesis, Sardar Patel University, Vallabh Vidyanagar, 520–528pp.

Santapau, H. & Z. Kapadia (1964). The Orchids of Bombay. Calcutta, 54–76pp.

Shah, G.L. (1978). Flora of Gujarat. Sardar Patel University, Vallabh Vidyanagar, iii+652–663pp.

Shah, G.L. (1983). Rare species with restricted distribution in South Gujarat, pp. 50–54. In: Jain, S.K. & R.R. Rao (eds.). Assessment of Threatened Plant of India. Botanical Survey of India, Howrah.

Suryanarayana, B. (1968). A Contribution to the flora of Dangs Forest. PhD Thesis, Sardar Patel University, Vallabh Vidyanagar, ii+637–647pp.

Tadvi, D.S. (2014). Floristic diversity of Dangs, Gujarat. PhD Thesis, Department of Botany, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Vadodara, 37–167pp.

Vora, H.M. (1980). Contribution to the flora of Dharampur, Kaprada and Nana ponda Ranges. PhD Thesis, South Gujarat University, Surat, 886–891pp.

 

 

 

Key to identification of Oberonia of the Gujarat

1. Lip with entire margin;

2. Leaves up to 8cm, pale green, scape cylindrical ………..…………….…………….………………......................................… O. falconeri

2. Leaves up to 28cm, purplish-brown, scape flat ……….............................……….……………...........………………….. O. brunoniana

1. Lip with deeply toothed or laciniate margin .………………..................…………….……………............…….........…...… O. mucronata