Cycas orixensis

Cycas orixensis is a tall, slender cycad of the moist deciduous forests of Odisha (formerly Orissa), in the northern Eastern Ghats of India. This species of the genus Cycas was first described in 1924 as a variety of Cycas circinalis, Cycas circinalis var. orixensis, then referred to Cycas sphaerica, before being raised to species rank in 2015. Its most unusual feature is the single or multiple fork at the tip of the scales of its male cones. The IUCN lists it as Critically Endangered.

Key facts about Cycas orixensis

  • Accepted name: Cycas orixensis (Haines) Rita Singh & Khuraijam (2015), accepted by The World List of Cycads (version 2026.08.15) and by GBIF; POWO could not be consulted
  • Former names and synonyms: Cycas circinalis var. orixensis Haines (1924), the basionym; referred to Cycas sphaerica by Lindström and Hill (2007)
  • Family: Cycadaceae, order Cycadales
  • Common names: no English name attested; in Odisha, “aruguna”, “oruguna”, “orguna”, “oranga” and “odissimari”, names shared with Cycas nayagarhensis
  • Natural range: India, Odisha (Mayurbhanj, Kendujhar, Dhenkanal, Angul, Boudh and Ganjam districts)
  • IUCN status: Critically Endangered (CR A4ad), assessment by J.S. Khuraijam dated 2020 (Red List version 2023-1); CR according to GBIF
  • CITES and other protection: CITES Appendix II (seeds exempt under annotation #4); Annex B in the European Union; name not yet listed in Species+
  • Documented hardiness: no data (see Cold hardiness)
  • Light and soil: in the wild, understorey of moist deciduous sal forest, sometimes on ground flooded during the monsoon; no cultivation data
  • Habit and adult size: slender trunk up to 6 m, 12.5 to 32 cm in diameter; leaves 0.7 to 1.9 m long
  • In the UK, US and Australia: no garden record found under this name; one Montgomery Botanical Center accession filed under Cycas sphaerica appears when the name is searched
  • Toxicity: no data specific to the species; treat it as poisonous, like all Cycas (see Toxicity and precautions)

How to recognise Cycas orixensis

Cycas orixensis is identified first by its male cones: the spine at the tip of each microsporophyll is either simple or forked, usually into two or three unequal points, with small protuberances and blunt spines below it along the margins. Its megasporophylls carry long, sharp lateral teeth and a long, spear-like terminal spine, and its trunk is slender, which separates it from its neighbour Cycas nayagarhensis. The description below follows Singh, Radha and Khuraijam (2015).

  • Trunk: up to 6 m tall and 12.5 to 32 cm in diameter, usually unbranched; older plants usually lose their armour of persistent leaf bases.
  • Leaves: dark green, two-toned and hairless, 70 to 190 cm long, with 40 to 96 pairs of leaflets; petiole 20 to 30 cm long, with 14 to 26 pairs of spines.
  • Median leaflets: 18 to 25 cm by 7 to 15 mm, 7 to 10 mm apart, attached at 40 to 50°.
  • Male cones: ovoid, yellowish orange, turning orange-red in the heat of the day when pollen is shed, 11 to 21 cm long and 10 to 12 cm across; microsporophylls 40 to 45 mm long, ending in a sharply upturned apical spine 22 to 38 mm long, entire or forked.
  • Megasporophylls (the fertile leaves of female plants): amber-felted, 12 to 23 cm long, carrying 2 to 6 hairless ovules; lanceolate blade 45 to 75 mm long with 12 to 20 lateral spines on each side, 6 to 17 mm long and occasionally forked, and a spear-like apical spine 20 to 40 mm long.
  • Ovules: spheroidal to broadly ellipsoid, 30 to 34 mm long and 28 to 32 mm in diameter; the fleshy coat turns yellow to mango-yellow by the time it is shed; a fibrous layer is present and there is no spongy tissue.

