PRAKRITI, 25th January 2020, Vol.II, Issue 15

Weekly magazine

P R A K R I T I Quest For Nature

Flora of the week Fauna of the week of the week Psilopogon zeylanicu Cinnamomum tamala Papilio polytes Or Or Or Asian Barbet Indian bay leaf Indian Common Mormon

Officers’ Club Central Academy for State Forest Service, Dehradun P R A K R I T I, 25th JANUARY 2 0 2 1, V O L. II, I S S U E 15 FLORA OF THE WEEK Cinnamomum tamala

Indian bay leaf (Tezapatta)

Scientific Classification Cinnamomum tamala, Indian bay leaf, also known as tejpat, tezapatta, Malabar leaf, Indian bark, Indian Kingdom Plantae cassia, or malabathrum, is a tree. It can grow up to 20 m (66 ft) Clade Magnoliids tall.

Order Laurales Leaves- Its leaves have a clove-like aroma with a hint of peppery taste; Family Lauraceae they are used for culinary and medicinal purposes. The leaves Cinnamomum are thich,4 to 7 inch in length with deep vein like structure in

Species tamala the upper surface and have a strong odor.

Flowers and Fruits- Flowers are tiny greenish yellow. Flowers are seen in clusters

and have a strong odor. Flowers are seen in month of January and fruits appear in the month of May-August. Fruits are round

purple colored and has a single seed inside.

Good Source of Vitamin-

Fresh leaves are a very rich source of vitamin-C and vitamin- A. Vitamin-C is powerful natural antioxidant, immune booster,

wound healing and antiviral effects. Vitamin-A is natural antioxidant and essential for normal eyesight. It contains a good amount of protein, dietary fiber, omega-3 fatty acid,

thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folate.

Bark- Distribution: The bark of the tree is little It is native to India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan & China. brittle when cut and is brown High Production States in India: - North east India Mountains, Himalayas southern in color with good odor. The slopes, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala. powder of bark is used as tooth powder to treat dental

caries, bad odor and Uses- gingivitis. Bay leaves may help in healing wounds.

Bay leaves may help in controlling blood sugar levels in type-2 diabetes.

Bay leaves may help in preventing kidney stones.

Bay leaf and its berries have plenty of medicinal uses. It has great appetite

stimulant properties, astringent and diuretic.

The oil extracted from the bay leaves (Essential oil) contain mostly cineol.

Bay leaves contain the lauric acid which has insect repellent properties.

Central Academy For State Forest Service Guided by: P.O. New Forest, Dehradun- 248006, Uttarakhand Shri Kunal Satyarthi, IFS, President Officers’ Club Photography & Compiled by: Ph : 0135-2754575/ Fax: 0135-2756168; E-mail : [email protected] Shri Pradeep Wahule, IFS, Vice President Officers’ Club Usha Devi | SFS 2019 – 21| P1 P R A K R I T I, 25th January 2 0 2 0, V O L. II, I S S U E 15 FAUNA OF THE WEEK

Papilio polytes

Indian Common Mormon

Mormon is group of swallow tail butterfly, Male are velvety black with a row of white spots along central region of upper side of known for the mimicry displayed by numerous forms of its female which mimic hind wing. Margins of both sides of forewing also have a series of smaller white inedible red bodied swallowtails. The spots. Red marginal crescents usually butterflies are also known to mud-puddle. present on underside of hind wing. The male Mormons are much more

common than the females. Indian The female of the common Mormon is

papilionids such as the common Mormon polymorphic. In the Indian Subcontinent, it and great Mormon show polymorphism has several forms or morphs.

with many mimetic female forms. Male mormon

Food: The common Mormon is fond of visiting

flowers and its long proboscis permits it to feed from flowers having long corollar tubes. It is

particularly fond of Lantana, Jatropha, Ixora, and

Mussaenda in city gardens.

Did You Know?

