A new species of the genus Taxillus Tiegh. (Santalales: Loranthaceae) from the Coromandel Coast of Tamil Nadu, India, with a key to the Indian species

Authors

  • Sugaseelan Akash
  • Kathavarayan Manikandan
  • Ramachandran Rajaselvam
  • Thangavel Ponrathy
  • Murugappan Muthu Sheeba
  • Seetharaman Radhakrishnan
  • Authinarayanan Rajesh

Keywords:

Taxillus coromandelianus, Taxonomy,, Endemic species, Coromandel coast.

Abstract

Taxillus coromandelianus sp. nov. is a newly described species from the Coromandel Coast of Tamil
Nadu. It closely resembles T. courtallensis, T. cuneatus and T. heyneanus, but differs in several
morphological characters, notably its leaves elliptic to broadly elliptic, base oblique to rounded, lateral
nerves conspicuous, 3–4 pairs. Bract ovate to flabellate. Flowers strictly 4-flowered, calyculus tube
cylindrical to funnel-shaped; corolla tube split to one-third of its length; corolla lobes lanceolate to
oblanceolate. Anthers oblanceolate, recurved. Stigma capitate; style terete; ovary cylindrical. Fruit
narrowly ovoid; seeds ovoid. A detailed morphological description, diagnostic characters, colour
photographs, and a distribution map of the species are provided.

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Published

2026-11-05

How to Cite

Sugaseelan Akash, Kathavarayan Manikandan, Ramachandran Rajaselvam, Thangavel Ponrathy, Murugappan Muthu Sheeba, Seetharaman Radhakrishnan, & Authinarayanan Rajesh. (2026). A new species of the genus Taxillus Tiegh. (Santalales: Loranthaceae) from the Coromandel Coast of Tamil Nadu, India, with a key to the Indian species. The Bioscan, 21(4), 314–323. Retrieved from https://thebioscan.com/index.php/pub/article/view/6840

Issue

Vol. 21 No. 4 (2026): Volume 21 Regular Issue 4 Oct-Dec (2026)

Section

Articles

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