ecological distribution of the genus crotalaria in nigeria

8/20/2019 Ecological Distribution of the Genus Crotalaria in Nigeria

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/ecological-distribution-of-the-genus-crotalaria-in-nigeria 1/8

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC & TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH VOLUME 4, ISSUE 08, AUGUST 2015 ISSN 2277-8616

348IJSTR©2015www.ijstr.org 

Ecological Distribution Of The Genus Crotalaria InNigeria

Odewo, S.A., Ajani, B. A., Soyewo. L.T, Omiyale O. A.

Abstract: Geographical distribution and morphological features of the genus Crotalaria were studied. Methods follow conventional practice as reportedby previous studies. Thirty six species of the genus Crotalaria were shown to be distributed in Nigeria. The genera were allopathic in nature. The speciessuch as C. bongensis, C. atrorubens , C. cleomifolia , C. anthyllopsis, C. cuspidata, C. bamendul, C. calycina, C. hyssopifolia, C. incana, C. graminicolaand C. macrocalyx  were prominent in savannah zones while C. acervata, C. cylindrical, C. cephalotes, C. comosa, C. retusa, C.doniana, C. glauca, Cfalcata , C. goreensis  among others were common in cultivated areas in forest zone of Nigeria. Qualitative leaf morphological features of selectedcrotalaria species in Nigeria were also revealed. It shows that the leaf margin, leaf surface and leaf base are similar in features except in leaf shape thatvary from lanceolate (C. comosa and C. bongensis), oblanceolate (C. retusa, C. goreensis, C. ononoidea and C. lachnosema) to obovate (C. mucronataand C. naragutensis). This implies that most of the genus Crotalaria displays similar characteristic and the features among them shows overlap.

Keywords: Morphology, Allopathic, Qualitative and Lanceolate———————————————————— 

IntroductionThe genus Crotalaria L. belongs to the family leguminosae,the third largest genus in the family. It consist of 600species worldwide (Polphill, 1982), mostly found in the

tropic and sub-tropic regions. Some species of Crotolaria are grown as ornamental, commonly known as rattle pod,rattle box, shake-shake or devil-bean. They are erect,herbaceous, variably hairy plant and may be annual orperennial. The leaves are simple or one to three foliate,alternate, lanceolate to obovate, with a finely hairy undersurface. Crotolaria  in general, is adapted to a tropicalclimate and only a restricted number of species occur intemperate region (Samba et al , 2002). It has a widetolerance of edaphic conditions. The majority of the specieshave a high requirement, therefore they are absent fromforests interior but are relatively common in clearing andforest margins (Polphil, 1982). These species areconserved through micro propagations which is

advantageous over traditional plant breeding methods as ithelps in the mass production of plant (Nuhul et al., 1999).

Economic importance of Crotolaria SpeciesThe world health organization (WHO, 1988) reported thatmany species of this genus are toxic with epidemicoutbreak in some parts of the world .This occurred due tothe accumulated pyrrolozidine alkaloids which occur at theflowering and seed formation stage (Nuhu et al.,  2009).Despite these, Crotolaria species play an important role inveterinary pharmacy and also as important etiologicalfactors ( preventive measures) in liver diseases (Nwudeand Ibrahim, 1980: and Nuhu, 1999) . Nuhu et al., (2009)reported the traditional uses of some Crotolaria species inZaria, Nigeria , among which are C. retusa L ., C.lachnosema  Stap f., C. naragutensis  Hutch and manyothers for feeding of sheep and cattle. In Tanzania ,Crotalaria comosa  Bak . provides nitrogen to the crops ,

intercropped with and assist in the control of weeds andnematodes (Mukurasi , 1986); he also emphasised on theusefulness of the species in the management of soil fertilityThomas (2003), reported that Crotalaria recta  L. are used

