Crested Cat Ears
Cyanotis papilionacea
- Habit
- Herb
- Found in India
- Karnataka, Arunachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh
- Flowering
- July-September
How to identify Crested Cat Ears
Identify Crested Cat Ears by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a herb habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Crested tufted flower heads (cat ears).
- Confirm flower colour: Blue.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: July-September.
- In India, compare location records such as Karnataka, Arunachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh.
- Confirm it sits within the Commelinaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Crested Cat Ears.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Cyanotis papilionacea
- Genus
- Cyanotis
- Family
- Commelinaceae
- Habit
- Herb
- Habitat
- Grasslands
- Habitat type
- Grassland
- Native to
- India
- Found in India
- Karnataka, Arunachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh
- Flowering & fruiting
- July-September
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (LC)
Leaf characters
- Arrangement
- Alternate
Typical of the Commelinaceae family — a field-mark hint, not measured for this exact species.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Bluerecorded
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Zygomorphic (bilaterally symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Cyme
- Fruit
- Capsule
Characters marked “recorded” are for Crested Cat Ears itself; the rest are typical of the Commelinaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Malayalam
- പീലിനീലി
About Crested Cat Ears
A member of the Commelinaceae family, Crested Cat Ears (Cyanotis papilionacea) is a herb. In India it has been recorded in Karnataka, Arunachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. It grows in grasslands. Flowering and fruiting run from July to September.
Commelinaceae
Spiderwort Family
Crested Cat Ears belongs to the Commelinaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Commelinaceae familySnap it. Know it.
Point your camera at Crested Cat Ears or any plant and SASYA identifies it instantly — on-device, offline, and private.
Common plant problems
If you are starting from symptoms instead of a diagnosis, use the plant disease symptom checker to narrow the cause before treating.
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