Trends4362 in Biosciences 10(22), Print : ISSN 0974-8431,Trends 4362-4369, in Biosciences 2017 10 (22), 2017 Threats Assessment, Current Distributional Record, Field Status and Therapeutic Uses of Medicinally Important Bulbophyllum Thou. (Orchidaceae) from Darjeeling and Kalimpong Districts of West Bengal, India RAJENDRA YONZONE Taxonomy and Ethnobiology Research Laboratory, Cluny Women’s College, P.O. Kalimpong, District Kalimpong, West Bengal email: [email protected] ABSTRACT they occur throughout the country excepting the drier Present paper deals with threats assessment, current Deccan plateau, Punjab and part of Gujarat (Hedge, 1984). North East India constitutes an Orchid hotspot and show distributional record, field status and therapeutic uses of medicinally important Bulbophyllum Thou. (Orchidaceae) maximum diversity in the Eastern Himalaya (Vanlalruati et from Darjeeling and Kalimpong Districts of West Bengal, al. 2016). Of the total Orchid species found in India nearly India. 70% found in North East India (Gogoi and Yonzone, 2013). It is estimated that over 22,500 species with 779 genera are distributed throughout the world (Mabberly, 2008). There Key words Orchidaceae, Bulbophyllum, Threats are 1331 species belonging to 186 genera (Chowdhery, assessment, Current distributional record, 2009); 1300 species in 184 genera (Singh and Chauhan, Field status, Therapeutic uses, Darjeeling 1999); 1129 species in 184 genera (Karthikeyan, 2000) widely and Kalimpong Districts. distributed throughout India. Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts of West Bengal possesses good resources of Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts are the Orchid species. northernmost hilly districts of West Bengal and it is the The use of Orchids as medicine is restricted as their part of Eastern Himalaya with different physiographic therapeutic knowledge is confine chiefly to few folk healers features. They lie between 27º31’05" and 26º27’10" North and local medicine men (Nongdam, 2014). The medicinal latitude and between 88º53’00" and 87º59’30" East importance of Orchids is known as early as 250-300 BC by longitude. The Northern boundary commences on the West Susruta and Vagbhata in ancient Sanskrit literature. The at Phalut (3600m), the trijunction of the boundaries of Nepal, oldest books Rigveda and the Atharvaveda provide Sikkim and West Bengal. This boundary runs east from inquisitive information about the medicinal value of Phalut along the ridge descending to the Rammam river Orchids. Some of the Orchid species are used in Jeevaniyo and proceeding east of that junction the boundary follows Dashko Mahakashay, Ashtavarga group of medicine and the Teesta upstream until its junction with the Rango Chu. Chyavanprash Linctus and the medicinal usage of Orchids From Phalut the Western boundary Nepal follows the has been brilliantly described in Charak Samhita, Southward ridge until it joins the Mechi river upto the plains. Nighanthus of Bhav Prakash Mishra and Pandit Shaligram On the South lies the district of West Dinajpur intercepted (Ghanaksh and Kaushik, 1999). Their therapeutic values by the Mahananda river and the rest other part of the district have been extensively utilized in the indigenous system of is bounded by Bangladesh and the Jalpaiguri district. There medicine for the treatment of many ailments (Nongdam, are three Sub-Divisions in Darjeeling district viz., Darjeeling, 2014). Orchids are rich in alkaloids and other phytochemical Kurseong (hills) and Siliguri (plain) and three blocks come contents and many of them are effectively used to treat a under Kalimpong district viz., Kalimpong, Algarah and wide range of ailments (Handa, 1986; Lawler, 1984). Some Gorubathan (till May 2017). The altitudinal variations range Orchid species reported to contain alkaloids, triterpenoids, from 130m at Siliguri to as high as 3636m at Sandakphu. flavonoids and stilbenoids. Recently, some important Orchids belong to the family orchidaceae which is phytochemicals like orchinol, hircinol, cypripedin, jibantine, highly evolved among the monocotyledons. They exhibit nidemin and loroglossin are extracted from Orchids (De et incredible diversity in colour, shape, size, structure and al. 2016). Presence of these phytochemicals provides fragrance of flowers and four different life forms viz., antimicrobial, antitumor, anti-inflammatory, antiviral subterranean, saprophytic, terrestrial and epiphytic and are activities etc. and some species used as potent inhibitor pretty admired among the professional and amateur Orchid against gram positive and gram negative bacteria and some lovers of the world and are important both botanically and species were found to have strong antioxidative properties commercially (Pathak et al. 2010). They are widely (Singh et al. 2012). Orchid species are also one of