Madhuca diplostemon

Madhuca diplostemon is a species of flowering plant in the family Sapotaceae, endemic to India.[1] It is a threatened tree species of the Western Ghats whose original specimens were collected in 1835, and it was considered extinct for 184 years until a single living specimen was discovered in a sacred grove in Kollam district, when scientists at the Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute (JNTBGRI) identified the tree as Madhuca diplostemon rather than the common attilippa (Madhuca neriifolia).[2]

Leaf

Madhuca diplostemon
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Sapotaceae
Genus: Madhuca
Species:
M. diplostemon
Binomial name
Madhuca diplostemon
(C.B.Clarke) P.Royen

The lone mature tree was located at the Koonayil Ayiravilli Siva temple at Paravur, Kollam, Kerala. Surveys in other sacred groves in Kollam district failed to find another tree of the species. Since the species is represented by only one specimen in a single locality, it is eligible to be categorized as 'Critically Endangered' by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature), the JNTBGRI has noted.

References
  1. CAMP Workshops on Medicinal Plants, India (January 1997). 1998. Madhuca diplostemon. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 1998. Downloaded on 18 September 2015.
  2. S. Shailajakumari, E.S. Santhosh Kumar, A.K. Sreekala, B. Parthipan, R. Prakashkumar (2020) Rediscovery of Madhuca diplostemon (Sapotaceae) -a threatened species of the Western Ghats, India, after a hiatus of 184 years Rheedea 30(3):383-387 DOI: 10.22244/rheedea.2020.30.03.03


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