Proc. lndian Acad. Sci. (Plant Sci.), Vol. 99, No. 6, December 1989, pp. 567-578. P¡ in India.

Genus Blachia Baill. (Euphorbiaceae) in India

N P BALAKRISHNAN and T CHAKRABARTY* Botanical Survey of India, Southern Circle, Coimbatore 641 003, India *Botanical Survey of India, Central National Herbarium, Howrah 711 103, India MS received 7 January 1989; revised 25 October 1989 Abstraet. A revision of the genus Blachia Baill. (Euphorbiaceae) for India and adjoining countries is presented. Three species are recognized. Blachia reflexa Benth. is conspeeific with Blachia umbellata (Willd.) BailE, while Blachia denudata Benth. represents a subspecies of Blachia andamanica (Kurz) Hook.f. Keywords. Euphorbiaceae;Blachia.

1. lntroduction

The Asiatic genus Blachia was established by Baillon in the year 1858 with a single species B. umbellata, originally described as a Croton by Willdenow (1805) based on material from peninsular India. The generic name is after M Blache, a petty official and friend of Baillon. Subsequently, the genus was reduced by Mueller (1866) to a section of Codiaeum A Juss. but was soon reinstated to generic rank by Bentham (1878, 1880). As per the recent classification of the family Euphorbiaceae (Webster 1975), the genus Blachia is placed under the t¡ Codiaeae (Pax) Hutch. of the subfamily Crotonoideae Pax along with another 18 genera. Of these, the monotypic genus Pantadenia Gagnep. (of Indo-China and Thailand) is the nearest relative of Blachia, differing in the presence of conspicuous glands on abaxial leaf-surface, on the apex of the petals and on the staminal connectives, in the di0ecious habit, in the undulate cupular-annular male disk and in the non-accrescent female sepais (Airy Shaw 1969). The species of Blachia are readily recognizable by the umbellate to racemiform (cymose) inflorescences, the conspicuous stipules, the ebracteate flowers, the apetalous female flowers and the female sepals being mostly somewhat accrescent in fruit (except in B. andamanica).

2. Distribution and ecology

Blachia is at present known to be represented by about 10 species, occurring in Sri Lanka, peninsular India, north-east India to south-east Asia (excluding Burma!) and lndo-China to Malesia (Malaya, Philippines, Celebes). More than half of the species (about 6) occur in Indo-China and two in Thailand, while only one species extends to Malesia. B. andamanica (ssp. andamanica) is the most widespread species, hitherto known to occur in north-east India, Bangladesh, Indo-China, Thailand, Malaya, Andamans, Philippines and Celebes. The species is also represented in peninsular India by the subsp, denudata. So lar as the other Indian species are concerned, both B. calycina and B. umbellata are of restricted dist¡ occurring in peninsular India. The latter also extends to Sri Lanka. Species of Blachia are found mostly in the evergreen forests but may also grow in 567 568 N P Balakrishnan and T Chakrabarty semi-evergreen forests or mixed forests or even beach forests (B. andamanica), up to about 900 m altitude. In addition, the plants in peninsular India may frequently be seen along water courses (e.g. streams, rivers). Blachia Baill., • G› Euphorb. 385, t. 19, figures 18-20. 1858; Benth. in J. Linn. Soc. Bot. 17: 226. 1878 and in Benth. and Hook.f., Gen. PI. 3: 301. 1880; Hook.f., FI. Brit. India 5: 402. 1887; Pax in Engl. and Prantl, Pflanzenfam. III, 5: 87. 1890; Trimen, Handb. F1. Ceylon 4: 53. 1898; Brandis, Indian Trees 580. 1906; Cooke, F1. Pres. Bombay 2: 603. 1906; Bourd., For. Trees Travancore 505. 1908; Talbot, For. FI. Bombay Pres. and Sind. 2: 474. 1911; Pax and Hoffm. in Engl., Pflanzenr. IV. 147. iii: 36. 1911 and in Pflanzenfam. ed. 2, 19c: 159. 1931; Gamble, FI. Pres. Madras 1337. 1925; Whitmore in Tree F1. Malaya 2: 68. 1973; Ramamoorthy in Saldanha and Nicolson, F1. Hassan 332. 1976. Codiaeum A Juss. sect. Blachia (Baill.) Muell.-Arg. in DC., Prodr. 15(2): 1118. 1866; Bedd., For. Man. 213. 1873 (sphalm 'Blackia').

