Immerse yourself in the vibrant relic Myristica swamps of the Western Ghats with this illustrated field guide. Developed by Priya Ranganathan, whose doctoral thesis focuses on these hidden forests, and illustrated by Meera Phadnis, this pocket guide holds the key to the wonders of these lesser-known wetlands.

Reach out to rpriya.ecology@gmail.com to get your copy of this field guide and set off on this immersive experience into Myristica swamps!

Meet the artist: Meera Phadnis is a student at the University of California, Irvine, where her passion for visual storytelling meets marketing, economics, and science. A lover of art since childhood, she aspires to create art that inspires change. Meera has had experience with a number of leadership roles and initiatives in her community, and endeavors to be an entrepreneur by leveraging her creativity with coding, economics, and data science. You can visit her website at meeraphadnis.com.

Below is a list of scientific papers that provide a detailed look into the flora and fauna, as well as broader research conducted on Myristica swamps in India:

Abraham, R. K., Pyron, R. A., Ansil, B. R., Zachariah, A., & Zachariah, A. (2013). Two novel genera and one new species of treefrog (Anura: Rhacophoridae) highlight cryptic diversity in the Western Ghats of India. Zootaxa, 3640(2), 177-189.

Abraham, R. K., Mathew, J. K., Raju, D. V., Rao, R., & Zachariah, A. (2018). Reproduction and metamorphosis in the Myristica Swamp tree frog, Mercurana myristicapalustris (Anura: Rhacophoridae). PeerJ, 6, e5934.

Ali, S., Chandran, M. S., & Ramachandra, T. V. (2006). Faunal assemblages in myristica swamps of central Western Ghats, Karnataka, India. In Proceedings of the symposium on environment education & ecosystem conservation. Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.

Aneesh, K. S. (2011). Floristic and edaphic attributes of three land use systems in Wayanad, Kerala (Doctoral dissertation, Department of Forest Management and Utilisation, College of Forestry, Vellanikkara).

Bhat, P. R., & Kaveriappa, K. M. (2009). Ecological studies on myristica swamp forests of Uttara Kannada, Karnataka, India. Tropical Ecology, 50(2), 329.

Chanda, S., & Ramachandra, T. V. (2023). Ethnomedicinal and Economical Aspects of Endemic Plants in the Catchment of Myristica Swamps, Western Ghats, India. Research & Reviews. Journal of Ecology, 12(2), 1-17p.

Chandran, M. D. S., & Mesta, D. K. (2001). On the conservation of the Myristica swamps of the Western Ghats. Forest genetic resources: status, threats, and conservation strategies, 1-19.

Chandran, M., Mesta, D. K., Rao, G. R., Ali, S., Gururaja, K. V., & Ramachandra, T. V. (2008). Discovery of two critically endangered tree species and issues related to relic forests of the Western Ghats. Open Conservation Biology Journal, 1, 1-8.

Dalavi, J., Mane, R., Gaikwad, N., Ghane, S., & Phonde Yadav, Y. (2021). Studies on northernmost Myristica swamp ecosystem in the Western Ghats at Bambarde-Hewale, Maharashtra, India. Phytomorphology, 71, 41-50.

Daniels, R. R., Chandran, M. S., & Gadgil, M. (1993). A strategy for conserving the biodiversity of the Uttara Kannada district in South India. Environmental Conservation, 20(2), 131-138.

Darshitha, S., Sarlin, P. J., & Megha, M. (2025). Assessing Microbial Diversity in Myristica Swamps: A Metagenomic Perspective from the Southern Western Ghats. Ecological Genetics and Genomics, 100330.

Desai, P., Sadekar, V., & Desai, S. (2024). Discovery of a new Myristica swamp in the northern Western Ghats of India. bioRxiv, 2024-02.

Dharmapalan, B., & Asokhan, A. (2013). Myristica swamps–evolutionary relics.

Ebin, P. J., & Augustine, J. A Preliminary Study on Floristics Diversity of Idukki Wildlife Sanctuary, Western Ghats. Perspectives on Biodiversity of India, 50.

Gopalan, S. V., George, S., & Evans, D. A. (2020). A new record of the Myristica swamp treefrog, Mercurana myristicapalustris (Anura: Rhacophoridae), from the Vazhachal reserve forest, Kerala, India. Reptiles & Amphibians, 27(3), 446-449.

Govindakurup, G. M., Krishnanachary, K., & Dan, M. (2020). New report on southern most Myristica swamp from the western Ghats, Kerala, India.

Gunaga, S., Hegde, N., Hegde, B., Hegde, S., & Hegde, M. Reporting and Phytosociological Assessment of Myristica Swamps in Bedthi River Catchment of Uttara Kannada District: A Threatened Freshwater Swamp Forest of Western Ghats.

Hegde, N., & Joosten, H. (2023). The impact of traditional conservation practices on species composition and diversity patterns of sacred swamps in the central Western Ghats, India. Wetlands Ecology and Management, 31(2), 245-266.

Jose, J. K., & K, A. (2024). Conservation of Gymnacranthera canarica (Myristicaceae), a threatened tree species endemic to Myristica swamps of Western Ghats, India.

Joseph, N., Sreejai, R., & Ajayakumar, M. (2023). Report of new myristica swamp ecosystems from the Western Ghats at Pathanapuram, Kerala, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa, 15(12), 24437-24442.

