A team of researchers from the University of Calicut has discovered a new species of wild ginger endemic to the Silent Valley National Park on the Western Ghats, one of the biodiversity hotspots in India.

The discovery, reported by M. Sabu, V.P. Thomas, and K.M. Prabhu Kumar of the Department of Botany, has been published in a recent issue of Phytokeys , a journal on biodiversity research. The new species, named Amomum nilgiricum , is a member of the ginger family (Zingiberaceae) consisting of 53 genera and over 1,200 species, many of which are widely used as spices, in medical formulations, or simply for decoration.

The hydel project will cause loss of biodiversity and significant environmental impact

The Gundia Hydro Electric Project (GHEP) proposed by the Karnataka Power Corporation Limited (KPCL) should not be executed “as the loss of biodiversity and environmental impact would be significant,” says a report by the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) submitted to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF).

The country’s north eastern region is rich in medicinal plants, but indiscriminate and unscientific collection is forcing many of the species into the verge of extinction, according to experts.

This matter was raised in a recent seminar organised by the apex funding institution of the region, the North Eastern Development Financial Corporation (NEDFI).

KOLKATA: Several trees of the Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Botanical Gardens, the oldest in the country, were reduced to cinders in a fire that lasted over two hours here on Saturday.

While officials of the gardens claimed that not more than half-a-dozen trees, none of which was

Steven Morris

Conservationists have warned that mistletoe, favourite plant both of pagans and stealers of Christmas kisses, could vanish from the U.K.'s halls and doorways within 20 years.

The National Trust fears that the decline of traditional apple orchards, where mistletoe thrives, may lead to the parasitic plant disappearing