Type species: Blachia umbellata (Willd.) Baill.

Shrubs or small trees, monoecious, evergreen, mostly entirely glabrous. Leaves alternate, simple, or rarely lobed (B. jatrophifolia), mostly elliptic-oblong to obovate, entire, membranaceous to thinly coriaceous, penninerved or sometimes weakly to clearly trinerved at the base, short-petioled; stipules inconspicuous. Male inflorescences terminal, cymose, umbellate to racemiforrn, few-flowered, peduncled. FIowers: Ebracteate; pedicels slender; sepals 4-5, free, imb¡ petals 4-5, smaller than the sepals, hyaline; disk glands 4-5, alternating with petals, scale-like; stamens 10--40, free, arranged in whorls on raised receptacle; anthers 2-celled (the cells coherent at tip), adnate to the broad connective; pisti!lode 0. Female inflorescences axillary and terminal, often borne at or near the base of male inflorescences, cymose, mostly umbellate (2-8-flowered), sometimes solitary, frequently shortly peduncled. Flowers: Ebracteate; pedicels stout, tape¡ downwards; sepals 4-6, same as in the male but shortly connate and accrescent in fruit or deciduous (B. andamanica); petals 0; disk glands connate in a ¡ or occasionally shortly cupular; ovary 3-5-1oculed; locules uniovulate; ovules anatropous; styles 3-5, erect to reflexed, bifid. Fruits schizocarpic, 3-5-1obed; seeds t¡ with a broad convex back, smooth, marbled. Pollination is anemophilous. The chromosome number reported so far is for only one species, B. calycina, having 2n= 36 (Krishnappa and Reshme 1980). The pollen grains conforto to the typical 'crotonoid' pattern (Punt 1972). There is no report available so far of the uses of the plants, if any.

Key to the species

la. Female sepals deeiduous; leaves often weakly to clearly trinerved at the base; first pair of lateral nerves distinct, not weaker than subsequent pairs; tertiary nerves predominantly scalariform (percurrent) to reticulate... 1. B. andamanica b. Female sepals persistent or accrescent; leaves penninerved; first pair of lateral nerves not distinct, weaker than subsequent pairs; tertiary nerves predominantly branching into veins of higher order ...... 2 Genus Blachia in India 569

2a. Female sepals large, 5-15 x 2.5-9 mm; fruits 4-5-coccous ...... 2. B. calycina b. Female sepals small, 2-5 • 1-3 mm; fruits tricoccous ...... 3. B. umbellata

1. Blachia andamanica

(Kurz) Hook.f., F1. Brit. India 5: 403. 1887; Brandis, Indian Trees 581. 1906; Pax and Hoffm. in Engl., Pflanzenr. IV, 147. iii: 38. 1911; Parkins., For. FI. Andaman Is. 236. 1923; Airy Shaw in Kew Bull. 23: 121. 1969 and 26: 223. 1972 and in Kew Bull. Add. Ser. IV: 57. 1975; Whitmore, Tree FI. Malaya 2: 68. 1973. Codiaeum andamanicum Kurz in J. As. Soc. Bengal 42(2): 246. 1973 and For. F1. Brit. Bur~a 2: 405. 1877. Types: India, south Andamans: without exact locality, n.d., Kurz s.n., Herb. Acc. No. 412141 (CAL--Lectotype---chosen herein); ibid., s.n., Herb. Acc. Nos. 412142/43/46/47 (CAL). Dimorphocalyx andamanicus (Kurz) Benth. in Benth. and Hook.f., Gen. PI. 3: 302. 1880. Blachia umbellata sec. Kanjilal et al., F1. Assam 4: 198. 1940, non (Willd.) Baill. 1858. India, Assam, Nowgong dist.: Lumding, 12 Nov. 1913, Kanjilal 2926 (Assam).

