- Plants
- ›Vascular Plants
- ›flowering plants
- ›monocots
- ›Agaves, Orchids, Irises, and Allies
- ›amaryllis, onions, and allies
- ›amaryllis subfamily
- ›Amaryllideae
- ›Swamplily Subtribe
- ›Crinum
Crinum mauritianum
Crinum mauritianum ("Mauritius Swamp-lily" or "Lys du Pays") is a herbaceous plant belonging to the family Amaryllidaceae, and endemic to Mauritius.
From the article Crinum mauritianum on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
Description
Crinum mauritianum has long, narrow, stiff (slightly succulent) leaves, that are initially held erect and often curve upwards. The leaves are light green, and strongly canaliculate (grooved) on the upper, adaxial side.
Range & habitat
Formerly widespread across the wetter areas of Mauritius, it was believed to be extinct, but was rediscovered in 1973, near Midlands Dam (Barrage de Midlands). It has become an ornamental in Mauritius, frequently used in landscaping, due to its white flowers and partially succulent, upwards curving leaves. It can therefore easily be confused with the non-native species Crinum asiaticum, which is also used for public landscaping in Mauritius. However, that species has broader, strap-shaped leaves. The narrow, stiffer, often upturned leaves of C.mauritianum are relatively unique and can be used to distinguish it from the introduced species of Crinum.
Wikipedia: “Distribution and rediscovery”
At the table
The species was long used in traditional medicine by Mauritians, specifically for treating rheumatism and inflammation. It is therefore currently being investigated for medicinal benefits.
== References ==
Wikipedia: “Medicinal uses”
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
—
geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Crinum mauritianum in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 713934.