as food source by larvae of Lepidoptera  species such asUtetheisa ornatrix ; Eteilla zinckenella  and Endoclitasericeus, also serve as their defence against predatorsCook and White (1996) revealed C. retusa  L. seeds assource of fibres, silage and green manure when removedfrom pods by pounding. According to Akintayo, (1997) oilsderived from Crotalaria bongensis  Bak, C. naragutensisHutch and C. lachnophora Desu. Seeds are not suitable fouse as edible oil and soap production but many howeverare useful for the production of paint and shampoosCrotalaria  is also used in the treatment of diabetics(Pullaiah and handrasekhar- Naidu, 2003), skin infectionsnake bit and stomach ache prevention (Verdhana, 2008)Due to the medicinal importance and unrestricted large

scale exploitation to meet increased demands by thepharmaceutical industries, coupled with limited cultivationand insufficient attempts for its reforestation, genusCrotolaria has been marked depleted and disappeared(Saurabh, et al, 2000). Therefore, this paper is focused onthe ecological distribution and diversity of the genus acrossthe country, Nigeria.

Materials and Methods

Plant materialsCollection of herbarium specimens of the genus Crotalariawere examined and studied in the Forest Herbarium Ibadan

(FHI). The ecological data that were obtained includesname of the specimen, town/locality of collection, collectorsname/number and FHI number. The geographical recordsin different locations were used to draw up geographicadistribution maps for the Crotalaria  species in NigeriaQualitative micro morphological characters of someselected species such as leaf type, leaf shape, leaf apextype, leaf base and leaf surface were also assessed.

Results and discussion

 ____________________

  Odewo, S.A., Ajani, B. A., Soyewo. L.T, Omiyale O.

 A.Forestry Research Institute Of Nigeria P. M. B.5054, Ibadan, Oyo State Nigeria,akinodewo@gmail.com

8/20/2019 Ecological Distribution of the Genus Crotalaria in Nigeria

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/ecological-distribution-of-the-genus-crotalaria-in-nigeria 2/8

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC & TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH VOLUME 4, ISSUE 08, AUGUST 2015 ISSN 2277-8616

349IJSTR©2015www.ijstr.org 

Fig 1:  Map showing the distribution of the genus Crotolaria in Nigeria

KEYS

C. acervata C. atrorubensC. glauca C. falcateC harmsiana C.incanaC.mucronata C. ochroleucaC. ononoides C. retusaC. bamendul C. Bongensis

C. cylindrical C.cleomifoliaC. anthyllopsis C. cuspidataC. cylindrocarpa C. bamendulC. cephalotes C. calycinaC.comosa C.confusaC.doniana C. goreensisC.graminicola C. lachnophoraC. lanchnosema C. ledermanniiC. macrocalyx C. naragutensisC. obovata C. spectabilisC. senegalensis C. vogeliC.juncea

8/20/2019 Ecological Distribution of the Genus Crotalaria in Nigeria

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/ecological-distribution-of-the-genus-crotalaria-in-nigeria 3/8

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC & TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH VOLUME 4, ISSUE 08, AUGUST 2015 ISSN 2277-8616

350IJSTR©2015www.ijstr.org 

Table 1:  Lists of the genus Crotalaria found in Nigeria.

Taxa Town and localityCollectorsname/number

FHI number

C. acervata Bak.F.Cross RiverMambila hill area

Gbile / 29Latilo/ 45

10214677361

C. bamendul HepperManbila / P/hortcortNtugi farmland

Latilo 77401

C. bongensis Bak.F.

Manbila / BauchiGashaka Game ReserveGasaka forest Reserve

Gbile, Olorunfemi andEmwiogbo/1029OlorunfemiEkwuno / 56Latilo/ 2

64603569457699577291

C. atrorubens Hochst Ex.Benth.

Manbila/ forest farm landareaKanoGombeGongola / YolaKastinaAdamawaEnuguCross River/ ObuduBorno / Konduga

Kaduna/ BrininGwari/GashakaOndo / Oka

Ekwene /Gbile andDaramolaLatiloDaramolaD. ClaytonLatiloDaramola / J.AEmwiogbonAriwaodo