Krishna, S., & Somanathan, H. (2014). Secondary removal of Myristica fatua (Myristicaceae) seeds by crabs in Myristica swamp forests in India. Journal of Tropical Ecology, 30(3), 259-263.

Krishna, S., & Somanathan, H. (2016). Spatiotemporal strategies that facilitate recruitment in a habitat specialist tree species. AoB Plants, 8, plw033.

Madhavan, R., & Shaju, T. Impacts of Habitat Fragmentation in Myristica Swamp Forests of Western Ghats, India: Vegetation Shift Analysis. India: Vegetation Shift Analysis.

Nair, P. V., Ramachandran, K. K., Swarupanandan, K., & Thomas, T. P. (2007). Mapping biodiversity of the Myristica swamps in Southern Kerala. Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi, 680653.

Priti, H., Aravind, N. A., Shaanker, R. U., & Ravikanth, G. (2016). Modeling impacts of future climate on the distribution of Myristicaceae species in the Western Ghats, India. Ecological Engineering, 89, 14-23.

Ranganathan, P., Ravikanth, G., & Aravind, N. A. (2022). A review of research and conservation of Myristica swamps, a threatened freshwater swamp of the Western Ghats, India. Wetlands Ecology and Management, 30(1), 171-189.

Rao, G. R., Krishnakumar, G., Chandran, S., & Ramachandran, T. V. (2014). Threatened tree species of swamps and riparian habitats of central western ghats. In LAKE 2014: Conference on Conservation and Sustainable Management of Wetland Ecosystems in Western Ghats. Bangalore.

Roby, T. J., Jose, J., & Nair, P. V. (2013). Syzygium travancoricum (Gamble)–a critically endangered and endemic tree from Kerala, India–threats, conservation and prediction of potential areas; with special emphasis on Myristica swamps as a prime habitat. Int. J. Sci. Environ. Technol, 2(6), 1335-1352.

Roby, T. J., Jose, J., & Nair, P. V. (2018). Phytosociological analysis of Myristica swamp forests of Kulathupuzha, Kerala, India. Current Science, 1687-1696.

Sabu, T., & Ambat, B. (2007). Floristic analysis of wetlands of Kerala. In Proceedings of the Kerala Environment Congress (pp. 91-105).

Sasikumar, B. (2021). Nutmeg-Origin, diversity, distribution and history. Journal of Spices and Aromatic Crops, 30(2), 131-141.

Sathish, S. M., Jogattappa, N., & Venkatarangaiah, K. (2020). Endemic and threatened flowering plants of sacred Kaanu forests of Sharavathi River basin, Central Western Ghats, Karnataka. Asian Journal of Conservation Biology (2), 246-257.

Senthilkumar, N., Prakash, S., Kannan, C. R., Prasath, A. A., Krishnakumar, N., & Senthilkumar, N. (2014). Revisiting forest types of India (Champion and Seth, 1968): A case study on Myristica swamp forest in Kerala. International Journal of Advanced Research, 2(2), 492-501.

Shanavas, A., Sree Jai, R., & Joseph, N. (2023). EXPLORING AMPHIBIAN DIVERSITY IN MYRISTICA SWAMP FORESTS: A PRELIMINARY SURVEY OF AMBANAR, SOUTH WESTERN GHAT. Current Trends in Biology 2023, 89.

Sharma, M. V., & Armstrong, J. E. (2013). Pollination of Myristica and other nutmegs in natural populations. Tropical Conservation Science, 6(5), 595-607.

Sinu, P. A., & Sharma, M. V. (2013). Insect functional guilds in the flowering canopy of Myristica fatua in a lowland swamp, central Western Ghats, India. Tropical Conservation Science, 6(5), 653-662.

Sreejith, K. A., Chandrashekara, U. M., Nirmesh, T. K., & Sreekumar, V. B. (2016). Tree species composition and distribution pattern in a myristica swamp of northern Kerala, India. Current World Environment, 11(3), 743.

Sujitha, P. C., Prasad, G., & Sadasivan, K. (2019). Butterflies of the myristica swamp forests of Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary in the southern Western Ghats, Kerala, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa, 11(3), 13320-13333.

Tambat, B., Vishwanath, K., Chaithra, G. N., & Hareesh, T. S. (2006). Improved germination of Gymnacranthera canarica Warb. an endangered, endemic tree species of Myristica swamps, Western Ghats, India. Seed Science and Technology, 34(3), 603-608.

Tambat, B., Murthy, N. R., Gowda, K. N., Chaithra, G. N., Sethy, A. K., & Murthy, M. M. (2019). Disturbance to Myristica swamps: Influence on specific gravity and fibre length of an endemic and endangered tree species of Western Ghats. International Journal of Bio-resource and Stress Management, 10(1), 53-59.

Thacker, M., & Karthick, B. (2022). Response of diatoms to the changing water quality in the Myristica swamps of the Western Ghats, India. Diversity, 14(3), 202.

TV, R., Chandran, S., NP, J. N. S., GR, R., & Mukri, V. (2012). ECOLOGY OF SACRED KAN FORESTS IN CENTRAL WESTERN GHATS.

Varghese, A. O., & Menon, A. R. R. (1999). Ecological niches and amplitudes of rare, threatened and endemic trees of Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary. Current science, 76(9), 1204-1208.

Varghese, A. O., & Menon, A. R. R. (1999). Floristic composition, dynamics and diversity of Myristica swamp forests of Southern-Western Ghats, Kerala. Indian Forester, 125, 775-783.

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