Volume 26, Issue 78, July - December, 2025

Anatomical relationship between the parasite: Dendrophthoe falcata (Loranthaceae) and their host plants, South India

Balachandran N^1♦, Barathan N¹, Vinothini K^1,2, Suvaathimani S^1,2

¹Ecology Department, French Institute of Pondicherry, Pondicherry, India
²Department of Life Science, Central University of Tamil Nadu, Thiruvarur, Tamil Nadu, India

^♦Corresponding Author
Balachandran N, Ecology Department, French Institute of Pondicherry, Pondicherry, India;

ABSTRACT

Dendrophthoe falcata (L.f.) Ettingsh. of the family Loranthaceae is a common non-host specific mistletoe occurring along the Coromandel Coast of Tamil Nadu. Through literature survey the host range, morphological mimicking of the host, haustorium formation, types of haustorium and their defence mechanism between the host and parasite, molecular and genetic evolution of the family have known, but the anatomical and phyto-chemical relationships between them has not known. This study has attempted to understand that how the host and parasite’s stem anatomy are similar and/or differ each other. A total of six month regular botanical inventory from four natural and eco-restored sites, young and matured stems of host and their parasites were collected and fixed in a solution. In general, through the cross and longitudinal sections, this study observed the presence or absence of sap and hardwood, their growth rings, vessel size and number, and arrangement of primary and secondary xylem are almost similar between the host: Hardwickia binata, Morinda coreia, Strychnos nux-vomica and their parasite: Dendrophthoe falcata. In comparison, the same study from Albizia, Casuarina, Dolichandrone, and Gmelina with their parasite have share both similarities as well as differences between them

Keywords: Anatomy, Dendrophthoe, Differences, Host, Loranthaceae, Mistletoe, Parasite, Similarity.

Species, 2025, 26(78), e28s3139

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.54905/disssi.v26i78.e28s3139

Published: 09 July 2025