Fagbemi / EkwunoSoladoye/Ekwuno/IheLatiloDaramola

77000

6363863466899974189063489723919944693811

844167359190147

C. cylindrical Pa. D.C  NigerOnisha

Oguntayo, OyayomiA. P. D. Joues

79994625

C. cleomifolia Bak. Kaduna / AfakaGongolaJos

Oyayomi, Fagbemi,OnijamowoEkwuno

-

81214932291182

C. anthyllopsis Welw.  BauchiZaria

 _M.G.latilo

1312737987

C.cuspidata Taub.

Kaduna

IgbettiKaduna

JacksonG.geerling

DaramolaH.D onyeachusimDaramola

543644597

33435720561821

C.cylindrocarpa D.C 

Kaba/isanluMopoKwaraAnambraOkeogun/ oyoBebdel/Edo

M.G LatiloLatilo and EimujezeAriwodoD.P slewJames Adejimi

6132865649890185563382547

C.bamendul Hepper  Manbila/Jos Latilo77401

C.cephalotes Steud.

Bornu/MungunuNiger/ AbujaKwara/ lokajaPlatu/ JosIlorin/ KwaraZaria/Igabi

Ekwuno/FagbemiGbileDaramolaFagbemiD.P slewLatilo

938748005190179799356074045493

C. calycina Schrank Niger/ AbujaZaria/kadunaKwara/Borgu

OlorunfemiJ.R catarrhLatilo/Fagbemi

549933520370597

C. comosa Bak

Zaria/ Amara F.RkanginiKwaraPlateu/northside offorest school JosKaba/KogiOyo/ Okeogun cattle

OlorunfemiLatiloLatilo/45LatiloLatiloR.H. Brown/63Ekwena/237

24361656094073161344556325731993123

8/20/2019 Ecological Distribution of the Genus Crotalaria in Nigeria

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/ecological-distribution-of-the-genus-crotalaria-in-nigeria 4/8

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC & TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH VOLUME 4, ISSUE 08, AUGUST 2015 ISSN 2277-8616

351IJSTR©2015www.ijstr.org 

reserveJos /jos water worksGongola/jenbuNjger/Cattle ranch plotmokwa

Oguntayo,fagbemi andOyayomi/33

80006

C. confuse Hepper 

Niger/ AgaieKwaraIlorin/borgu kanjiKano/DauraCongula/YolaBorgu game reserveSokoto

Oguntayo, fagbemiSoladayo/Daramola

H.D. Onyeachusin andBinuyoDaramolaOdewoAfolayanLatilo

80106860685810361378968882542343803

C.doniana BackerOndo/AkureOyo/IbadanZaria/Jermila

Olorunfemi-

Olorunfemi

919462396655652

C. glauca Willd

Asaba/EnuguCross-river/OgbuduKaduna/ZariaPlateu/Jos

ZamierowskiDaramolaSoladayo,EkwunoOlorunfemi

57589379858338256942

C.falcata Vahl.ex DC. Lagos/BadagryOshun/IjebuCrossriver/AkassaZaria/Kore village

DaramolaD.P.shifildAdebusuyiDaramola

82378

543445869078750

C.hyssopifolia  KwtzchKadunaNiger

SoladoyeEkwuno and Ihe

8362879724

C. incana L.sub Sp. GongollaMambila Jos

OdewoEkwuno

9738377029

Pwpuiascens(Lam) Mi/ne/Redh

Cross rivers Gbile/ daramola 94110

C. junceaIbadan/ Oyo Daramola 24145

C.graminicola Taub.ex Bak. 

