Acanthus ilicifolius L.

 
  • Family : ACANTHACEAE
    (Acanthus Family)
  • Family (Hindi name) : ARUSA FAMILY (अडूसा फैमिली)
  • Family (as per The APG System III) : Acanthaceae
  • Synonym(s) : Acanthus doloarin Blanco; Acanthus ebracteatus var. xiamenensis (R.T.Zhang) C.Y.Wu & C.C.Hu; Acanthus ilicifolius var. subinteger Nees; Acanthus ilicifolius var. typica Domin; Acanthus ilicifolius var. xiamenensis (R.T.Zhang) Y.F.Deng, N.H.Xia & Heng B.Chen; Acanthus neoguineensis Engl.; Acanthus xiamenensis R.T.Zhang; Dilivaria ilicifolia (L.) J.St.-Hil.
  • Species Name (as per The IPNI) : Acanthus ilicifolius L.
  • Common name : Holly-leaved Acanthus; Holy mangrove.
  • Vernacular name :
    • Harkata, Hargoza (Hindi)
    • Holesulli, Mulluchulli (Kannada)
    • Chakkaramulli, Chulli, Mendli, Moranna, Muthalamookku, Paingachulli, Payinachhulli (Malayalam)
    • Thillai, Chakkaramulli, Chulli (Tamil)
    • Harkach, Holithi konti, Harkanchi, Kilichiri (Oria)
    • Alisi, Alchi, Etichilla (Telugu)
  • Habit : Shrub
  • Habitat : Mangrove, marshy areas
  • Comments / notes : Maritime marshes along the coast
  • Flower, Fruit : November-July
  • Distribution :
    • Andhra Pradesh : East Godavari district
    • Karnataka : Dakshina Kannada district, Udupi district, Uttara Kannada district
    • Kerala : Thiruvananthapuram district, Alappuzha district, Thrissur district, Malappuram district,Kozhikode district, Kannur district, Kasaragod district, Ernakulam district, Kottayam district, Kollam district
    • Maharashtra : Thane district
    • Odisha : Balasore district, Kendrapara district, Cuttack district
    • Tamil Nadu : Tamil Nadu
    • Uttar Pradesh : Uttar Pradesh
    • Andaman and Nicobar Islands : North and Middle Andaman,South Andaman
  • Native : Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Australia, Bangladesh, Bismarck Archipelago, Borneo, Cambodia, China, Hainan, India, Jawa, Laos, Lesser Sunda Islands, Malaya, Maluku, Myanmar, New Caledonia, New Guinea, Philippines, Santa Cruz Islands
  • Exotic/Native : Native
  • World Distribution : Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Australia, Bangladesh, Bismarck Archipelago, Borneo, Cambodia, China, Hainan, India, Jawa, Laos, Lesser Sunda Islands, Malaya, Maluku, Myanmar, New Caledonia, New Guinea, Philippines, Santa Cruz Islands
  • Conservation Status : Least Concern (LC)
  • Literature :
    • H.O. Saxena & M. Brahmam, 1995- Flora of Orissa Vol. 3
    • R. S. Rao et al., 1986 - Flora of West Godavari District
    • IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1.
    • Sasidharan, N. 2011. Flowering plants of Kerala. DVD, V 2, KFRI
    • Gopalakrishna Bhat, 2003 - Udupi
    • Gopalakrishna Bhat, 2014 - Flora of South Kanara
    • Parkinson, C.E. 1923. A Forest Flora of the Andaman Islands, Govt. of India, Shimla: 217
  • Read more :
  • Permalink : http://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Acanthus ilicifolius
  • Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Deepak Kumar (2026). India Flora Online. http://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Acanthus ilicifolius. Downloaded on 19 February 2026.

Botanical Description

Herbarium Specimen(s)

Field Image(s)

Distribution District wise

India Distribution

World Distribution

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