Vigna aconitifolia (Jacq.) Marechal

 
  • Family : FABACEAE
    (Pea Or Bean Family)
  • Family (Hindi name) : PALASH FAMILY (पलाश फैमिली)
  • Family (as per The APG System III) : Fabaceae
  • Subfamily : Faboideae
  • Basionym : Phaseolus aconitifolius Jacq.
  • Species Name (as per The IPNI) : Vigna aconitifolia (Jacq.) Marechal
  • Common name : Moth bean
  • Vernacular name :
    • Madaki (Kannada)
    • Tulkapayir (Tamil)
  • Habit : Herb
  • Habitat : Scrub jungles and plains
  • Comments / notes : Often on arable land in clumps. Cultivated and also wild in some parts
  • Key identification features : Trailing herb; sometimes twining
  • Flower, Fruit : August-January
  • Distribution :
    • Andhra Pradesh : East Godavari district, Visakhapatnam district
    • Odisha : Boudh district, Kandhamal district
    • Tamil Nadu : Namakkal district, Tiruvannamalai district
    • Uttarakhand : Uttarakhand
    • Sikkim : Sikkim
    • West Bengal : Murshidabad
    • Himachal Pradesh : Himachal Pradesh
    • Arunachal Pradesh : Arunachal Pradesh
    • Meghalaya : Meghalaya
    • Assam : Assam
    • Nagaland : Nagaland
    • Delhi : Delhi
    • Uttar Pradesh : Uttar Pradesh
    • Punjab : Punjab
    • Jammu and Kashmir : Jammu and Kashmir
    • Mizoram : Mizoram
    • Manipur : Manipur
    • Tripura : Tripura
  • Native : Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka
  • Exotic/Native : Native
  • World Distribution : Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka
  • Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
  • 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., Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (1). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983
    • Henry, Kumari & Chithra (1983). Flora of Tamil Nadu, India vol. 1.
    • H J, Chowdhery, et al. Flora of Himachal Pradesh. Volume 1, Botanical Survey of India, 1984. Pg.: 232-233
  • Read more :
  • Permalink : http://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Vigna aconitifolia
  • Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Deepak Kumar (2026). India Flora Online. http://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Vigna aconitifolia. Downloaded on 12 February 2026.

Botanical Description

Herbarium Specimen(s)

Line Drawings

Distribution District wise

India Distribution

World Distribution

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