ZariaBornu

BauchiNiger/ Abuja

R.G.loweOnochie

Daramola and P.WitGbile

4841138454

3845480050

C.lachnophora Hochst and A.Rich 

Oyo/ ShakiPlateauGongolla/GembuMambila /PlateauGongolaOyo

SofoluweR.W.S keayDaramola

-DaramolaD.P Shilied

381852102286156460638558744437

C. lanchnosema Stapf. 

Zaria / anara N.A ForestReserveJos/ Jos water worksGongola/ JembuNiger/ Cattle ranch plotmokwaBauchi/ Darazo grazingresearchAnambra/ Nsuka? OlidoMambila/ maisamariglaa landKaduna / Nimbi ForestreserveOsun/ igbajo community

LatiloR.H. Brown/63Ekwuno/337Oguntayo, Fagbemi and

Oyayomi/33Mogaji/201Ariwaodo/ 190Latilo/73Oguntayo, Fagbemi andOnijaimowo/386Latilo/77

379785731993123800061798890823773628012605714

C. ledermanni Bark.F MambillaJos

EkwunoDaramola

7716246841

C. macrocalyx   BenthNigerZariaBornu/ Xerwa

-LoweDaramola

234674268845540

8/20/2019 Ecological Distribution of the Genus Crotalaria in Nigeria

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/ecological-distribution-of-the-genus-crotalaria-in-nigeria 5/8

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC & TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH VOLUME 4, ISSUE 08, AUGUST 2015 ISSN 2277-8616

352IJSTR©2015www.ijstr.org 

BauchiKwaraAdamawaOyo

-Adedeji,IbhaneseborEkwunoJackson/69

371461009353436819183

C. mucronata  Desu.

KwaraZariaNsukaOban/ Cross riverCross RiverBauchiOgun/ AbeokutaGongola

JonathanGbile and Daramola/ 74Okafor/ EmiogbonLatilo/Daramola

Onijamowo andIbhanesebor Osanyinlusi/ Emwinogbon 265/77EmwinogbonOnochieDaramola and Ohaeri

801157692972257722577184787227653903598298975

C.naragutensis Hutch 

Abu/ ZariaKatsinaBornoKadunaPlateauLagos/ BadagryBornu/ Yarwa

RiversKanoSokotoPlateau

LatiloSoladoye,Ekwuno andIheSoladayo,Ekwuno andIheOlorunfemi, Binuyo,BabayemiFagbemi, Osanyinusi

MusaGbile and DaramolaJacksonLatiloGbile

79570437718379284418943699491523005

93042526406279377041

C. ochroleuca G.Don. 

Anambra/ NsukaCalabarBendelOyoKabba/ KotonkarfiZaria

AriwaodoAriwodoFagbemi/ OsanyinlusiD.P shildDaramolaDaramola

8904810050287761556256127154368

C. ononoides Benth 

Enugu/ Miori ochaBendel/Benin/Okomu

Jos/NgurojeZaria/ Bot.garden AbuKwara/ LokojaCalabar/Akpabuyo

Daramola

Ekwuno/FagbemiandOsanlusi/57Ibhanesbhor/159Ohaeri/ 1183Chopma

55153

55153889827781410201831328

C.obovata S. dru. Ikoyi/ Lagos Ikoyi/ Lagos 18842

C.recta ex A.Rich  Plateau - 70895

C. retusa Linn 

Kabba/KotonkartiuAdejena roadUmuahia/afaraUmuahia Rain ForestCross River/ Ogoja-

IKOm roadOndO/kaoKwara/ lokojaAjaokuta-Okena roadsideOgun/ IlaraOyo/ Iwo-Ibadan roadAnambra/ NsukaBendel/ OwanOyo

Daramola and Binuyo/455Ariwodo/271Osanyinlusi,

Emwiogbon/ 57/77Daramola and Binuyo/28Daramola/87Oyayomi andOsanyinlusi/2Odewo, Adedeji andOsanyinlusi/57Ariwaodo/79Odewo and OniTanajong

6128673220

8701911069019682915101811908037898116789

C. Spectabilis  RothIbadan Gbile 73310

C. Senegalensis (Pers) Bacle Oyo/Ibadan Jackson 77548

8/20/2019 Ecological Distribution of the Genus Crotalaria in Nigeria

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/ecological-distribution-of-the-genus-crotalaria-in-nigeria 6/8

