Plants native to Maldives

We document 130 of the 151 species Kew’s World Checklist records as native to Maldives. Native means native: introduced, extinct and doubtful records are excluded, so this is where these plants are from, not everywhere they now grow.

Documented 130 Native, per Kew 151 Coverage 86% TDWG MDV

Best documented by photographic coverage

Every documented species 130 native to Maldives

SpeciesAuthorityFamily Photographs
Abutilon indicum (L.) Sweet Malvaceae 8
Acalypha indica L. Euphorbiaceae 8
Achyranthes aspera L. Amaranthaceae 8
Adenanthera pavonina L. Fabaceae 8
Alysicarpus vaginalis (L.) DC. Fabaceae 8
Anisomeles indica (L.) Kuntze Lamiaceae 8
Apluda mutica L. Poaceae 8
Ardisia elliptica Thunb. Primulaceae 8
Asparagus racemosus Willd. Asparagaceae 8
Bacopa monnieri (L.) Wettst. Plantaginaceae 8
Barleria prionitis L. Acanthaceae 8
Barringtonia asiatica Kurz Lecythidaceae 8
Blumea sinuata (Lour.) Merr. Asteraceae 8
Boerhavia diffusa L. Nyctaginaceae 8
Boerhavia repens L. Nyctaginaceae 8
Bruguiera cylindrica (L.) Blume Rhizophoraceae 8
Calophyllum inophyllum L. Calophyllaceae 8
Calotropis gigantea (L.) W.T.Aiton Apocynaceae 8
Canavalia cathartica Thouars Fabaceae 8
Canavalia rosea (Sw.) DC. Fabaceae 8
Cardiospermum halicacabum L. Sapindaceae 8
Cassytha filiformis L. Lauraceae 8
Chrysopogon aciculatus (Retz.) Trin. Poaceae 8
Cleome gynandra L. Cleomaceae 8
Cleome viscosa L. Cleomaceae 8
Coleus hadiensis (Forssk.) A.J.Paton Lamiaceae 8
Colubrina asiatica Brongn. Rhamnaceae 8
Commelina benghalensis L. Commelinaceae 8
Commelina undulata R.Br. Commelinaceae 8
Corchorus aestuans L. Malvaceae 8
Corchorus capsularis L. Malvaceae 8
Cordia subcordata Lam. Cordiaceae 8
Crinum asiaticum L. Amaryllidaceae 8
Crotalaria retusa L. Fabaceae 8
Croton tiglium L. Euphorbiaceae 8
Cyanotis cristata (L.) D.Don Commelinaceae 8
Cyanthillium cinereum (L.) H.Rob. Asteraceae 8
Cyclosorus interruptus (Willd.) H.Itô Thelypteridaceae 8
Cyperus dubius Rottb. Cyperaceae 8
Cyperus hyalinus Vahl Cyperaceae 8
Cyperus javanicus Houtt. Cyperaceae 8
Cyperus polystachyos Rottb. Cyperaceae 8
Dactyloctenium aegyptium (L.) Willd. Poaceae 8
Dendrobium macrostachyum Lindl. Orchidaceae 8
Dendrolobium umbellatum (L.) Benth. Fabaceae 8
Digitaria sanguinalis (L.) Scop. Poaceae 8
Dioscorea pentaphylla L. Dioscoreaceae 8
Dodonaea viscosa Jacq. Sapindaceae 8
Eleusine indica (L.) Gaertn. Poaceae 8
Entada rheedei Spreng. Fabaceae 8
Eragrostis tenella (L.) P.Beauv. ex Roem. & Schult. Poaceae 8
Erythrina variegata L. Fabaceae 8
Evolvulus alsinoides (L.) L. Convolvulaceae 8
Ficus amplissima Sm. Moraceae 8
Ficus benghalensis L. Moraceae 8
Fimbristylis cymosa R.Br. Cyperaceae 8
Flagellaria indica L. Flagellariaceae 8
Gloriosa superba L. Colchicaceae 8
Grona triflora (L.) H.Ohashi & K.Ohashi Fabaceae 8
Guettarda speciosa L. Rubiaceae 8
Guilandina bonduc L. Fabaceae 8
Gyrocarpus americanus Jacq. Hernandiaceae 8
Heliotropium arboreum (Blanco) Mabb. Heliotropiaceae 8
Hernandia nymphaeifolia (C.Presl) Kubitzki Hernandiaceae 8
Hibiscus lobatus (Murray) Kuntze Malvaceae 8
Hibiscus tiliaceus L. Malvaceae 8
Hygrophila ringens (L.) R.Br. ex Spreng. Acanthaceae 8
Indigofera tinctoria L. Fabaceae 8
Indigofera tsiangiana Metcalf Fabaceae 8
Ischaemum ciliare Retz. Poaceae 8
Ischaemum muticum L. Poaceae 8
Jacquemontia paniculata (Burm.f.) Hallier f. Convolvulaceae 8
Justicia procumbens L. Acanthaceae 8
Laportea interrupta (L.) Chew Urticaceae 8
Launaea sarmentosa (Willd.) Kuntze Asteraceae 8
