I don’t know what is the right name for the Jyotivanti tree.
All I read everywhere, is that if you go to bhimashankar sanctuary in maharashtra there is a tree on which bioluminous fungus grows which glows in the monsoons at night.
Maybe someone in your group knows about it?


I think this should help in getting Botanical names as well as knowing about the strange phenonmenon stated above.


I have the management plan of Bhimashankar WLS, I shall check it in night and would revert back…if any details I come across.


Someone had posted a article
on Jyotiwanti earlier.
Attaching the same.

Attachments (1)- 30 kb.  


Thanks, … It’s worth reading. There was already lot of discussion earlier on luminicent orchids & other species.
May be … can through more light on this Bioluminescence Fungi.
Some extracts from the article:
…..They informed me that a guava tree and its roots are luminescent……
…..The luminous tree roots is the result of fungus “Armillaria species”. Especially Armillaria mellea and a closely related relative are common root rot and wood decay fungi found across North America, Asia and Europe. Armillaria grows in and on old stumps, dead trees, buried roots, and downed logs. The fruiting body of Armillaria is a small golden-coloured, stalked mushroom. This root like dark rhizomorphs, when they stop growing or when entering a resting period loose luminosity. ……..


… I am also keen to find response(s) for … query: “I don’t know what is the right name for the Jyotivanti tree … … Maybe someone in your group knows about it?”
OR is … doc discussing the same particular tree found at Bhimashankar ? which would imply that the specially named “Jyotivanti” tree is in fact a guava tree.


What ever I read from the internet, bioluminiscence is caused by certain fungi, on several trees in the forest. It would be interesting to know whether all these trees belong to different species, or a single species. In the second case, name of the tree species would be interesting to be linked with the common name.


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