Gauhati University researchers rediscover 1821-described shrub in Bongaigaon

A rare flowering shrub, Ardisia colorata, has been rediscovered in Assam’s Bongaigaon district after more than two centuries, Forest and Climate Change Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah said on October 20.

The species was found in the Abhaypuri area by Manash Baruah and Nilakshee Devi, researchers from the Department of Botany at Gauhati University, during botanical surveys conducted across Assam between 2020 and 2025, the minister said.

The discovery marks the first confirmed recollection of the species in India in approximately 204 years, Baruah said in a post on X.

The researchers studied the plant’s flowers, leaves and historical descriptions to distinguish it from a closely related species. Their findings, published in the botanical journal Feddes Repertorium, also resolve longstanding confusion over the plant’s scientific naming, the minister said.

First described by British horticulturist George Loddiges in 1821, Ardisia colorata had largely disappeared from Indian botanical literature.

The researchers documented only 12 plants at the Abhaypuri site, highlighting the rarity of the species and the importance of protecting its natural habitat, Baruah said.

The evergreen shrub grows in shady, humid forest environments and produces pink, reddish or purplish flowers.

Calling the rediscovery a significant achievement for Assam’s research community, the minister said the state’s forests continued to hold botanical treasures that remained little known or unexplored.

He stressed the need to support botanical research, conserve undisturbed forest habitats and document plant diversity to strengthen conservation efforts and protect species that might otherwise remain overlooked.

The rediscovery, he added, underscores the scientific and ecological value of Assam’s natural heritage and the need to preserve it for future generations.