New species of African violets found in Mizoram

Context

A group of botanists from the Bhopal-based Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) have recently discovered a new species of plant belonging to the African Violets family from Mizoram and adjacent areas in Myanmar.

• IISER Bhopal was the set up in 2008. It has secured 40th place in the National Institutional Ranking Framework of the Union Education Ministry last year.

About the African Violets

• Plant species: It is a species of herbaceousperennial flowering plants.
• Family: It belongs to the family Gesneriaceae.
• Native: It is native to Tanzaniaand adjacent southeastern Kenya in eastern tropical Africa. 
• Scientific name: It is scientifically known as saintpaulias.
  • Species and cultivarsare commonly called African violets.
• There are 106 currently known species of African Violets genus, of which 26 are present in northeastern states of India.
• Most of these species are narrow endemics and require specialised habitats to survive, thus acting as an indicator of pristine habitats.
• Several of the species and subspecies of the section are endangered, and many more are threatened.
  • Their native cloud foresthabitats are cleared for agriculture. 
• New Species: Newly described species Didymocarpus vickifunkiae (Gesneriaceae) is currently known from only three locations in Mizoram.
  • It is considered as an endangered species.
  • Didymocarpus is a genus belonging to the plant family Gesneriaceae (commonly known as African Violets).
  • Its members are distributed from Western Himalayas to Sumatra.
• Significance: This discovery shows that the biodiversity of the northeastern parts of India is understudied and there are many species of plants that remain undiscovered.