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC & TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH VOLUME 4, ISSUE 08, AUGUST 2015 ISSN 2277-8616

353IJSTR©2015www.ijstr.org 

ex DC.  KastinaBorno/MaiduguriZariaOyo/Igbetti

Musa and DaggashDaramolaLatiloC. Geerling

35010636807288046369

C.vogeli  Benth

OnitshaEnuguKabbaOgun /EgbadoKwara /Ilorin

A.P.D TowerEmwiogbonBostonEkwuuno

EimonjezeM.C. Ejiofor

589366587527906809019824

Table 2:  Qualitative leaf morphological features of selected crotalaria species in Nigeria

Species Leaf apex Leaf margin Leaf shape Leaf surface Leaf base

C.retusa Retusa/obtuse Entire Oblanceolate Glabrous CuneateC. goreensis Obtuse Entire Oblanceolate Glabrous CuneateC.bongensis Obtuse Entire Lanceolate Glabrous CuneateC.mucronata Acute Entire Obovate Glabrous CuneateC.ononoideas Obtuse Entire Oblanceolate Glabrous CuneateC. lancnosema Obtuse Entire Oblanceolate Glabrous Cuneate

C.naragutensis Sub-acute Entire Obovate Glabrous CuneateC.comosa Obtuse Entire Lanceolate Glabrous Cuneate

Table 1 and figure 1 shows the list of the genus Crotolaria present in Nigeria. It is observed that most of the crotalaria speciesare found in all parts of Nigeria, usually in most places and cultivated on open areas. The study reveals that C. cleomifolia, Canthyllopsis, C. hyssopifolia, C. graminicola, C.ledearmamii and C.recta   are commonly found in Northern parts of Nigeria(Kaduna, Gongola, Bauchi, Niger, Bornu and Jos ) while species such as C.spectabilis, C. juncea, C.obovata are commonlyfound in South western parts of Nigeria ( Lagos, and Oyo) . However, crotalaria species like, C. cylindrocarpa, C. cylindrica, Cretusa, C. nagutensis, C. micronata, C. ononoidea, C. ochroleuca, C. macrocalyx, C. lanchrosema, C.lacnophora, C. incana, C.

 glauca, C. goreensis, C. falcata, C.atrorubens, and C. bongensis  are mostly dominated in all ecological zones of Nigeria. Othespecies such as C. cephalote, C. comosa, C. calycina, C. confusa, C. doniana and C. senegalensis are said to be sympatricGenerally, it is observed that most of the genus crotolaria are found in waste places, cultivated and open forest areas in thecountry Sofowora,(1993), Nuhu et al ,(2000) and Samba et al , (2002) that most of these plants are found in savannah andderived savannah while few were found in an open forest areas in Nigeria

Plate 1:  Photograph of Crotalaria retusa Plate 2:  Photograph of Crotalaria lachnosema

8/20/2019 Ecological Distribution of the Genus Crotalaria in Nigeria

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/ecological-distribution-of-the-genus-crotalaria-in-nigeria 7/8

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC & TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH VOLUME 4, ISSUE 08, AUGUST 2015 ISSN 2277-8616

354IJSTR©2015www.ijstr.org 

Plate 3:   Photograph of Crotalaria mucronata

Table 2 indicates qualitative leaf morphological features ofselected crotalaria  species. The selected species are C.retusa, C. gorensis, C. bongensis, C. mucropnata, C.ononoidea, C. lachnosema, C. naragutensis  and C.comosa. The leaf apexes of the species studied are similar

except in C. mucronata and C. naragutensis  that are sub-acute and acute. The leaf margin, leaf surface and leafbase are similar in features except in leaf shape that varyfrom lanceolate (C. comosa  and C. bongensis),oblanceolate (C. retusa, C. goreensis, C. ononoidea and C.lachnosema) to obovate (C. mucronata  and C.naragutensis). This implies that most of the genusCrotalaria displays a similar characteristic and the featuresshown among them do overlap. Stace (1965) reported thatthe leaf characters of the species are most variedanatomical and morphological features in angiosperm.