the distributed from equator to Arctic Circle and from lowland ingredients in ancient Indian systems of medicine called areas to almost upto snowline regions. In India, the Eastern “Ayurveda”. Some of the phytochemicals like alkaloid, Himalaya is the centre of Orchids, followed by Western anthocyanins, arundinan, bibenzyl, cypripedin, dendrobine, Himalaya and the South Indian hills. The Khasia hills in gigantol, glucoside, glycoside, gymopusin, hircinol, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and the Sikkim and Darjeeling jibantine, kinsenoside, loroglossin, nidemin and orchinol, Himalayas are richest in Orchid flora in India. In India, phenanthrene, phenanthropyran, rotundatin and moscatin, Orchids form 10% of the world Orchid flora with Himalayas stilbenoid, triterpenoid are reported from Orchids (Singh as their natural home (Yonzone and Rai, 2016). In India, and Duggal, 2009). In India and other parts of the world use YONZONE, Bulbophyllum Threats Assessment, Current Distributional Record, Field Status and Therapeutic Uses 4363 many Orchid species in their traditional system of herbal Hook. f., Fl. Brit. India 5(2): 760. 1890. Phyllorchis purpurea medicines. (D. Don) Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 676. 1891. [Fig. 1A, Fig. The generic name Bulbophyllum is derived from the 2A] Greek words bulbo (bulb) and phyllon (leaf). The genus Plant epiphytic, 14-30 cm tall, rhizomatous herb. Bulbophyllum was established in 1822 by Albert Aubert Pseudobulbs 3-6 × 2.8-3.4 cm, globose-ovoid. Leaf solitary, du Petit-Thouars in his Histoire Particuliere des Plantes 11-23 × 3.6-4.9 cm, ovate-elliptic, obtuse, petiolate. Orchidees. It is one of the largest orchid genera comprises Inflorescence lateral from pseudobulb base, decurved, about 2200 taxa, widely distributed in the tropics (Vermeulen, racemes, cylindric, densely many-flowered. Flowers 7-8 mm 2014), Asia-Pacific 1700 species, Madagascar 200 species, long, purplish-brown. Dorsal sepal 4.9-5.8 × 2.5-2.8 mm, New Guinea 600 species (Agrawala et al. 2016), 1000 species oblong-ovate, acute; lateral pair 6.9-7.6 × 3.6-4 mm, oblong- widely distributed in the tropical Americas, Africa, ovate, acute. Petals 2.6-3 × 1-1.2 mm, broadly ovate, aristate. Madagascar, the Mascarene Islands, South East Asia to Lip 3.6-4.6 × 1.8-2.1 mm, simple, yellow blotched with violet. Australia (Pearce and Cribb, 2002). There are 100 species in Specimen examined: India, West Bengal, Kalimpong India (Chowdhery, 1998), 35 in Darjeeling (Yonzone et al. District, Suruk Busty 750 m, 25. 10. 2010, Coll. No. 1507 2012c). (CWC); Altitudinal range: 700 – 1650 m. Flowering and Plants perennial, epiphytic or lithophytic herbs; Fruiting: October – February; Field status: Sparsely found rhizome present or absent, sheathed. Pseudobulbs distant in the regions and found on the tree trunk and branches of or clustered on rhizome. Leaf solitary rarely 2 from Schima wallichii and Ficus hispida. Distribution within pseudobulb apex, thin-textured to coriaceous, erect, Darjeeling Himalaya: Samthar, Godok, Todey, Latpanjar, suberect. Inflorescence lateral, arising from pseudobulb Sittong, Mirik. Geographical distribution: India (Arunachal base, racemose, umbellate, capitate, solitary to many Pradesh, Meghalaya, Sikkim, West Bengal, Utter Pradesh); flowered. Flowers small to large. Sepals subequal, dorsal Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand. sepal free; lateral pair adnate at base to column foot to form Bulbophyllum leopardinum (Wall.) Lindl. Gen. Sp. a mentum. Petals free, smaller than the dorsal sepal. Lip Orchid. Pl.: 48. 1830. Dendrobium leopardinum Wall., Tent. simple to trilobed, sometimes fleshy, mobile, often ciliate or Fl. Nepal. 1: 39, t.28. 1826. Sarcopodium leopardinum (Wall.) hairy, strongly recurved. Column very short. Anther not Lindl., Paxton’s Fl. Gard. 1:155. 1850. Phyllorchis leopardina turned away from the rostellum; pollinia 4. (Wall.) Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 677. 1891. [Fig. 1B, Fig. 2B] MATERIALS AND METHODS Species etymology: Named after the Leopard like spots on its flowers. The intensive field survey work was started from June 2007 to December 2016 covering all the seasons of the year Plant epiphytic (frequently lithophytic) herb, 11-28 and far-flung villages of Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts cm tall, rhizomatous herb. Pseudobulbs 4-7 × 1.6-2.8 cm, and necessary photographs of Orchid species were clustered, cylindric-obpyriform. Leaf solitary, 8-19 × 3.6-6 collected and documented. The specimens were collected cm, oblong-elliptic, mucronate, coriaceous, petiolate. and properly worked out both in the field and laboratory Inflorescence very short, 1-3-flowered. Flowers 2-2.9 cm and pressed in blotting paper and mounted on standard across, pale yellowish-brown to greenish,