Lumnitzera racemosa Willd. Combretaceae 8
Morinda citrifolia L. Rubiaceae 8
Neptunia oleracea Lour. Fabaceae 8
Ocimum gratissimum L. Lamiaceae 8
Oldenlandia corymbosa L. Rubiaceae 8
Oplismenus compositus (L.) P.Beauv. Poaceae 8
Pandanus odorifer (Forssk.) Kuntze Pandanaceae 8
Panicum miliaceum L. Poaceae 8
Pemphis acidula J.R.Forst. & G.Forst. Lythraceae 8
Phyla nodiflora (L.) Greene Verbenaceae 8
Phyllanthus debilis J.G.Klein ex Willd. Phyllanthaceae 8
Phyllanthus maderaspatensis L. Phyllanthaceae 8
Phyllanthus urinaria L. Phyllanthaceae 8
Pisonia grandis R.Br. Nyctaginaceae 8
Pistia stratiotes L. Araceae 8
Pleurolobus gangeticus (L.) J.St.-Hil. ex H.Ohashi & K.Ohashi Fabaceae 8
Polygala erioptera DC. Polygalaceae 8
Portulaca quadrifida L. Portulacaceae 8
Pouzolzia zeylanica (L.) Benn. Urticaceae 8
Premna serratifolia L. Lamiaceae 8
Rhizophora mucronata Poir. Rhizophoraceae 8
Rungia pectinata (L.) Nees Acanthaceae 8
Scaevola taccada (Gaertn.) Roxb. Goodeniaceae 8
Senna auriculata (L.) Roxb. Fabaceae 8
Senna surattensis (Burm.f.) H.S.Irwin & Barneby Fabaceae 8
Sesuvium portulacastrum (L.) L. Aizoaceae 8
Sida cordata (Burm.f.) Borss.Waalk. Malvaceae 8
Sonneratia alba Sm. Lythraceae 8
Sophora tomentosa L. Fabaceae 8
Spermacoce ocymoides Burm.f. Rubiaceae 8
Spinifex littoreus (Burm.f.) Merr. Poaceae 8
Stenotaphrum dimidiatum (L.) Brongn. Poaceae 8
Suriana maritima L. Surianaceae 8
Synostemon bacciformis (L.) G.L.Webster Phyllanthaceae 8
Tacca leontopetaloides (L.) Kuntze Dioscoreaceae 8
Tephrosia pumila (Lam.) Pers. Fabaceae 8
Terminalia catappa L. Combretaceae 8
Thespesia populnea Sol. ex Corrêa Malvaceae 8
Thuarea involuta (G.Forst.) R.Br. ex Sm. Poaceae 8
Tinospora cordifolia (Willd.) Hook.f. & Thomson Menispermaceae 8
Tribulus terrestris L. Zygophyllaceae 8
Trichosanthes cucumerina L. Cucurbitaceae 8
Vigna marina (Burm.) Merr. Fabaceae 8
Vitex negundo L. Lamiaceae 8
Volkameria inermis L. Lamiaceae 8
Wollastonia biflora DC. Asteraceae 8
Thalassodendron ciliatum (Forssk.) Hartog Cymodoceaceae 7
Ixeris polycephala Cass. Asteraceae 6
Ochrosia oppositifolia K.Schum. Apocynaceae 6
Leucas biflora (Vahl) Sm. Lamiaceae 5
Micrococca mercurialis Benth. Euphorbiaceae 5
Enhalus acoroides (L.f.) Royle Hydrocharitaceae 3
Glochidion littorale Blume Phyllanthaceae 3
Kohautia attenuata (Willd.) I.M.Turner Rubiaceae 3
Leptopetalum biflorum (L.) Neupane & N.Wikstr. Rubiaceae 3

What this page does not tell you

Kew records 21 more species as native to Maldives that we do not document. They are real, accepted plants. They have no page here because we could not find three photographs of them licensed for commercial use, and this site publishes no species it cannot show you. That gap is the honest measure of what we are missing, and it is why we print both numbers rather than the flattering one.

This is a checklist of what is native, not a guide to what will grow in your garden, and it carries no care advice and no toxicity claim, because we do not have those from a source we can cite.

Sourcesevery claim on this page

  1. Kew, World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP v16). Native distribution by TDWG level-3 botanical country (MDV). Introduced, extinct and doubtful records excluded. CC BY 3.0. Retrieved 2026-06-04.
  2. World Flora Online Plant List. Accepted names, authorities, classification. CC0. Retrieved 2026-07-12.
  3. iNaturalist. Photographs, restricted to CC0 / CC BY / CC BY-SA. Retrieved 2026-06-27.