Ficus ingens

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Red-leaved fig
Ficus ingens, habitus, b, Skeerpoort.jpg
Ficus ingens 3c.JPG
A specimen exhibiting a rock-splitting habit, and a flush of red new leaves
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Moraceae
Genus: Ficus
Species:
F. ingens
Binomial name
Ficus ingens
(Miq.) Miq.
Synonyms [2]
  • Urostigma ingensMiq.
  • Urostigma xanthophyllumMiq.
  • Urostigma caffrumMiq.
  • Ficus schimperiana Hochst. ex A.Rich.
  • Urostigma xanthophyllum var. ovatocordatum Sond.
  • Ficus caffra(Miq.) Miq.
  • Ficus xanthophylla(Miq.) Martelli
  • Ficus stuhlmannii var. glabrifolia Warb.
  • Ficus caffra var. longipesWarb.
  • Ficus caffra var. natalensisWarb.
  • Ficus caffra var. pubicarpaWarb.
  • Ficus caffra var. sambesiacaWarb.
  • Ficus pondoensisWarb.
  • Ficus magenjensis Sim
  • Ficus ingentoides Hutch.
  • Ficus katagumicaHutch.
  • Ficus kawuriHutch.
  • Ficus ovatocordata De Wild.
  • Ficus ingens var. tomentosaHutch.

Ficus ingens, the red-leaved fig, is a fig species with an extensive range in the subtropical to dry tropical regions [3] of Africa and southern Arabia. [4] Despite its specific name, which means "huge", or "vast", it is usually a shrub or tree of modest proportions. [5] It is a fig of variable habit depending on the local climate and substrate, typically a stunted subshrub on elevated rocky ridges, or potentially a large tree on warmer plains and lowlands. In 1829 the missionary Robert Moffat found a rare giant specimen, into which seventeen thatch huts of a native tribe were placed, so as to be out of reach of lions. [6] [note 1] [note 2]

Contents

Distribution and habitat

It is widespread in northern and eastern sub-Saharan Africa, [7] with a more or less contiguous range from Senegal in the west, eastwards to Eritrea, and southwards to the Eastern Cape, South Africa. It is extant in the Saharo-montane woodlands of the Tassili n'Ajjer, the Hoggar, Aïr and Tibesti mountains, and the Kerkour Nourene massif. [3] It is also found in southernmost Oman, mainly in the region south of Dhofar, called Salalah. It is found on rock faces and outcrops, rocky slopes, riparian and wadi fringes, and in dense woodlands. [5] Substrates include lava flows, coral and limestone in drier, exposed areas, [3] and sandstone or dolomite in bushveld. [8]

Description

Ficus ingens, habitus, Phalandingwe, b.jpg
Covering a north west facing rock surface at Pelindaba, South Africa
Ficus ingens, habitus, Phalandingwe, c.jpg
Growing from a slate fissure at Pelindaba

The smooth and leathery, dull-green leaves are narrowly ovate oblong, bright red brown when young, [9] with conspicuous yellow veins that are prominent beneath [10] and loop along the leaf margin. [6] A leaf measures some 16.5 by 8.5 centimetres (6.5 by 3.3 in), [6] with the base mostly square [5] or cordate, [9] sometimes broadly rounded, and the apex tapering to a blunt point. [11] Old leaves turn to a reddish-copper colour in autumn. [10]

The almost spherical figs are produced year-round but mainly in summer. [6] They are 0.9 to 1.2 centimetres (0.35 to 0.47 in) [12] in diameter and carried on very short stalks, just below or among the terminal cluster of leaves. [11] They ripen first to a white and eventually a purple [9] or yellowish-brown colour. [10]

The smooth bark is pale grey, while younger branches have a yellow tinge. [11] Bruised or cut stems and leaves exude a non-toxic, milky latex. [10]

Habit and variation

It is deciduous or semi-deciduous and may form a subshrub or shrub, or may form a rounded crown, upwards of 5 metres (16 ft) tall, in sheltered conditions. [10] In the warm lowveld they may form a spreading canopy up to 15 metres (49 ft) tall, with a bole 2 metres (6.6 ft) in diameter. [11] In the Magaliesberg and Witwatersrand bankenveld they typically straddle boulders or are closely pressed to sunny, north to west-facing (in southern hemisphere) rock faces. Plants of the Eastern Cape are more tomentose. [10]