Key to subspecies la. Female sepals 5; ovary dense!y pubescent ...... la. ssp. andamanica b. Female sepals 4; ovary glabrous or occasionally minutely and thinly pubescent...... lb. ssp. denudata la. ssp. andamanica

Shrubs or trees, 1-4 m tall; all parts (except ovary and fruits) glabrous; bark brownish or light grey; branchlets brown and shiny, terete, 2-5 mm thick, angled when young. Leaves broadly to narrowly oblong-elliptic to obovate, 7-22 cm long, 3-10 cm broad, rounded or obtuse or acute or cuneate at base, entire or sometimes subentire at margins, bluntly to acutely acuminate to subacuminate (acumen up to 3 cm long) or sometimes caudate at apex, membranaceous to coriaceous, glossy, brown or blackish-brown or dark reddish-brown above when dry, pale brown or coppery or greenish beneath, weakly to clearly trinerved at the base; lateral nerves 5-10 (-12) pairs (the first pair frequently opposite and extending up to about halfway up the lamina), faint to prominent above, distirtct beneath; tertiary nerves obscure to prominent above, faint to distinct beneath, scala¡ (unbranched or branched) to reticulate, sometimes tending to branch into higher order; petioles 3-15 mm long, 1-2 mm thick, channelled above. Male inflorescences subumbellate to racemiform, often subcorymbose, 1"5-5 cm long (peduncle 1-4 cm long, rachis 5-10 mm long). Flowers: Pedicels 5-16 mm long, 0.2-0-4 mm thick; sepals 5, orbicular, 2-3-5 mm long, 2-5-3.5 mm broad, sometimes minutely ciliate at margins; petals 5, broadly obovate to orbicular or flabellate-unguiculate, 0.8-1"5 mm long, 0"8-2 mm broad; disk glands 5, of va¡ shape (mostly obcordate), reddish-brown; sometimes 20-23, 3-4 mm long; anthers ellipsoid to orbicular, 0.5-0.8 mm long. Female inflorescences umbeUate, sometimes racemiform (up to 5cm long), occasionally tending towards dichasial branching, 2-5 (-8)-flowered, frequently 570 N P Balakrishnan and T Chakrabarty

3-10mm long pedunculate. FIowers: Pedicels 3-16mm tong, 1-2-8mm thick towards apex, 0"8-1-2 mm thick towards base, sometimes sparsely adpressed greyish- puberulous; sepals 5, ovate to oblong or triangular, 1-6 mm long, 0-6-2-5 mm broad, shortly acuminate to acute, often minutely white-ciliate at margins, continuously enlarging but deciduous (often 1-2 may persist while fruiting); disk glands connate in a ring, undulate; ovary subglobose, 1.5-2mm dia., 3-1obed, densely adpressed fulvous to whitish-pubescent; styles 3, 3-6 mm long, bifid. Fruits subgloboSe, often somewhat depressed, strongly 3-1obed, 8-10 mm long, 11-13 mm dia., scattered and adpressed fulvous-strigose, black when dry; seeds oblong- ellipsoid or ovoid, 5-8 mm long, 3-5 mm dia. (figure 1).

Flowerin 0 and fiuiting: Mar.-Dec. Specimens examined: India: Andaman-Nicobar Is. North Andamans: Narcondam Is., Prain s.n., Herb. Acc. No. 412157 (CAL); Great Coco Is., Prain s.n., Herb. Acc. Nos. 412148/51/52/56/58 (CAL). Smith Is., N G Nair 4916 (CAL, PBL); Interview

o~ r 61

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~! 9cmo! iM~~ ~ ~A B Figure 1. Blachia andamanica (Kurz) Hook.f. ssp. andarnanica. A-B. Flowering branchlets. C-L. Malo. C. Flower. DE. Sepals. F-G. Petals. H--J. Disk glands. K-L. Stamens. M. Female flower. N. Ovary. O-P. Fruits. Q. Seed. lA-B, M-N. Balakrishnan 350 (PBL), C-L. Premanath 6178 (PBL), O-P. T Chakrabarty 10396 (PBL}]. Genus Blachia in India 571

