''Reinwardtiodendron anamalaiense'', is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

within the genus '' Reinwardtiodendron'' and family

Meliaceae Meliaceae, the mahogany family, is a flowering plant family of mostly trees and shrubs (and a few herbaceous plants, mangroves) in the order Sapindales. They are characterised by alternate, usually pinnate leaves without stipules, and by syncarp ...

. It is an

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...

species native to

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, where it is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to the Western Ghats. It is one of six known species within the genus ''Reinwardtiodendron.''

Description

''Reinwardtiodendron anamalaiense'' is a species of evergreen tree, which is capable of reaching heights of up to tall. The bark of the tree is

lenticel A lenticel is a porous tissue consisting of cells with large intercellular spaces in the periderm of the secondarily thickened organs and the Bark (botany), bark of woody stems and roots of gymnosperms and dicotyledonous flowering plants. It func ...

late and greyish brown in colour. Younger branches are terete, grey in colour and tomentose.

Leaves

The leaf is imparipinnate, characterized by a slender rachis measuring in length. It exhibits a swelling at its base, and is devoid of hairs. The leaf comprises 59 alternate leaflets, with each leaflet lacking stipules. Leaflets are attached to a slender petiolule measuring in length, that is also hairless. The lamina of the leaf is elliptic, lanceolate, or elliptic-obovate in shape, ranging from in length and in width. Its base is oblique, attenuate, or cuneate, while the apex varies between acuminate, obtusely acuminate, or caudate-acuminate. All leaves possess a smooth margin and a tough, leathery texture. The leaf features 810 pairs of pinnate, prominent lateral nerves, accompanied by visible intercostal reticulations. The leaf also possesses

domatia A domatium (plural: domatia, from the Latin "domus", meaning home) is a tiny chamber that houses arthropods, produced by a plant. Ideally domatia differ from galls in that they are produced by the plant rather than being induced by their inhabi ...

within its structure.

Flowers and fruit

The blooms of this plant are polygamodioecious, possessing both male and female flowers on the same plant. These flowers are relatively small, measuring across, and exhibit a yellowish-white hue. The male flowers are arranged in axillary panicles, while the female flowers occur in axillary spikes or racemes. Each flower consists of five sepals, which are ovate-orbicular in shape and adorned with ciliate edges; these sepals are fused in the lower half. The petals are concave and arranged in an imbricate manner. The staminal tube is globose and crenulate, housing 910 stamens organized in two rows. The lower stamens are included within the tube, while the upper ones are partly exserted, sometimes with apiculate tips, and the attached filaments are prominent. The ovary is positioned superiorly and is globose in shape, housing five cells, with two ovules present in each cell. The style is short and thick, culminating in a stigma that is 35 lobed and truncate. Following pollination, the fruit develops into a berry, which is ovoid and white, with a scaly texture. Berries are oval shaped and around long. Within each berry, one to two seeds can be found embedded within a pulpy aril. Flowering and fruiting typically occurs between the months of March and November.

Distribution and habitat

''Reinwardtiodendron anamalaiense'' is

native Native may refer to: People * '' Jus sanguinis'', nationality by blood * '' Jus soli'', nationality by location of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Nat ...

to Southwest

, where it is

to the Western Ghats region. The species is distributed within multiple

Indian states India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories, for a total of 36 subnational entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into 800 districts and smaller administrative divisions by the respe ...

including:

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

, and

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

. ''R.'' ''anamalaiense'' grows within a wet tropical climate, where it can be found growing in the subcanopy of evergreen forests. The species has been encountered growing at elevations of above sea level.

References

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q18081632, from2=Q95985392 Meliaceae Endemic flora of the Western Ghats Plants described in 1864 Taxa named by Richard Henry Beddome