Abstract

Rattans are spiny climbing palms belonging to the subfamily Calamoideae. In India rattans are represented by four genera and 51 species. South India is represented by only one genus Calamus. They are taxonomically, little known plants probably due to their viciously spiny nature which require much time and patience for herbarium collection. A recent taxonomic survey in the Western Ghats revealed the presence of several new species and has shown a wide range of variation in some species. Since the rattans are extracted even before they start flowering, identification based on floral characters often becomes impossible. An identification key mostly based on vegetative characters may solve this problem