Hybrids

No hybrid is documented for this species.

Possible confusion

Its closest relative is Cycas nayagarhensis, described in the same paper and growing further south, in Nayagarh district. According to the key of Singh and colleagues (2015), Cycas nayagarhensis has a massive trunk (50 to 92 cm across), large male cones (18 to 43 cm) and microsporophylls only rarely forked, whereas Cycas orixensis is slender, with small male cones (11 to 21 cm) whose microsporophylls are very often forked.

The same authors separate it from Cycas circinalis, of the Western Ghats, by its slender trunk, the forked microsporophylls, the shape of the megasporophyll blade and its ovules (size, shape, colour and number), and from Cycas sphaerica, further south in the Eastern Ghats, by the forked microsporophylls and the lanceolate megasporophyll blade with a long spiny tip. They refer to Cycas sphaerica the populations of Srikakulam, in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, whose cones are not forked.

Taxonomy

Cycas orixensis is a name accepted by The World List of Cycads and by GBIF; POWO could not be consulted. The name rests on Cycas circinalis var. orixensis, described by H.H. Haines in 1924 in The Botany of Bihar and Orissa on the strength of the forked microsporophylls and the longer spines of the megasporophylls. Because the herbaria of Kolkata, Dehradun and Kew held only leaves and sterile megasporophylls, later authors could not check this character.

Lindström and Hill (2007) placed Haines’s variety under Cycas sphaerica, a species they regarded, according to Singh and colleagues (2015), as native to Odisha and also present in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. After field observations from 2007 to 2012, Rita Singh, P. Radha and J.S. Khuraijam concluded that the Odisha populations have distinctive male and female cones: they raised the variety to species rank, designated an epitype (a male plant from Angul, collected in March 2010) to fix the male-cone character, and created for it and for Cycas nayagarhensis a new subsection, Orixenses, within section Cycas. The World List of Cycads follows this treatment. For the reader, older records of Cycas sphaerica or Cycas circinalis from Odisha will therefore usually refer to this species.

Etymology and history

The Latin epithet orixensis refers to Orissa, now Odisha, the Indian state to which the species is endemic (Haynes 2022).

Haines did not designate a type; he recorded the plant in the hill forests of the “Mals” of Puri, north to Angul. His 1917 collections, kept at Kew (Haines 5876, Mals of Puri, June 1917; Haines 5877, Angul, July 1917), are the syntypes. In 2015 Singh and Khuraijam designated as epitype a male plant collected in Angul district in March 2010 (no. 67636, held at the herbarium of GGS Indraprastha University in New Delhi, to be deposited in Kolkata, CAL). No history of its introduction into cultivation is documented.

Common names

No English common name is attested. In Odisha the plant has several names, which change with its uses: “aruguna”, “oruguna”, “orguna”, “oranga” and “odissimari” (Singh et al. 2015). The same names are given for Cycas nayagarhensis: they apply to the cycads of the region in general.

In the wild

Cycas orixensis is endemic to Odisha. It ranges from Mayurbhanj, where it grows in the Simlipal tiger reserve, and Kendujhar in the north, to Dhenkanal and Angul and, across the Mahanadi River, to Boudh in central Odisha; in the south it reaches Ganjam district (Singh et al. 2015). It is an understorey plant of tropical moist deciduous forest dominated by sal (Shorea robusta) and bamboos (Dendrocalamus strictus, Bambusa arundinacea).

In the Satkosia tiger reserve, between Boudh and Angul, its sites are swampy and stay flooded during the monsoon months, from June to August; there it grows with gingers (Zingiberaceae) and dipterocarps. Male plants produce their cones from mid- or late March, female plants their megasporophylls in May and June; the male plants of the southern populations, in Ganjam, cone markedly earlier than those of Angul and Boudh.

