Crudia Zeylanica plant not removed from Red Data List

Rejecting the media reports, the Environment Ministry has emphasized that the Crudia Zeylanica plant has not been removed from the 2020 Red Data List.

They said the Red Data List published in 2012, five extinct plants from Sri Lanka were included in the Red Data List. 

They are Rinorea decora (Violaceae), Rinorea bengalensis, Crudia zeylanica (Fabaceae), Strobilanthes caudata (Acanthaceae) and Blumea angustifolia (Asteraceae).

However, the Botanical Surveys conducted after 2012, three species of Rinorea decora (Violaceae), Rinorea bengalensis, and Crudia zeylanica (Fabaceae) have been re-surveyed in compiling the Red Data List of 2020 Plants.

Crudia Zeylanica is one of them. It was this plant that caused the greatest controversy in the construction of the highway. But with the identification of this plant, it was found in several other places, the Ministry said.

“The plant is no longer considered an extinct species from Sri Lanka. However, it is not removed from the Red Data list. It is further included in the Red Data List as the next classification as critically endangered plant,” the Ministry said.

However, Strobilanthes Caudata (Acanthaceae), Blumea angustifolia (Asteraceae), which are considered extinct in Sri Lanka were included in the 2012 Red List. The two plant species are also listed as endangered in our 2020 Red Data List.

Doona ovalifolia (Dipterocarpaceae) and Alphonsea hortensis (Annonaceae) are included in the 2012 Red Data List of Extinct in the Wild (EW).

Eugenia Xanthocarpa (Myrtaceae) is currently listed in the 2020 Red Data List as Extinct in the Wild. Alphonsea hortensis and Eugenia xanthocarpa are currently cultivated in the collection of living plants at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Peradeniya.

Therefore, some media and social media reports that the Crudia Zeylanica has been removed from the 2020 Red Data List is incorrect.

This Red Data List is compiled according to the World Conservation Union (IUCN) criteria. Therefore, we cannot add or remove Red data list as one wishes, the Ministry added. (Chaturanga Samarawickrama)