Typical of the Combretaceae family
Terminalia crenulata
Crocodile-Bark Tree
Also known as Black Murdah
- Habit
- Tree
- Found in India
- Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand & more
- Flowering
- August-January
Ecology & growing context
- Native status · Kew WCVP
- WCVP native range includes Assam, India, West Himalaya Kew dataset ↗
Kew WCVP dataset; listed synonym of Terminalia elliptica. Dataset matching is separate from an individual regional review. Recorded worldwide native range: Indian Subcontinent to Indo-China.
- Recorded habitat
- Occasional on hills to 1400m, sometimes along river banks
- Explore nearby plants
- Karnataka →Maharashtra →Uttarakhand →
Occurrence records show where a plant has been recorded; they do not establish that it is native there. Compare local habitat and growing conditions when choosing plants for a garden.
How to identify Crocodile-Bark Tree
Identify Crocodile-Bark Tree by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a tree habit.
- Confirm fruit type: Winged.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: August-January.
- In India, compare location records such as Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh and nearby regions.
- Confirm it sits within the Combretaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Crocodile-Bark Tree.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Terminalia crenulata
- Genus
- Terminalia
- Family
- Combretaceae
- Habit
- Tree
- Habitat
- Occasional on hills to 1400m, sometimes along river banks
- Habitat type
- Wetland
- Native to
- India
- Distribution
- India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar
- Found in India
- Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal
- Flowering & fruiting
- August-January
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
Typical of the Combretaceae family — a field-mark hint, not measured for this exact species.
Flower & fruit characters
- Fruit type
- Wingedrecorded
Typical of the family
- Inflorescence
- Spike
Characters marked “recorded” are for Crocodile-Bark Tree itself; the rest are typical of the Combretaceae family — flowering plants only.
About Crocodile-Bark Tree
Crocodile-bark tree (Terminalia crenulata) is a tree in the Combretaceae family. In India it has been recorded in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand and 5 other states. It grows in occasional on hills to 1400m, sometimes along river banks. Flowering and fruiting run from August to January.
Uses
It is long used in traditional medicine, cut for timber and furniture and a source of dye or tannin. Those medicinal uses are traditional attributions, not medical advice.
Combretaceae
Indian almond family
Crocodile-Bark Tree belongs to the Combretaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Combretaceae familySnap it. Know it.
Point your camera at Crocodile-Bark Tree 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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