Aeschynanthus hookeri (Hooker's Blushwort )

Clerodendrum thomsoniae (bleeding-heart vine)

Place : Dentam,  West Sikkim
Date: May 24, 2014
Pic: Shital Pradhan

Scientific classification

Kingdom:       Plantae

Phylum:          Magnoliophyta

Class:              Dicot

Order:           Scrophulariales

Family:          Gesneriaceae

Genus:           Aeschynanthus

Species:        Aeschynanthus hookeri

Binomial name: 
 

Other Names: 

Special feature:

Clerodendrum thomsoniae (bleeding-heart vine)- Sikkim Flora

Clerodendrum thomsoniae (bleeding-heart vine)

Place : Legship,  West Sikkim
Date: May 25, 2014
Pic: Shital Pradhan

Scientific classification

Kingdom:       Plantae

Phylum:         

Class:             

Order:            Lamiales

Family:           Verbenaceae (or Lamiaceae)

Genus:            Clerodendrum thomsoniae

Species:          C. thomsoniae

Binomial name: Clerodendrum thomsoniae Balf.

Other Names:  bleeding glory-bower, glory-bower, bag flower, bleeding-heart vine

Special feature: It is a native to tropical West Africa from Cameroon west to Senegal.

The plant was named at the request of Rev. William Cooper Thomson (1829-22 March 1878), a missionary and physician in Nigeria, in honor of his late first wife. This plant was very popular during the mid 19th century under the name "beauty bush". It lost favour only when its unusual culture conditions were forgotten. Specifically, its root system must be partially submerged in water most of the time, and it wants very good light.

Source: Wikipedia

Nephila pilipes (giant golden orb weaver) - Sikkim Spider

Scientific classification

Kingdom:       Animalia

Phylum:          Arthropoda

Class:              Arachnida

Order:            Araneae

Family:           Nephilidae

Genus:            Nephila

Species:           N. pilipes

Binomial name:  Nephila pilipes (Fabricius, 1793)

Other Names: northern golden orb weaver or giant golden orb weaver

Special feature: Females are large and grow to a body size of 30–50 mm (overall size up to 20 cm), with males growing to 5–6 mm. It is one of the biggest spiders in the world.

The Nephila pilipes' web is vertical with a fine irregular mesh and not symmetrical, with the hub is usually nearer the top. Rather than egg sacks being hung in the web, a pit is dug which is then covered with plant debris or soil.

The first, second and fourth pairs of legs of juvenile females have dense hairy brushes, but as the spider matures these brushes disappear.

Source: Wikipedia

Rubus ellipticus (Yellow Himalayan raspberry) - Sikkim Shrub

Rubus ellipticus (Yellow Himalayan raspberry)

Place : Chayataal, Hee,  West Sikkim
Date: May 24, 2014
Pic: Shital Pradhan

Rubus ellipticus (Yellow Himalayan raspberry)

Place : Chayataal, Hee,  West Sikkim
Date: May 24, 2014
Pic: Shital Pradhan

Scientific classification

Kingdom:       Plantae

Phylum:         

Class:             

Order:             Rosales

Family:           Rosaceae

Genus:            Rubus

Species:           R. ellipticus

Binomial name: 

Other Names: Hisalu, ashilo or aisayloo

Special feature: It is sweet to the taste, though it is not harvested for domestic use. The fruit perishes quickly after plucking from the thorny bush.

Rubus ellipticus is listed in the IUCN Invasive Species Specialist Group database as an Invasive species, one of the World's 100 worst invasive species