Statue of Unity – Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat Rain Forest Ektanagar

Lagerstroemia hypoleuca

Syn. Murtughas hypoleuca

IUCN Red List Endangered (EN)

Local name

  • Andaman Crape Myrtle (English)

Tree type

Evergreen Deciduous
Family: Lythraceae
20m

Indicated uses

Medicinal Edible Ornamental Avenue Other

Flowering & fruiting

Flowering Fruiting

Key characters

Lagerstroemia hypoleuca bark

Bark

Thin, smooth, and distinctively whitish bark that flakes off in irregular sheets, displaying a clean and highly reflective surface on mature trunks.

Lagerstroemia hypoleuca leaves

Leaves

Simple, nearly opposite, elliptic-ovate leaves (10–20 cm long) that are thinly leathery (coriaceous), dark green above, and notably pale or glaucous beneath.

Lagerstroemia hypoleuca flower

Flower

Showy purple or lilac flowers packed densely in large, upright, pyramidal panicles up to 40 cm long at the ends of branches, featuring crinkled, paper-like clawed petals.

Lagerstroemia hypoleuca fruit / seeds

Fruit / Seeds

Hard, woody, egg-shaped capsules (~2 cm long) resting inside a ribbed, persistent sepal cup that splits open into 3 to 6 valves to drop flat, winged seeds.

Lagerstroemia hypoleuca

Did you know?

The Andaman Crape Myrtle has delicate petals with long, narrow bases called claws and deeply ruffled edges. These give its flowers a distinctive crinkled texture resembling crape paper.

Distribution

World map showing distribution

Coco Islands to Andaman Islands