Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 July 2022 | 14(7): 21476–21479

 

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

https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.6485.14.7.21476-21479

#6485 | Received 29 July 2020 | Final received 05 July 2022 | Finally accepted 08 July 2022

 

 

Salvia misella Kunth (Lamiaceae) - a new record for Eastern Ghats of India

 

Prabhat Kumar Das 1, Pradeep Kumar Kamila 2  & Pratap Chandra Panda 3

 

1–3 Centre for Biotechnology, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan (Deemed to be University), Kalinga Nagar, Ghatikia, Bhubaneswar, Odisha 751003, India.

1 prabhatdasnou@gmail.com, 2 pradeepkamila.bapi@gmail.com, 3 pcpanda2001@yahoo.co.in (corresponding author)

 

 

 

Editor: V. Sampath Kumar, Botanical Survey of India, Coimbatore, India. Date of publication: 26 July 2022 (online & print)

 

Citation: Das, P.K., P.K. Kamila & P.C. Panda (2022). Salvia misella Kunth (Lamiaceae) - a new record for Eastern Ghats of India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 14(7): 21476–21479. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.6485.14.7.21476-21479

 

Copyright: © Das et al 2022. 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: Forest and Environment Department, Government of Odisha (State Plan project, 2019-20).

 

Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.

 

Acknowledgements: The authors thank the chief executive, Regional Plant Resource Centre, Bhubaneswar for providing laboratory facilities and the divisional forest officer, Jeypore Forest Division, Jeypore for necessary help during field work

 

 

 

Salvia Tourn. ex L. is the largest genus in the family Labiatae (Lamiaceae nom. alt.) comprising about 950 species and distributed in tropical, subtropical and temperate regions of the world with greater species diversity in America including Mexico, and good numbers in Africa, Europe, Sino-Himalayan region and southwestern Asia (Mabberley 2017). Based on field survey and consultation of the specimens in different herbaria of Botanical Survey of India, universities and institutions in India, Sunojkumar & Rinshy (2017) reported the occurrence of 31 species of Salvia in India including some introduced species, while Kumar et al. (2020) listed 23 species and four varieties, which include only wild and naturalized taxa. Of these, species such as Salvia coccinea Buc’hoz ex Etl., S. leucantha Cav., and S. plebeia R.Br. are invasive weeds in several states.

During plant inventory of Eastern Ghat region of Odisha, the authors located three populations of an interesting species of Salvia with glandular-pubescent calyx and small blue flowers along Jeypore-Koraput road (National Highway no. 326) of Koraput District of Odisha and collected specimens for identification. On detailed examination of plant specimens, consultation of relevant literature and matching with authentic herbarium specimens including images of specimens in Kew Herbarium Catalogue (https://apps.kew.org/herbcat/ navigator.do), it was identified as Salvia misella Kunth (Lamiaceae). This species is considered as an invasive weed in tropical America (Williams 1972; Richardson & Keng 2010), Australia, Papua New Guinea, and Africa. Sunojkumar & Pradeep (2015) have reported its occurrence from Kerala, whereas Kottaimuthu et al. (2016) recorded it from Western Ghats of Tamil Nadu state, India. The present wild occurrence of Salvia misella from Koraput district of Odisha is very interesting from phytogeographical point of view and extends the distributional range of the species to Eastern Ghats of the country. The nomenclature, botanical description, phenology, habitat, specimens studied and colour photographs are provided below for easy identification of the species.

Salvia misella Kunth, [H.B.K.] 2: 290. 1818; Epling in Fedd. Rep. Beih. 16: 110. 1938; Back. & Bakh.f., Fl. Java 2: 627. 1965; Sunojk. & Pradeep, Phytotaxa 230 (3): 281. 2015; Kottaimuthu et al., Journ. Biol. Records 1(3): 124. 2016 (Image 1).

Annual or biennial herbs, up to 1m tall. Stem erect, profusely branched, quadrangular, sulcate, minutely gland-dotted, covered with hispidulous or pilose hairs. Leaves sessile, membranous, broadly ovate or lanceolate-ovate, 4–6.5 × 1–4 cm, apex acute, margin serrate, base decurrent upon length of petiole, dull green, densely hispid on bothsides, more so on lower veins. Inflorescence simple, terminal racemes, 16–20 cm long, with 12–20 interrupted verticils of 1–2 flowers each; peduncles 2–5 cm long, glandular-pubescent. Bracts broadly ovate, 1.5–3.0 mm long, persistent, glabrous inside, glandular-pilose outside. Calyx campanulate, 4–5 mm long, clothed with dense glandular-pubescent hairs all over, 10–12-veined, lips shortly cleft; upper lip rounded, shortly caudate; lower lip 2-toothed, each lobe with single teeth, rostrate. Corolla blue, white towards base and white strips from throat downwards, 6–8 mm long; tube 3–4 mm long; posterior lip concave, glandular-pubescent along ventral margins; anterior lip 4–5 mm long, 3-lobed, middle lobe emarginate. Stamens 2, included in corolla tube or exserted, articulated on filament; filaments 1.2–1.3 mm long, connectives produced, adnate towards lower half and pubescent. Style glabrous, included, 5–6 mm long; stigma bifid. Mericarp oblong, grey with dark streaks, mucilaginous when wet; seeds greyish to brown in color, obovate, with highly reticulate venation.

Flowering and fruiting: November to February.

Distribution: The species has been reported to occur in Central America, Australia, Papua New Guinea, and central Africa. In India, the species has been recorded from Western Ghats (Kerala and Tamil Nadu) and with the present report from Odisha, its distribution range is extended to Eastern Ghats (Figure 1).

Habitat: Moist habitats, around 250 m.

 Salvia misella is considered as a weed in tropical America (Williams 1972; Richardson & Keng 2010). In Western Ghats, this species is reported to grow along with several other weedy species. The newly located populations of the species in Koraput district of Odisha were found in three separate small patches growing as an understory plant in semi-shaded locations in moist habitats close to the National Highway no. 326 at an elevation of about 255 m. The common associates are Ageratum conyzoides L., Chromolaena odorata (L.) R.M.King & H.Rob., Vernonia cinerea (L.) Less, Mimosa pudica L., Chloris barbata Sw., and Sporobolus indicus (L.) R.Br. It is most likely that the seeds of Salvia misella might have been dispersed through vehicles carrying food grains or construction materials from above mentioned southern Indian states.

Specimens Examined: 11076 (RPRC), 11.xii.2019, India, Odisha, Koraput, Kalabhairabi, along National Highway no. 326, 18.8380N and 82.6160E, 255 m, coll. P.K. Das & P.K. Kamila (Image 2).

Specimens image viewed: 245 (K), S. Coll., Jamaica (K000479224); 322 (K), 24.xi.1975, Mexico, Guerrero, 1250 m, coll. K.M. Peterson, C.R. Broome & R.M. Harley (K000266705)

 

For figure & images - - click here (for full PDF)

 

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