Kokaa / Red Waterlily
Nymphaea rubra
Also known as Indian Red Waterlily
- Habit
- Herb (Aquatic)
- Found in India
- Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka & more
- Flowering
- Throughout the year
How to identify Kokaa
Identify Kokaa 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 (aquatic) habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Deep red flowers.
- Confirm flower colour: Red.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: Throughout the year.
- In India, compare location records such as Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, West Bengal and nearby regions.
- Confirm it sits within the Nymphaeaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Kokaa.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Nymphaea rubra
- Genus
- Nymphaea
- Family
- Nymphaeaceae
- Habit
- Herb (Aquatic)
- Habitat
- Water bodies
- Habitat type
- Wetland
- Distribution
- Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Yunnan, Taiwan, Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, northeastern Australia and Papua New Guinea
- Found in India
- Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, West Bengal, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Delhi, Bihar, Puducherry, Uttar Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura
- Flowering & fruiting
- Throughout the year
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (LC)
Leaf characters
Typical of the Nymphaeaceae family — a field-mark hint, not measured for this exact species.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Redrecorded
Characters marked “recorded” are for Kokaa itself; the rest are typical of the Nymphaeaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Hindi
- Kokaa
- Bengali
- Lal Shapla
- Tamil
- Atti
- Telugu
- Erra kaluva, Thaamara
- Marathi
- लाल कमल Lal kamal, रक्तकमल Raktakamal
About Kokaa
Red WaterLily (Nymphaea rubra) belongs to the Nymphaeaceae family. In India it has been recorded in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and 18 other states. It grows in water bodies. It flowers and fruits through much of the year.
Nymphaeaceae
Water-Lily Family
Kokaa belongs to the Nymphaeaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Nymphaeaceae familySnap it. Know it.
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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.
All plant problem & care guides