Conclusion The genus Crotalaria  is distributed throughout theecological zones in Nigeria. Besides, their availabilityoccurs in all the states of the country. They could be foundin savanna and open forest areas usually waste places,cultivated and an open areas, species such as  C.cephalote, C. comosa, C. calycina, C. confusa, C. donianaand C. senegalensis  are allopatric in nature. The leafmargin , leaf apexes, leaf surface and leaf base of thespecies show a similar characteristic except in leaf shapethat vary from lanceolate to obovate.

References[1]  E.T.Akintayo, Chemical composition

physitochemical properties of fluted pumking

(Teifaria occidentalis) seed and seed oil. R. VistaItalian sos tanze Grasse, 1997. 74: 13-16p.

[2]  C. G.Cook and G. A.White, Crotalaria juices:Apotential multipurpose fiber crop in J. Janic (ed).Fast and accurate phylogeny reconstructionalogorithms based on the minimum-evolutionprinciple 1996, J. Computation Biol.9.687-705p.

[3]  N.J.Mukurasi, Agricultural attributes of Crotalariazanzibaries, UgoleAgric Centre, Mbeya 6Tanzania,1986. Journal of Agricultural Research vol. 47 no 2,617-625p.

[4]  H.Nuhu. Pharmacognostic evaluation and toxicitystudies of three Crotalaria species (Leguminosae)Ph.D Thesis. Dept. of Pharmacognosy and DrugDevelopment, 1999. Ahmadu Bello UniversityZaria 40p.

[5]  H.Nuhu, M.Shock, , E.M.Abdurahman andN.D.G.Ibrahim. Alkaloida composition and toxicitystudies of three Nigerian Crotalaria species. 2000Nigeria Journal of Natural Products and Medicine4(1). 40p.

[6]  Nwude and M.A.Ibrahim. Plants used in traditionaveterinary practice in Nigeria. 1980. J. vetPharmacol. 3: 281  – 272p.

[7]  R.M.Polhill. Crotalaria in African and MadagascarRoyal Botanic Gardens kew . 89. 1982.

[8] 

T.C.Pullaiah, and N.K.Chandrasukha. Antidiabeticplants in in India and herbal based research;Edl2008. regency publication, New Delhi:125p.

[9]  R.T.Samba, S.N.Sylla, M.Neyra, M.EueyeB.Dreyfus, and I.Ndoye. Biological Nitrogen fixationinCrotalaria species estimated using the isotypedilution method 2002. African Journal oBiotechnology 1(2): 17-22p

[10] C.Saurabh, F.Sunita, S.B.Virendra, and K.SAshokBioprocess consideration for production osecondary metabolites by plant cell suspensionculture 2000. In Biotechnology and bio process

Engineering,7:138-149p.

[11] A.Sofowora. Medicinal plants and traditionamedicine in Africa 2

nd Edition, 2000. Spectrum Boo

ltd. 387-390p.

[12] C.A.Stace. The taxonomic importance of leasurface current concept of plant taxonomy 1965Bulletin of British Museum (Natural History) Botany4:3-78p.

[13] E.Thomas. For the love of insects. 2003. BelknapPress ISBN 978-0-674-01827-3. 324p.

8/20/2019 Ecological Distribution of the Genus Crotalaria in Nigeria

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/ecological-distribution-of-the-genus-crotalaria-in-nigeria 8/8

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC & TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH VOLUME 4, ISSUE 08, AUGUST 2015 ISSN 2277-8616

355IJSTR©2015

[14] W.H.O.Guidelines for the practice of traditionalmedicine 1988. TRM/Geneva, 1988. 6p.