Is., Thothathri 9220 (CAL, MH, PBL). Middte Andamans: Long Is., Bhargava 2808 (CAL, PBL). South Andamans: without exact locality, Kurz s.n., Herb. Acc. No. 412150 (CAL); Mount Harriet, Kurz s.n., Herb. Acc. Nos. 412144/45 (CAL); ibid., Kurz s.n., (K: photo!-2 sheets); Rangachang, Prain s.n., Herb. Acc. no. 412149 (CAL); Chiriatapu, Bhar9ava and N G Nair 2262 (PBL); Nayasahar, Balakrishnan 350 (MH, PBL); Dhanikhari forest, Chakrabarty 10396 (PBL); Havelock Is., Kalapathar, Premanath 6122/23 (PBL); ibid., Peeple dehra, Premanath 6158 (PBL); ibid., Camp No. I, Premanath 6178 (PBL); ibid., T A Rao and Premanath 7928 (CAL, PBL). Assam. Nowgong dist.: Lumding, Kanjilal 2926 (Assam). Distribution: North-east India (Nowgong), Bangladesh (Chittagong), Andaman Is., Burma, Indo-China, Thailand, Malaya (Perak),? Borneo, Philippines, Celebes. Ecology: North-east India: No ecological data available. Andaman Is.: Common in tropical beach forests or mixed inland forests, on sandy of clayey soil up to about 100 m altitude; on roadsides at main entrance of Dhanikhari Botanic Garden, Port Blair.

lb. ssp. denudata (Benth.) Balakr. and T Chakrab., comh. et stat. hoy.

Blachia denudata Benth. in J. Linn. Soc. Bot. 17: 226. 1878; Hook.f., FI. Brit. India 5: 403. 1887; Brandis, Indian Trees 581. 1906; Cooke, F1. Pres. Bombay 2: 603. 1906; Pax and Hoffm. in Engl., Pflanzenr. IV. 147. iii. 39. 1911; Talbot, For. FI. Bombay Pres. and Sind. 2: 474. 1911; Gamble, F1. Pres. Madras 1338. 1925; Airy Shaw in Kew Bull. 26: 223. 1972, in obs. Syntypes: Peninsular lndia: Karnataka, Bababudan hills, n.d., Law s.n., (K--n.v.); without exact locality, n.d., Stocks s.n. (K: Photo!); Ambaganbangam ghat, May 1853, Ritchie 1350 (K: photo!); Malabar, Concan etc., n.d., Stocks, Law etc. s.n. (CAL, G-DC: Microfiche!). Croton umbellatum sec. Dalz. and Gibs., Bombay F1. 231. 1861, excl. quoad Wight Ic. t. 1874. non Blachia umbellata (Willd.) Baill. 1858, specimena non visa. Codiaeum umbellata sec. Muell.-Arg. in DC., Prodr. 15(2): 1118. 1866, pro minore parte, non Blachia umbellata (Willd.) Baill. 1858. Peninsular India: Malabar, Concan etc., Stocks, Law, etc. s.n. (G-DC: Microfiche!). Shrubs or trees, 1-8 m tall, entirely glabrous; bark dark brown, smooth; branchlets brown or reddish-brown or greyish, terete, 1.5-5 mm thick, somewhat compressed and striate when young. Leaves narrowly to broadly oblong-eUiptic to obovate or sometimes rhombate or oblong-lanceolate, 4.5-19 cm long, 1-5-8 cm broad, acute to obtuse or rounded (often unequal-sided) at base, entire at margins, obtusely or acutely acuminate (acumen I-3-5 cm long) to acute or cuspidate at apex, membranaceous to chartaceous or often thinly coriaceous, black or green above when dry, pale brown or green beneath, sometimes weakly to prominently trinerved at the base; lateral nerves 4-9 pairs (the first pair frequently opposite and ascending up to about halfway up the lamina), faint to prominent above, distinct beneath; tertiary nerves inconspicuous to prominent above, faint to prominent beneath, scalariform (percurrent) to reticulate and sometimes tending to branch into higher order; petioles 3-17mm long, 0-8-2mm thick, channelled above. Male inflorescences umbellate to racemiform, 2~5 cm long; peduncle 1.5-5 cm long; rachis 5-10mm long. Flowers: Pedicels 5-8 mm long, 0-2-0.3 mm thick; sepals 4-5, orbicular-obovate to flabellate or sometimes ovate, 2-3 mm long, 1.5-3 mm broad; 572 N P Balakrishnan and T Chakrabarty petals 4-5, suborbicular or flabellate or oblate, unguiculate, 0"6-2 mm long, 0-5-2 mm broad; disk glands 4-5, 0.6-1 mm dia., dark brown; stamens 14-22 or +40, 3-4 mm long; anthers ellipsoid to orbicular, 0.4-0.6 mm long. Female inflorescences mostly umbellate, 3-8-flowered, frequently pedunculate (peduncle 1-5 mm long). Flowers: Pedicels 2-8 mm long, 1-3 mm thick towards apex, 0.8-1.3 mm thick towards base; sepals 4, narrowly triangular to lanceolate or oblong, 1.5-3-5 mm long, 0.8-1.5 mm broad, acute, deciduous; disk glands connate in a ring, entire or undulate, very rarely free (Talbot 27); ovary ovoid or globose, 1.5-2 mm long, 1.5-2.5 mm dia., 3 (-5)-loculed, occasionally sparsely and minutely adpressed white- pubescent; styles 3(- 5), up to 8 mm long, often connate below into a column (up to 1-3 mm long), bifid, erect to reflexed. Fruits subglobose, slightly to prominently 3(-5)-lobed, 10-14 mm long, 10-15 mm dia., somewhat intruded or subtruncate at apex, glabrous, blackish or dark brownish when dry; pedicels 6-12 mm long; seeds oblong-ellipsoid to suborbicular, 7-10 mm long, 5.5-7 mm dia. (figure 2).