Conservation status and regulation

The IUCN lists Cycas orixensis as Critically Endangered (CR, criterion A4ad), in the assessment by J.S. Khuraijam dated 2020 and published in version 2023-1 of the Red List; the Red List data relayed by GBIF confirm the CR category (consulted on 24 October 2026). Criterion A4 reflects a population reduction of at least 80% over a period spanning past and future, based here on direct observation and levels of exploitation. In 2015 the authors of the species had proposed only the category Endangered. The Red List itself could not be consulted directly.

The threats cited are the clearing of hill forests for farming and the harvesting, by local and tribal people, of leaves and shoot apices for religious and cultural purposes, of fertilised ovules or seeds before they are shed, and of male cones (Singh et al. 2015).

Like every species in the genus except Cycas beddomei, Cycas orixensis falls under CITES Appendix II, where the family Cycadaceae has been included since 4 February 1977. The listing carries annotation #4 (CoP20 version, in force since 5 March 2026): seeds, pollen, seedlings or tissue cultures obtained in vitro and transported in sterile containers, and cut flowers of artificially propagated plants, are not subject to CITES, whereas international trade in the plants themselves requires an export permit. Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States apply CITES through their own national legislation; in the European Union the species is in Annex B of Regulation (EC) No 338/97, whose annexes in force are set by Commission Regulation (EU) 2026/1383, applicable since 29 June 2026. Species+, the official CITES database, still does not list this name, published in 2015 (search of 24 October 2026): protection follows from the listing of the whole family, which covers every species, named or not.

This general information does not replace the official texts: check the rules in force before buying or exchanging plants, ask the seller for proof of provenance and prefer plants raised from seed in cultivation.

Growing Cycas orixensis

In short: no institution has published growing advice for Cycas orixensis, and no grower’s report is documented. The French forum Fous de palmiers mentions it only in a 2015 announcement of its description.

Outdoor and in-ground cultivation

Its habitat, the understorey of monsoon forest in a tropical climate, sometimes on ground flooded for several months, suggests a plant for warm, frost-free gardens with light shade. This is a deduction from the wild, not a tested recommendation: no outdoor trial has been published anywhere.

Container cultivation

In the United Kingdom and other temperate regions, it would be a plant for a heated glasshouse, grown in a pot. No grower has published results with this species, in a pot or in the ground. The Jardin zoologique tropical at La Londe-les-Maures, in the south of France, has published no observation on it.

In cultivation in the UK, US and Australia

In short: no record under this name. The species does not appear in the BGCI PlantSearch database (consulted on 24 October 2026), nor in the online catalogues of the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, the Australian Botanic Garden Mount Annan, the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria or Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden. Older collections of Odisha plants may be labelled Cycas sphaerica or Cycas circinalis: a search for the name orixensis in the online catalogue of Montgomery Botanical Center, in Florida, returns a single accession (no. 96316) filed under Cycas sphaerica, without the catalogue page saying why the two names are linked. No first-hand report from a private grower could be read.

Propagation

Like all Cycas, Cycas orixensis is dioecious: a male and a female plant are needed for fertile seed. Germination is cryptocotylar, as in other Cycas, but no sowing data specific to the species have been published. Seeds are exempt from CITES under annotation #4; their heavy harvesting in the wild is one of the threats to the species, so ask for seed from cultivated plants.

Pests and diseases

No pest or disease specific to the species is documented. In cultivation, scale insects, including Aulacaspis yasumatsui, can attack any Cycas.

Cold hardiness

No cold-tolerance data exist for Cycas orixensis. The plains and hills of Odisha have a tropical monsoon climate, and nothing allows us to say that the plant can take frost.

Mediterranean and European experience

No cultivation result has been published in Europe, in the open ground or in a pot, and no dated frost episode concerns the species.

United Kingdom, United States and Australia

No cold reading and no dated growing report are documented, either on forums or from botanic gardens. Treat it as frost-tender; no USDA zone can be given without a documented trial.

