Rambutan is a medium-sized tropical tree in the family Sapindaceae. The name also refers to the edible fruit produced by this tree. The rambutan is native to Southeast Asia. It is closely related to several other edible tropical fruits, including the lychee, longan, pulasan, and quenepa.
The gymnosperms are a group of seed-producing plants that includes conifers, cycads, Ginkgo, and gnetophytes, forming the clade Gymnospermae. The term gymnosperm comes from the composite word in Greek: γυμνόσπερμος, literally meaning 'naked seeds'. The name is based on the unenclosed condition of their seeds. The non-encased condition of their seeds contrasts with the seeds and ovules of flowering plants (angiosperms), which are enclosed within an ovary. Gymnosperm seeds develop either on the surface of scales or leaves, which are often modified to form cones, or on their own as in yew, Torreya, Ginkgo. Gymnosperm lifecycles involve alternation of generations. They have a dominant diploid sporophyte phase and a reduced haploid gametophyte phase which is dependent on the sporophytic phase. The term "gymnosperm" is often used in paleobotany to refer to all non-angiosperm seed plants. In that case, to specify the modern monophyletic group of gymnosperms, the term Acrogymnospermae is sometimes used.
Cycas pruinosa is a small to medium species of cycad, a palm-like seed plant. It is a widespread but sporadic species in the eastern and southern Kimberley region of Western Australia, occurring also in the Spirit Hills on Bullo River Station in the Northern Territory.
Cycas revoluta is a species of gymnosperm in the family Cycadaceae, native to southern Japan including the Ryukyu Islands. It is one of several species used for the production of sago, as well as an ornamental plant. The sago cycad can be distinguished by a thick coat of fibers on its trunk. The sago cycad is sometimes mistakenly thought to be a palm, although the only similarity between the two is that they look similar and both produce seeds.
Couroupita guianensis, known by a variety of common names including cannonball tree, is a deciduous tree in the flowering plant family Lecythidaceae. It is native to the tropical forests of Central and South America, and it is cultivated in many other tropical areas throughout the world because of its beautiful, fragrant flowers and large, interesting fruits. Fruits are brownish grey. There are potential medicinal uses for many parts of Couroupita guianensis, and the tree has cultural and religious significance in India. In Sri Lanka, the cannonball tree has been widely misidentified as Sal, after its introduction to the island by the British in 1881, and has been included as a common item in Buddhist temples as a result.
A strobilus is a structure present on many land plant species consisting of sporangia-bearing structures densely aggregated along a stem. Strobili are often called cones, but some botanists restrict the use of the term cone to the woody seed strobili of conifers. Strobili are characterized by a central axis surrounded by spirally arranged or decussate structures that may be modified leaves or modified stems.
Cycas armstrongii is a species of cycad in the genus Cycas, endemic to Northern Territory of Australia. It is found from the Finniss River in the west to the Arnhem Highway in the east, north of Pine Creek. It also occurs on the Tiwi Islands and the Cobourg Peninsula
Cycas badensis is a species of cycad in the genus Cycas, native to Australia, in the extreme north of Queensland, where it is endemic on Badu Island in the Torres Strait Islands.
Cycas bifida is a species of cycad plant in the genus Cycas, native to southern China, and northern Vietnam.
Cycas bougainvilleana is a species of cycad in the genus Cycas, native to the islands northeast of Papua New Guinea, on New Britain, the Bismarck Archipelago and the Solomon Islands, where it occurs on or near the coast in calcareous coral sand dunes and in adjacent forests.
Cycas circinalis, also known as the queen sago, is a species of cycad known in the wild only from southern India. Cycas circinalis is the only gymnosperm species found among native Sri Lankan flora.
Cycas micronesica is a species of cycad found on the island of Yap in Micronesia, the Marianas islands of Guam and Rota, and The Republic of Palau. It is commonly known as federico nut or fadang in Chamorro. The species, previously lumped with Cycas rumphii and Cycas circinalis, was described in 1994 by Ken Hill. Paleoecological studies have determined that C. micronesica has been present on the island of Guam for about 9,000 years. It is linked with Lytico-Bodig disease, a condition similar to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), due to the neurotoxin BMAA found in its seeds, which were a traditional food source on Guam until the 1960s. The neurotoxin is present due to its symbiosis with cyanobacteria.
The lesser short-nosed fruit bat is a species of megabat within the family Pteropodidae. It is a small bat that lives in South Asia and Southeast Asia. It weighs between 21 and 32 grams, and measures 70 to 127 millimetres. It occurs in many types of habitat, but most frequently in disturbed forest, including lower montane forest and tropical lowland rain forest, plus gardens, mangroves, and vegetation on beaches.
The Medullosales is an extinct order of pteridospermous seed plants characterised by large ovules with circular cross-section and a vascularised nucellus, complex pollen-organs, stems and rachides with a dissected stele, and frond-like leaves. Their nearest still-living relatives are the cycads.
Cycas rumphii, commonly known as queen sago or the queen sago palm, is a dioecious gymnosperm, a species of cycad in the genus Cycas native to Indonesia, New Guinea and Christmas Island. Although palm-like in appearance, it is not a palm.
Anisomeles malabarica, more commonly known as the Malabar catmint, is a species of herbaceous shrub in the family Lamiaceae. It is native to tropical and subtropical regions of India, and Sri Lanka, but can also be found in Malaysia, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Bismarck Archipelago, Mauritius, Andaman Islands and Réunion.
Cycas thouarsii, the Madagascar cycad, is an evergreen arborescent cycad in the genus Cycas. It is named after a French botanist Louis-Marie Aubert du Petit-Thouars (1758—1831).
Gloriosa superba is a species of flowering plant in the family Colchicaceae. Common names include flame lily, climbing lily, creeping lily, glory lily, gloriosa lily, tiger claw, agnishikha and fire lily.
The Indian stingless bee or dammar bee, Tetragonula iridipennis, is a species of bee belonging to the family Apidae, subfamily Apinae. It was first described by Frederick Smith in 1854 who found the species in what is now the island of Sri Lanka. Many older references erroneously placed this species in Melipona, an unrelated genus from the New World, and until recently it was placed in Trigona, therefore still often mistakenly referred to as Trigona iridipennis. For centuries, colonies of T. iridipennis have been kept in objects such as clay pots so that their highly prized medicinal honey can be utilized.
Rohanixalus is a genus of tree frogs in the family Rhacophoridae native to the Andaman islands and Indo-Burma region. The genus was established in 2020 by Indian herpetologist S.D. Biju of the University of Delhi and his colleagues. The genus comprises eight species.
