Kukur Jihwa / Bandicoot Berry
Leea indica
- Habit
- Shrub
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka & more
- Flowering
- April-November
How to identify Kukur Jihwa
Identify Kukur Jihwa by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a shrub habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Clusters of small dark berries (bandicoot berry).
- Confirm flower colour: Green.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: April-November.
- In India, compare location records such as Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and nearby regions.
- Confirm it sits within the Leeaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Kukur Jihwa.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Leea indica
- Genus
- Leea
- Family
- Leeaceae
- Habit
- Shrub
- Habitat
- Degraded semi-evergreen and Evergreen forests, also in the plains
- Habitat type
- Forest
- Native to
- Indian subcontinent
- Distribution
- India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Hainan, Thailand, China, Malesia, N.Australia
- Found in India
- Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Gujarat, Meghalaya, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Nagaland, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand
- Flowering & fruiting
- April-November
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Arrangement
- Alternate
Typical of the Leeaceae family — a field-mark hint, not measured for this exact species.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- GreenrecordedGreen or greenish
Typical of the family
- Inflorescence
- Cyme
- Fruit
- Berry
Characters marked “recorded” are for Kukur Jihwa itself; the rest are typical of the Leeaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Hindi
- कुकुर जिह्वा Kukur jihwa
- Bengali
- Kurkur
- Tamil
- Nalava, Ottannalam, பொலவக்கொடி
- Telugu
- Amkador
- Kannada
- ಅಂಡಿಲು Andilu, ತಣ್ಣುಣುಕ Tannunuka, ಗದಾಪತ್ರಿ Gadapatri
- Malayalam
- Nakku, ഞഴുക്, കുടഞഴുക്
- Marathi
- Karkani, दिंडा
- Assamese
- আহিনা
About Kukur Jihwa
Bandicoot Berry (Leea indica) belongs to the Leeaceae family, where it grows as a shrub. In India it has been recorded in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and 15 other states. It grows in degraded semi-evergreen and Evergreen forests, also in the plains. Flowering and fruiting run from April to November.
Leeaceae
Leea Family
Kukur Jihwa belongs to the Leeaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
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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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