Quick Facts
common name :
Kalu kadol, Chengam
Scientific Name :
Scyphiphora hydrophylacea
Kingdom :
Plantae}
Clade :
Tracheophytes Angiosperms Eudicots Asterids
Order :
Gentianales
Family :
Rubiaceae
Genus :
Scyphiphora
Species :
S. hydrophylacea
Conservation Status :
3
Type of Mangrove :
True mangrove
Type of Roots :
Not prominent prop roots
General Characters
A shrub up to 3m, but in Singapore, rarely more than 2m tall. Twigs reddish when young. Bark greyish black, ridged and fissured.
Other Characters
found in the foreshore mud seasides of the tropical belt.The branches are weakly flattened to angled,glabrouswith nodes thickened and reduced internodes and congested nodes Bark: brownish bark
Features of Flower
Inflorescence: dense axillary condensed cymes.Flowers tiny (0.5cm) in dense clusters about 3-4cm across. Corolla with four white curving lobes and a short pink tube. Nectar is secreted at the base of the tube which is accessible to short-tongued insects.
Features of Fruits
Fruit tiny (0.5cm) oblong with 6-8 ridges, first green then white. The outer layer of the fruit is fleshy with a corky inner layer. The fruit separates into two halves when ripe. Each fruit contains 4 or fewer seeds. The fruits float because of the spongy inner layer.
Leaf Arrangment
spoon-shaped (3-5cm long) smooth waxy glossy and held upright, arranged opposite one another. Old leaves are yellow then turn shiny pink. Terminal bud and young leaves coated in a varnish-like substance.spoon-shaped (3-5cm long) smooth waxy glossy and held upright, arranged opposite one another. Old leaves are yellow then turn shiny pink. Terminal bud and young leaves coated in a varnish-like substance.
Distribution
Limited distribution in the county.Recorded only in Puttalam and Kilinochchi Districts
Range
India, Sri Lanka and southern China to the West Pacific, New Guinea and northern Australia. In Borneo found along the coast throughout the island.
Type of Roots
Not prominent prop roots
IUCN Red List Status