Flowering and fruiting: Jan.-Dec. Specimens studied: India: Karnataka, Kibandur, Raghavan 97061 (BSI). N. Kanara dist.: without exact locality, n.d., Talbot 27 (CAL); Falls of Gairsoppa, Talbot 2703 (BSI); Karwar, Talbot 1235 (CAL); ibid. Sedgwick 6698 (CAL); Yena, Talbot 1211 (CAL); way to Jorda, Ahamed 1105 (CAL). Shimoga dt.: Hulical, Raghavan 86247 (BSI); Vanake-Abbi falls, Agumbe road, Ramesh and Prakash 5349 (CAL). Maharashtra. Malemane, Houanar range, Range Officer s.n., Herb. Reg. No. 85214 (DD); ibid., Range Officer s.n., Herb. Reg. No. 85215 (DD). Distribution: W. peninsular India, north of Malabar--Endemic. Ecology: Common (rare at some localities) in thick forests or dense evergreen to semieyergreen forests or along forest edges of streamsides up to about 850 m altitude. Airy Shaw (1972) remarked that B. denudata is scarcely more than varietally distinct from B. andamanica, differing only in the less umbellate male inflorescence and in the glabrous or minutely pubescent ovary. Our study of ample material indicates that B. denudata is indeed conspecific with B. andamanica but distinguishable by the fewer (4) number of the female sepals and the glabrous or occasionally thinly pubescent ovary. These differences do not appear to be of specific significance and considering the disjunct distribution of the two taxa, it seems convenient and appropriate to recognize B. denudata with a subspecific status. Plants of ssp. andamanica were once noted (Kanjilal 2926) to contain milky sap while ssp. denudata has white sap (Ramesh and Prakash 5349).

2. Blachia calyeina

Benth. in J. Linn. Soc. Bot. 17: 226. 1878; Hook.f., FI. Brit. India 5: 402. 1887; Brandis, Indian Trees 581. 1906; Pax and Hoffm. in Engl., Pflanzenr. IV. 147. iii: 37. 1911; Gamble, FI. Pres. Madras 1338. 1925; Ramamoorthy in Saldanha and Nicolson, F1. Hassan 332. 1976; Nair and Nayar, FI. Courtallam 1: 163. 1986; Henry et al., F1. Tamil Nadu, ser. I. Analysis 2: 222. 1987. Syntypes: India, Tamil Genus Blachia in India 573

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Figure 2. Blachia andar~nka (Kurz) Hook.f. ssp. denudata (Benth.) Ba|akr. and T Chakrab. A. Flowe¡ branchlets. B--N. Male. B. Flower. C-ii. Petals. I-L Disk glands. M-N. Stamens. O--T. Female. O. Flower. P-S. Sepals. 1". Ovary. U-X. Fruits. Y. Seed. [A-N. Ahamed 1105 (CAL). O, T, V. Raohavan 97061 {BSI). P--S. Thomson s.n. (CAL). U, Y. Talbot 2703 (CAL). W, Y. Talbot 1121 (DD)].

