New gin berry species discovered in southern Western Ghats

• A team of scientists from the Botanical Survey of India (BSI) has discovered a new gin berry species from the Kanyakumari Wildlife Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu.
• The species is named as Glycosmis albicarpa
• The findings have been published in the latest issue of Nordic Journal of Botany, published from Sweden .

About Glycosmis albicarpa

• It is a distinct large white fruit
• It is endemic to the southern Western Ghats.
• It belongs to the Orange family, Rutaceae.
• Berries of Glycosmis species have the unique characteristic of ‘gin aroma’
• The species is also a larval host plant for butterflies like other species of Glycosmis

Significance of the discovery

• This discovery not only re-emphasises the uniqueness and endemism in Western Ghats’ flora but also add to the growing inventory of the region’s flora
• Since the world is losing precious habitats that are home to many unique and endemic species
• It is high time to protect the Western Ghats to conserve such species before they are lost forever