Herbarium JCB

Erythrina stricta Roxb.

Family : FABACEAE
(PEA OR BEAN FAMILY)
Family (as per The Plant List) : Leguminosae
Subfamily : Faboideae
Species : Erythrina stricta
Species Name (as per The Plant List) : Erythrina stricta Roxb.
Vernacular name : Keechige (Kan.); Murukku (Tam.); Mullamodugu (Tel.); Chaldua (Ori.)
Key identification features : Trees up to 20 m tall. Stem, bark and branchlets are armed with conical prickles. Bark is pale, smooth, greenish, after papery exfoliations; branchlets are apically stellately pubescent, basally glabrascent. Leaves are 3-foliolate up to 25 cm. Leaflets, deltoid, obovate or obtuse at base, terminal leaflet is larger than the basal. Inflorescence in the form of large racemes. Flowers are showy, bright-red. Pods slightly curved, with slender stripes. 3-4 seeded.
Habit : Tree
Flower, Fruit : January-May
Comments : On plains to 1000 m in deciduous forests. Often planted.
Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
Distribution Locality : Shevaroy Hills (Salem district) (Tamil Nadu State); Guntur district (Andhra Pradesh State); Chandaka Wildlife Sanctuary (Khurda district) (Odisha State)
World Distribution : India, Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, China
Literature : Pullaiah et al., 2001 - Flora of Eastern Ghats Vol. 2; J.L.Ellis, 1987- Flora of Nallamalais Vol. 1; H.O. Saxena & M. Brahmam, 1994- Flora of Orissa Vol. 1; Matthew, K.M., The Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (1). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983.
Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Arun Singh R., Deepak Kumar, Raja K Swamy and Navendu Page (2016). Digital Flora of Eastern Ghats. http://easternghats.ces.iisc.ernet.in/plants.php?name=Erythrina stricta. Downloaded on 2 April 2025.