Nadu, Nilgiri dist.: Nilgiri hills, n.d., G Thomson s.n. (CAL); ibid., G Thomson s.n. (?) (K- n.v., G-DC: Microfiche!). Tirunelveli dist.: Courtallam, July 1818, Plukenet (Herb. Rottler) s.n. (K: photo!). Croton umbellatus sec. Wight, Ic. PI. Ind. Of. t. 1874. 574 N P Balakrishnan and T Chakrabarty

1842, non Willd. 1805. Peninsular India, without exact locality, Wight 2369 (CAL, K: photo!). Codiaeum umbellatum sec. Muell.-Arg. in DC., Prodr. 15(2): 1118. 1866, pro parte, non Blachia umbellata (Willd.) Baill. 1858. Peninsular India: without exact locality, 1861, G. Thomson s.n. (G-DC: Microfiche!); ibid., Wallich 7770 (CAL, WALk: Microfiche!); ibid., Wallich 7776 (K- WALL: Microfiche!). Blaehia umbellata sec. Gamble, F1. Pres. Madras 1338. 1925, pro minore parte, non (Willd.) Baill. 1858. India, Tamil Nadu, Tirunelveli dist., Courtallam, 8 July 1901, Barber 3385 (MH, CAL). Shrubs or trees, up to 6 m tall, entirely glabrous; branchlets brown to blaekish- brown, terete, 1-2--4 mm thick, flattened or angled and striate when young. Leaves eUiptic-oblong to obovate or lanceolate or often rhombate, 3.5-15 cm long, 1-5 cm broad, acute or cuneate or rounded at base, entire or occasionally subentire at margins, bluntly to acutely acuminate (acumen up to 2 cm long) to subacute or occasionally rounded at apex, firmly membranaceous to thinly coriaceous, pale brown to dark brown or blackish above when dry, brown of green beneath; lateral nerves 5-16 pairs, inconspicuous to prominent above, distinct beneath, mostly branching into veins of higher order (transverse ramified); petioles 2-10 mm long, 0-6--1-8 mm thick, shallowly sulcate or channelled above. Male inflorescences um- bellate to racemiform or occasionally with tendency towards dichasial branching, 2-10cm long (peduncle 1-5-5 cm long, rachis 0.5-7 cm long). Flowers: Pedicels 6-14 mm long, 0.3-0"5 mm thick; sepals 4, orbicular to broadly obovate, 2-2.5 mm long, 2.5-3 mm broad; petals 4, flabellate-emarginate to obcordate, 0"5-1 mm long, 1-1.3 mm broad; disk glands 4; stamens 12-23, 1.5-2.5 mm long; anthers orbicular, 0.5-0-8 mm long. Female inflorescences solitary or umbellate, 8-15 mm long. Flowers: Pedicels 5-25 mm long, 1-2-2 mm thick towards apex, 0.5-1 mm thick towards base; sepals 4-6 (often 4+ 2), elliptic-oblong to ovate or lanceolate, 5-15 mm long, 2-5-9 mm broad, acute to obtuse, aecrescent; disk glands connate in a ring of often shortly cupular, entire; ovary subglobose, 2-3-5 mm dŸ prominently lobed, 4-5- loculed; styles 4--5, 4-8 mm long, bifid or occasionally quadrifid, erect to reflexed. Fruits somewhat depressed, 8-12mm long, 12-16mm dŸ strongly 4-5-1obed; seeds not seen (figure 3). Flowering and fruiting: Feb.-Dec. Specimens examined: India. Peninsular India: without exact locality, Wallich 7770 (CAL); ibid., WallŸ 7776, 8013 (K- WALL: MicrJiche!); ibid., Wight 2639 (CAL). Kerala. Trivandrum dist.: Darbhakulam, N C Nair 49844 (MH). Tamil Nadu. Kanniyakumari dist.: Anaikkol Pathai, B V Shetty 33024 (MH); Kunnimutha Estate, Karthikeyan 40107 (MH); Kandakki Estate, B D Sharma 39937 (MH). Tirunelveli dist.: Tirunelveli, Joseph 15279 (MH, CAL); Courtallam, Barber 3385 (MH, CAL); ibid. K C Jacob 16226 (MH); ibid., Subramanyam 2860 (MH, CAL); Near Tiger falls, Sebastine 5884 (MH, CAL); Manimuthar, Sebastine 3675 (MH, CAL); Muthulakarupan, Fischer 3881 (CAL); Mundanthurai, Fischer 4046 (CAL); ibid., Sebastine 8451 (MH, CAL); ibid., Sebastine 8509 (MH, CAL); ibid., Sebastine 9529 (MH, CAL); Papanasam, Sebastine 9981 (CAL). Distribution: Peninsular India--Endemic. Ecology: Common in evergreen forests of along water courses up to about 600 m altitude. Genus Blachia in India 575

