Skip to main content Skip to main navigation menu Skip to site footer
Responsive image
Issue: Vol. 744 No. 2: 5 Mar. 2026
Type: Article
Published: 2026-03-05
DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.744.2.8
Page range: 191-196
Abstract views: 40
PDF downloaded: 5

Revisiting the Taxonomy of Ophiorrhiza brunonis var. johnsonii (Rubiaceae), a Little-Known Endemic Species of the Western Ghats, India

Division of Plant Sciences, Biology Department, College of Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80200, Jeddah 21551, KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute (JNTBGRI), Palode, Karimancode P.O., Thiruvananthapuram-695562, Kerala, INDIA
Ophiorrhiza Endemic Western Ghats Kerala Eudicots

Abstract

The taxonomy and nomenclature of Ophiorrhiza brunonis var. johnsonii are revisited. It is recognized here as a distinct species, viz. O. johnsonii (Hook.f.) E.S.S. Kumar & Faten comb. et stat. nov. The detailed comparative morphology with its associated taxa is discussed in the present article, along with updated nomenclature.

References

  1. Akhilesh, S.V.N., Gangaprasad, A. & Remeshkumar, K.B. (2021) Rediscovery and lectotypification of Ophiorrhiza brunonis var. johnsonii (Rubiaceae)—an endemic variety of the southern Western Ghats, India. Rheedea 31 (4): 307–310. https://doi.org/10.22244/rheedea.2021.31.04.08
  2. Anonymous (1901) A list of the collectors whose plants are in the Herbarium of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to 31st December, 1899. Bulletin of Miscellaneous Information (Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew) 1901 (169/171): 1–80. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/4113200]
  3. Bawri, A., Baro, D., Singh, Y.D. & Sarma, K. (2024) Ophiorrhiza gajureliana (Rubiaceae): a new species from Arunachal Pradesh, India. Vegetos 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42535-024-01094-w
  4. Deb, D.B. & Mondal, D.C. (1997) Taxonomic revision of the genus Ophiorrhiza L. (Rubiaceae) in Indian subcontinent. Bulletin of the Botanical Survey of India 39: 1–148. https://doi.org/10.20324/nelumbo/v39/1997/74298
  5. Deb, D.B. & Mondal, D.C. (1987) In: Nayar, M.P. & Sastry, A.R.K. (Eds.) Red Data Book of Indian Plants, vol. 1. Botanical Survey of India, Calcutta, pp. 230.
  6. Don, G. (1834) A General History of the Dichlamydeous Plants. J.G. & R. Rivington, London, 867 pp.
  7. Fyson, P.F. (1915) The flora of the Nilgiri and Pulney Hill tops, vol. 1. Government Press, Madras, 475 pp.
  8. Gamble, J.S. (1921) Flora of the Presidency of Madras, vol. 2. Adlard & Son Ltd., London.
  9. Hareesh, V.S. & Sabu, M. (2018) The genus Ophiorrhiza (Rubiaceae) in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India with a new species. Phytotaxa 383 (3): 259–272. https://doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.383.3.3
  10. Hareesh, V.S. & Sabu, M. (2022) Taxonomic studies on Indian Ophiorrhiza L. (Rubiaceae): with a new variety, new distributional record of O. medogensis H. Li for India and the identity of O. recurvipetala Bhuyan, Baruah & Mehmud. Adansonia 44 (5): 29–36. https://doi.org/10.5252/adansonia2022v44a5
  11. Hooker, J.D. (1880) The Flora of British India. Volume 3. L. Reeve & Co. Ltd., London.
  12. Linnaeus, C. (1753) Species Plantarum. Salvius, Stockholm, 150 pp.
  13. Murugan, P., Kottaimuthu, R. & Murugan, C. (2022) Typification of thirty-five names in Rubiaceae of the Southern Western Ghats, India. Gardens’ Bulletin Singapore 74 (2): 257–274. https://doi.org/10.26492/gbs74(2).2022-11
  14. POWO (2025) Plants of the World Online. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet. Available from: https://powo.science.kew.org/ (accessed 27 April 2025)
  15. Robbrecht, E. & Manen, J.-F. (2006) The major evolutionary lineages of the coffee family (Rubiaceae, angiosperms): Combined analysis (nDNA and cpDNA) to infer the position of Coptosapelta, Luculia, and super tree construction based on rbcL, rps16, trnL-trnF and atpB-rbcL; A new classification in two subfamilies, Cinchonoideae and Rubioideae. Systematics and Geography of Plants 76: 85–146. https://doi.org/10.2307/20649700
  16. Rydin, C., Wikström, N. & Bremer, B. (2017) Conflicting results from mitochondrial genomic data challenge current views of Rubiaceae phylogeny. American Journal of Botany 104: 1522–1532. https://doi.org/10.3732/ajb.1700255
  17. Turland, N.J., Wiersema, J.H., Barrie, F.R., Greuter, W., Hawksworth, D.L., Herendeen, P.S., Knapp, S., Kusber, W.H., Li, D.Z., Marhold, K., May, T.W., Mcneill, J., Monro, A.M., Prado, J., Price, M.J. & Smith, G.F. (eds.) (2018) International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (Shenzhen Code) adopted by the Nineteenth International Botanical Congress Shenzhen, China, July 2017. Regnum Vegetabile 159, Volume 38. Koeltz Botanical Books, Glashütten. https://doi.org/10.12705/Code.2018
  18. Wight, R. & Arnott, G.A.W. (1834) Prodromous florae Peninsulae Indiae Orientalis, vol. 1. Allen and Co., Parburry, London, 480 pp.

How to Cite

Filimban, F.Z. & Kumar, E.S.S. (2026) Revisiting the Taxonomy of Ophiorrhiza brunonis var. johnsonii (Rubiaceae), a Little-Known Endemic Species of the Western Ghats, India. Phytotaxa 744 (2): 191–196. https://doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.744.2.8