Because of its polymorphy and Batesian mimicry, the butterfly has been studied extensively in for understanding the genetic basis of these occurrences.

This species can fly up to 6,900 feet (2,100 m) in the Himalayas.

Habitat and Habit:- Kingdom Animalia

Males have fast flight, while females fly slowly in a leisurely manner Phylum Anthropoda

just like common rose and crimson rose whom they mimic. Male are Class Insecta fond of flowers visit damp patches and dung. Generally, Seen on the Order Lepidoptera wing throughout the year and occurs on the hills up to 1830 m. Family Papillionidae

Mimicry:- Genus Papillio

Species polytes In India, this butterfly is considered as the classic example of

Batesian mimicry in which edible species resemble unpalatable Distribution: Almost all over southern and southeastern Asia, including India’s West butterfl ies in order to escape being eaten by predators. Bengal, north-eastern India, Nicobar Islands, A single gene, double sex, regulates the complex wing patterns, Andaman Islands, Nepal, Bangladesh,

colors and structures required for this mimicry. Myanmar, Japan, Indonesia, Vietnam, parts of China, and Thailand.

Central Academy For State Forest Service Guided by: P.O. New Forest, Dehradun- 248006, Uttarakhand Shri Kunal Satyarthi, IFS, President Officers’ Club Photography & Compiled by: Ph : 0135-2754575/ Fax: 0135-2756168; E-mail : [email protected] Shri Pradeep Wahule, IFS, Vice President Officers’ Club Shweta Kumari | SFS 2019 – 21| P2 V Photo credit –Promila V P R A K R I T I,25th January 2 0 2 0, V O L. II, I S S U E 15 BIRD OF THE WEEK

Psilopogon zeylanicus

Asian Barbet

Identification: A brown headed barbet has green throat and green wings with white speckling on the shoulders. It has prominent pale streaks on its

brown head and breast. These are the main characteristics of this species. It

has a yellow facial skin and the brown yellow bill and that both turned orange -red during breeding period. Immature are similar but looks

duller. It is an arboreal species of gardens and wooded country. Male and

female birds look alike. Adults are about 26 cm long and have a streaked brown head.

Biology: This is purely arboreal species IUCN Status: Least Concern which live high from the ground in dense

foliage making it hard to spot. It is well Kingdom Animalia known to many people by sound not by sight. The species often engages in a Phylum Chordata kind of ‘follow the leader’ calling, where others take up the call when one start. It Class Aves

begins with a harsh kind of laugh, Order followed by tur-r-r-r-kotur-r-kotur-r- Family Megalaimidae kotur-r. Their eggs are usually laid in Genus March and April in cavity excavated by Psilopogon

both male and female. Species zeylanicus

Fun Fact: Barbets have Habitat: It is an arboreal species of gardens and wooded country which eats characteristics similar to fruits and insects. It is fairly tolerant of humans and often seen in city parks. It woodpeckers. Both have cavity forages on mangoes, ripe jackfruits, papaya, banana, figs and similar cultivated nesting behaviour and the ability fruit trees. Its habitat includes urban and country gardens though it tends to to walk vertically up and down eschew heavy forest. It nests in suitable holes in a tree that it will often the trunk and branches, and wood excavate. Both sexes incubate the eggs and often communicate with each other pecking behaviour for making using their kotur-r-kotur-r calls. holes. Distribution:

It is widespread throughout India,

Nepal, and Sri Lanka, as well as

western and southern Bangladesh to Chittagong District; its range might

also extend into nearby China, Pakistan, Afghanistan and

Myanmar.

Guided by: Central Academy for State Forest Service Shri Kunal Satyarthi, IFS, President, Officers’ Club Photography & Compiled by: P.O. New Forest, Dehradun- 248006, Uttarakhand Shri Pradeep Wahule, IFS, Vice President, Officers’ Club Rajeev Kumar SFS 2019 – 21 P3 Ph: 0135-2754575/ Fax: 0135-2756168; E-mail: [email protected]