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A Figure 3. Blachia calycina Benth. A. Flowering branchlet. B-N. Male. EL Flower. C-E. Sepals. F-K. Disk glands. L-N. Stamens. O-U. Female. O. Flower. P-T. Sepals. U. Ovary. V-W. Fruits. lA. Sebastine 9981 (CAL). B--N, P-T. Wight 2639 (CAL). O. Sebastine 9529 (CAL). U-V. Barber 3385 (CAL)].

The young shoots and flowers (particularly the females) are occasionally sparsely pubescent.

3. Blachia umbellata

(Willd.) Baill., • G› Euphorb. 387, t. 19, figures 18-20. 1858; Thw., Enum. PI. Zeyl. 277. 1861; Bedd. in Trans. Linn. Soc. London 25: 225, t. 26 (excl. figures 576 N P Balakrishnan and T Chakrabarty

10-12). 1866; Benth. in J. Linn. Soc. Bot. 17: 226. 1878; Hook.f., F1. Brit. India 5: 402. 1887; Trimen, Handb. F1. Ceylon 4: 53. 1898; Brandis, Indian Trees 581. 1906; Bourd., For. Trees Travancore 506. 1908; Pax and Hoffm. in Engl., Pflanzenr. IV. 147. iii: 37. 1911; Gamble, FI. Pres. Madras 1338. 1925; Nair and Nayar, FI. Courtallam 1: 164. 1986; Henry et al FI. Tamil Nadu, Ser. I., Analysis 2: 222. 1987. Croton umbellatus Willd., Sp. PI. 4: 545. 1805. Syntypes: Peninsular India, Travancore, without exact locality, D Klein s.n., Herb. Cat. No. 17873 (B- WlLLD: Microfiche!--2 sheets); ibid., D Klein s.n. (K?). Codiaeum umbellatum (Willd.) Muell.-Arg. in DC., Prodr. 15 (2): 1118. 1866; Bedd., For. Man. 213, t. 22, fgure 6. 1873. Blachia reflexa Benth. l.c. 1878; Hook. f. l.c. 1887; Brandis, l.c. 1906; Pax and Hoffm. in l.c. 1911; Gamble, l.c. 1925; Ramamoorthy in Saldanha and Nicolson, FI. Hassan 333. 1976; Henry et al l.c. 1987. synon, nov. Type: India, Tamil Nadu, Nilgiri hills, G Thomson (?) 53 (K: photo!). Shrub or tree, 2-8 m tall, entirely glabrous; branchlets brown or blackish-brown or greyish, terete, 1-4.5 mm thick, flattened or angled when young. Leaves elliptic- oblong to oblong-lanceolate or obovate to oblanceolate, 3-18 cm long, l-Scm broad, acute or obtuse or cuneate at base, entire at margins, acutely to obtusely acuminate to subacuminate or caudate or cuspidate at apex (cauda or acumen up to ~2-5 cm long), firmly membranaceous to thinly coriaceous, brown to blackish or green above when dry, pale brown or coppery or green beneath; lateral nerves 5-18 pairs, faint to prominent above, distinct beneath; tertiary nerves obscure to prominent above, faint to prominent beneath, reticulate and mostly branching into veins of higher order (transverse ramifed); petioles 2-10 mm long, 0"8-2 mm thick, shallowly channelled or sulcate above. Male inflorescences umbellate, 1-5 cm long. Flowers: Pedicels 7-12 mm long, 0.2-0.3 mm thick; sepals 4, orbicular, 2-2"5 mm long, 1.8-2-5mm broad; petals 4, orbicular to flabellate-unguiculate, often emarginate, 1-3-1.5 mm long, ca 1"5 mm broad; disk glands 4; stamens 10-15 (- 20), 2-3 mm long; anthers orbicular, 0-5--0-9 mm long. Female inflorescences umbellate, 2-8-flowered or sometimes solitary, sessile or frequently 2-5 mm long peduncled. Flowers: Pedicels 7-17 mm long, 1-2 mm thick towards apex, 0.5-1 mm thick towards base; sepals 4-6, oblong-elliptic or ovate or triangular, 2-5 mm long, 1-3 mm broad, acute to obtuse, persistent; disk glands connate in a ring, 0.7-1 mm high, ca 3 mm dia., entire or undulate, often sparsely fulvous-hirsute; ovary subglobose, 1-5-2 mm dia., unlobed or 3-lobed; styles 3, 3-5 mm long, bifid. Fruits subglobose, tricoccous, 10-12 mm long, 11-15 mm dia., smooth, brown when dry; seeds broadly oblong-ellipsoid, ca 7 mm long, 5-6 mm dia. (figure 4).