Toxicity and precautions

No toxicity analysis specific to Cycas orixensis has been published. The risk is, however, well documented in the genus: Cycas tissues, and the seeds above all, contain cycasin, which is converted during digestion into methylazoxymethanol, toxic to the liver and nervous system, along with a neurotoxic amino acid, BMAA. The ASPCA lists the sago palm (Cycas revoluta) as poisonous to dogs, cats and horses. Until proven otherwise, treat the plant as poisonous: keep seeds and leaves out of reach of children and pets, and wear gloves to clean the seeds. If any part is swallowed, contact a poison centre, a doctor or a vet straight away.

Traditional uses

Cycas orixensis has many uses in Odisha, and they are what threatens the species. According to Singh and colleagues (2015), local and tribal people gather the leaves and the shoot apex for religious and cultural activities, collect the fertilised ovules or seeds before they fall, and use the male cones as a pesticide. The authors do not describe the rites concerned, nor how the seeds are eaten or used.

Frequently asked questions

Where does Cycas orixensis grow?

Only in Odisha, in eastern India, from Mayurbhanj district in the north to Ganjam district in the south, in the understorey of moist deciduous forest.

Is Cycas orixensis the same as Cycas circinalis or Cycas sphaerica?

No, not in current classification. Described as a variety of Cycas circinalis in 1924, then placed under Cycas sphaerica in 2007, it has been accepted as a species since 2015 on the strength of its forked male cones.

What does orixensis mean?

“From Orissa”: the name refers to the former name of the state of Odisha, to which the species is endemic.

How can it be told from Cycas nayagarhensis?

By its habit and cones. Cycas orixensis has a slender trunk 12.5 to 32 cm across and small, often forked male cones; Cycas nayagarhensis has a massive trunk 50 to 92 cm across and large male cones that are rarely forked.

Is it endangered?

Yes, critically. The IUCN lists it as Critically Endangered because of forest clearance and the harvesting of its leaves, shoot apices, seeds and cones.

Can it be grown outdoors in the UK?

No, almost certainly not. No cold data exist and its native climate is tropical and frost-free.

Is it poisonous?

It must be assumed so. No toxicity analysis specific to the species exists, but the Cycas studied contain dangerous toxins, especially in the seeds.

Further reading on Succulentes

Sources

Reference sites

Bibliography

  • Singh, R., Radha, P. & Khuraijam, J.S. (2015). A new species, a new combination and a new subsection of Cycas from Odisha, northern Eastern Ghats of India. Asian Journal of Conservation Biology 4(1): 3–14. [Paper establishing the combination and species rank (figs 1–3), subsection Orixenses, key to the Indian Cycas; full text consulted.]
  • Haines, H.H. (1924). The Botany of Bihar and Orissa 6: 1228. Adlard & Son and West Newman, London. [Basionym; not consulted directly, cited after Singh et al. (2015) and The World List of Cycads.]
  • Lindström, A.J. & Hill, K.D. (2007). The genus Cycas (Cycadaceae) in India. Telopea 11(4): 463–488. doi:10.7751/telopea20075745 [Placement of the variety under Cycas sphaerica; full text consulted.]
  • Khuraijam, J.S. (2023). Cycas orixensis. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2023: e.T103632258A103632295. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2023-1.RLTS.T103632258A103632295.en [Current assessment (dated 2020, published in 2023); reference checked on Crossref, CR category relayed by GBIF; Red List page not consulted (access blocked).]
  • Haynes, J.L. (2022). Etymological compendium of cycad names. Phytotaxa 550(1): 1–31. doi:10.11646/phytotaxa.550.1.1 [Source of the etymologies taken up by The World List of Cycads; not consulted directly.]
  • Calonje, M., Stevenson, D.W. & Osborne, R. (2026). The World List of Cycads, version 2026.08.15. Montgomery Botanical Center, Coral Gables. doi:10.5281/zenodo.21958524 [Reference checklist; consulted directly.]