DN AND PETS Compiled by Damayanthi Hewamanna The Sepalika Mala

yctanthes arbor-tristis the “ of sorrow”, because the wives, Satyabhama and Rukmi- (Night-flowering Jas- flowers lose their brightness ni. Satyabhama wanted this N mine) also known as during daytime; the scientific “Parijat” tree from the Heaven to theSepalika Mal in is a name arbor-tristis also means be planted in her garden. Rukmi- species of Nyctanthes, native to “sad tree”. The flowers can be ni too, took a fancy to the flow- southern , from northern used as a source of yellow dye er. Krishna, wanting to keep Pakistan and south for clothing. The is the both his wives happy, planted through northern and official flower of the state of this tree so that the flowers fell southeast to . Kingdom: Plantae in Rukmini’s garden while the It is a or a small tree tree remained in Satyabhama’s growing to 10 m tall, with flaky (unranked): Angiosperms garden. grey bark. The are oppo- The tree was planted in the (unranked): site, simple, 6-12 cm long and 2- garden of Indra, the Lord of 6.5 cm broad, with an entire (unranked): Heavens. Even as Krishna stole margin. The flowers are fra- a branch of the tree he was spot- grant, with a five- to eight-lobed Order: ted by Indra. However, Indra white corolla with an orange-red Family: desisted from placing a curse on centre; they are produced in Krishna since he was an incarna- The Night-flowering clusters of two to seven togeth- Genus: Nyctanthes tion of Vishnu. Still, Indra put er, with individual flowers open- forth a curse on the stolen Species: N. arbor-tris ing at dusk and finishing at branch that it will never bear dawn. The is a flat brown fruit even though the flowers heart-shaped to round 2 West Bengal, India, and for Kan- may bloom on the tree. Since the cm diameter, with two sections chanaburi Province, Thailand. day the tree was planted at Bara- each containing a single seed. Parijat appears in several banki it flowers but does not Nyctanthes arbor-tristis Hindu myths. In one myth, reproduce because it has no (sometimes incorrectly cited as which appears in Srimad Bhaga- seeds and the branch cannot Nyctanthes arbortristis or Nyc- vatam, the Mahabharata and the take roots. The leaves tanthes arbor tristis) is com- Vishnu Purana, Parijat appeared The seeds, flowers and leaves monly known as Night-flowering as the result of the Samudra possesses immunostimulant, Jasmine, Coral Jasmine, Parijat manthan (Churning of the Milky hepatoprotective, antileishma- (also spelled Paarijat or Paari- Ocean). In another myth, Parijat nial, antiviral and antifungal jaata, Harsingar Shephali, was brought to earth by Krishna activities. The leaves have been Pavazha malli in Tamil (also from Indra’s garden. used in Ayurvedic medicine to spelled pavaza malli or pavala In Hindu mythology, there is a treat sciatica, arthritis, fevers, malli) story involving Lord Krishna various painful conditions and The tree is sometimes called about a parijat and Krishna’s two as laxative. A bunch of sepalika

The fruit Sepalika Mal More of sepalika

The Fishing Cat Hi Folks! he Fishing Cat (Pri- My name is Whiskey, I minus the white streak onailurus viverri- Kingdom: Animalia am sending you my down my face which the T nus) is a medium- Phylum: Chordata photo,hope you like it. cat ladies found very sized cat whose disjunctive If I look a bit peeved, attractive. global range extends from Class: Mammalia with my ears turned back- Incidentally I see from eastern Pakistan through Order: Carnivora (we do that when we are my window many cats who portions of India, Nepal annoyed), it is because look like me, hmmm I and Sri Lanka, throughout Family: Felidae this snap was taken by wonder! Bangladesh and Mainland Genus: Prionailurus Nan’s son-in-law without I have had many adven- Southeast Asia to Sumatra even a “may I please”, but tures and maybe I have and Java. Its fur has an Species: P. viverrinus then I didn’t want to disap- used up most of my nine olive-grey color with dark point him as he had come lives. You know my ances- spots arranged stripe-like tions. While Indian speci- all the way from USA, so I tors were worshipped in running along the length of mens grow to 80 cm (32 in) obliged! Egypt, centuries ago. the body. plus 30 cm (12 in) tail, I celebrated my 12 birth- Maybe my forbearers came In Sri Lanka, the Fishing Indonesian fishing cats only day on April 26 and in one of those ships that Cat is known as Handun reach 65 cm (26 in) plus 25 though my limbs are...well came to Sri Lanka to buy Diviya or Kola Diviya. The cm (10 in) tail. Indian indi- a bit stiff, I still feel I can precious stones. terms Handun Diviya and viduals weigh up to 11.7 kg give anyone a fight. In fact Must stop, I can hear my ‘Kola Diviya are also used Pick a boo (26 lbs), while in Indonesia I have had to ‘cat-handle’ lunch by the local community to adult fishing cats weigh in my son ‘choo choo cat’, for coming...mmm...ahh...I refer to the Rusty-spotted at up to approximately 6 kg bad behaviour many times, smell salmon. Cat (Prionailurus rubigi- (13 lbs). but now I have to leave Bye nosus), another little- They are stocky of build him, he is my carbon copy Whiskey, known small cat in the sub- with medium short legs, urban habitats of Sri Lanka. and a short muscular tail of Both animals are noctur- one half to one third of the Whiskey nal and elusive and there- length of the rest of the ani- fore distinct identity as to mal. which one is referred as Like its closest relative, Things that make you go ... Ahh! ‘Handun Diviya’ is the Leopard Cat, the Fish- arguable. ing Cat lives along rivers, The face has a distinctly brooks and mangrove flat-nosed appearance. The swamps. Swimming to catch its prey size varies between loca- It is well adapted to this habitat, being an eager and skilled swimmer. As the name implies, fish is the main prey of this cat, of which it hunts about 10 different species. It also hunts other aquatic animals such as frogs or crayfish, and terrestrial animals such as rodents and birds. The inter-digital webs on its paws help the cat gain When your boss is not there better traction in muddy environments and water, like other mammals living in semi-aquatic environ- The mouse ring ments. he Fishing Cat is endan- gered due to its depen- dence on wetlands, which are increasingly being set- tled and converted for agri- culture, and also due to human over-exploitation of local fish stocks. It is believed extinct in Afghanistan, it may already be gone from Malaysia and China, and it has become rare throughout its remain- ing distribution. As of December 2005 72 Captive Fishing Cats could be seen at 22 different North Amer- Having caught its prey ican institutions. Bear hug Porky kiss =