Flowering and fruiting: Jan.-Dec. Specimens studied: India: Peninsular India. Locality illegible, Bourdillon 2 (CAL). Karnataka. S. Kanara dist.: sine loc. Beddome s.n. (MH, Acc. no. 48422); Coorg dist.: Pothikkadu R.F., Vajravelu 77796 (MH). Kerala. Travancore, Wallich 7765 (K- WALL: Microfiche!). Cannanore dist.: Chandanathode, Ramachandran 61384 (MH); Nedumpoyil, Ramachandran 54090 (MH); Panoth, Ramachandran 66930 (MH); Taliparamba, R Ansari 64775 (MH). Quilon dist.: Aryankavu, Rama Rao 1186 (DD); ibid., Bourdillon 235 (CAL). Trichur dist.: Parambikulam to Vazhachal, Ramamurthy 49382 (CAL). Wynaad dist.: Tambracheri ghat, n.d., Barber 5678 (CAL). Tamil Nadu. Kanniyakumari dist.: Pangudi, B D Sharma 40003 (MH); Verapulli R.F., Genus Blachia in India 577

mm

mm M

N Po tlwn cm

Figure 4. Blachia umbellata (Willd.) Baill. A. Flowering branchlets. B-L Male. B. Flower. C. Sepal. D-G. Petals. H--J. Disk glands. K-L Stamens. M-Q. Female. M. Flower. N-P. Sr Q. Ovary. R. Fruit. S. Seed. [A. Subramanyam 8187 (CAL). B-L Barbcr 5678 (CAL). M-Q. Shetty 32926 (CAL). R-S. Srinivasan 63588 (CAL)].

A N Henry 48284 (MH). Madurai dist.: Vannathiparai, K C Jacob 77172 (MH); Near Suruli faUs, Subramanyam 8187 (CAL). Ramanathapuram dist.: Ayyanarkoil, N C Nair 61097 (CAL); Nagariar to Sasthakoil, Srinivasan 63588 (CAL); ibid., Srinioasan 65967 (CAL); ibid., Srinivasan 68008 (CAL); ibid., Srinivasan 68074 (CAL); Tirunelveli dist.: Kadamady road, sides of Thekkukatu river, Shetty 32926 (CAL). 578 N P Balakrishnan and T Chakrabarty

Sri Lanka. without exact locality, n.d., Gardner s.n. (CAL). Central Prov. without exact locality, 1855, Thwaites (P 3014) (G-DC: Microfiche!).

Distribution: Peninsular India and Sfi Lanka.

Ecology: India: Common (rare at some localities) in evergreen forests or along streamsides between 250-900 m altitudes. Sri Lanka: In moist region, from sea level up to ca 300 m altitude.

References

Airy Shaw H K 1969 Notes on Malesian and other Asiatic Euphorbiaceae; Kew Bull. 23 1-131 Krishnappa D G and Reshme R V 1980 In IOPB Chromosome number reports LXVIII; Taxon 29 536 Punt W 1972 Pollen morphology of the Euphorbiaceae with special reference to taxonomy; Wentia 7 1-116 Webster G L 1975 Conspectus of a new classification of the Euphorbiaceae; Taxon 24 593-601