Uses and species interactions

In northern Nigeria the figs, and in Kenya the leaves and figs, have been recorded as famine food. [13] In South Africa a decoction of the bark mixed with cow feed is said to increase the flow of milk, [14] though the leaves have been shown to be toxic to cattle, and sometimes to sheep. [12] When ripe, the figs are readily eaten by several species of bird. [11] The pollinator wasp is Platyscapa soraria Wiebes., while Otitesella longicauda and O. rotunda are non-pollinators. [4]

Similar species

It is similar to the Wonderboom fig, which has a broadly overlapping range and occurs in comparable habitat. They differ with respect to leaf shape, venation and colour, besides the size and colour of the figs. The Wonderboom is always a tree, [5] and has elliptic-oblong leaves with a rounded bases, that are never bright red-brown. [9] Its figs are much smaller and mature to yellow-red. The Natal fig has the base of the leaf narrowly tapered. [5]

Notes

The inhabited tree Baynes - The Inhabited Tree (1835).png
The inhabited tree
  1. Moffat relates it thus: "My attention was arrested by a beautiful and gigantic tree [a species of ficus], standing in a defile ... Seeing some individuals employed under its shade ... and houses in miniature protruding through its evergreen foliage, I proceeded thither, and found that the tree was inhabited by several families of Bakones, ... I ascended by the notched trunk, and found, to my amazement, no less than seventeen of these aerial abodes, and three others unfinished. On reaching the topmost [30 feet up], I entered, and sat down. I asked a woman who sat at the door permission to eat [a bowl full of locusts]. This she granted with pleasure, ... and soon brought me more ... Several more females came from the neighbouring roosts, stepping from branch to branch, to see the stranger, ... I then visited the different abodes, which were on several principal branches. ... A person can nearly stand upright in it: the diameter of the floor is about six feet [with] a little square space before the door." See: Moffat, Robert (1842). Missionary Labours and Scenes in Southern Africa. J. Snow. pp. 519–520: The inhabited tree.
  2. In the 1960s the tree was rediscovered by Eve Palmer at Boshoek north of Rustenburg. By the 1970s though, it had begun to collapse under its own weight. cf. Swart, W. J. (1984). Die Wildevy: boom van die jaar 1984. Pretoria: Government Printer, Direktoraat van Boswese van die Departement van Omgewingsake, Pamflet 317. ISBN   0621083674.

Related Research Articles

<i>Ficus</i> Genus of flowering plants in the mulberry family Moraceae

Ficus is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes and hemiepiphytes in the family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extending into the semi-warm temperate zone. The common fig (F. carica) is a temperate species native to southwest Asia and the Mediterranean region, which has been widely cultivated from ancient times for its fruit, also referred to as figs. The fruit of most other species are also edible though they are usually of only local economic importance or eaten as bushfood. However, they are extremely important food resources for wildlife. Figs are also of considerable cultural importance throughout the tropics, both as objects of worship and for their many practical uses.

<i>Ficus benjamina</i> Species of fig

Ficus benjamina, commonly known as weeping fig, benjamin fig or ficus tree, and often sold in stores as just ficus, is a species of flowering plant in the family Moraceae, native to Asia and Australia. It is the official tree of Bangkok. The species is also naturalized in the West Indies and in the states of Florida and Arizona in the United States. It is one of the most common trees in Israeli cities and parks. In its native range, its small fruit are favored by some birds.

<i>Ficus fraseri</i> Species of fig

Ficus fraseri, the white sandpaper fig or shiny sandpaper fig, is one of several fig species commonly known as sandpaper figs. It is native to the northern and eastern coasts of Australia, and to New Caledonia and Vanuatu. Other common names are "figwood" and "watery fig".

<i>Ficus henneana</i> Species of fig

Ficus henneana is a strangler fig only occurring in Australia. Previously considered a variety of Ficus superba which occurs in China, Japan and parts of South East Asia. The cedar fig or deciduous fig grows in Australia from Milton, New South Wales to northern Queensland and the Northern Territory. The habitat is riverine, littoral or the drier forms of rainforest. The fruit is considered edible for humans, but it is not particularly palatable.

<i>Ficus lutea</i> Species of flowering plant

Ficus lutea is a medium to large sized deciduous tree in the family Moraceae. It is commonly known as the giant-leaved fig or Lagos rubbertree. These trees occur from the Eastern Cape of South Africa to Tropical Africa.

<i>Erythrina zeyheri</i> Species of legume

Erythrina zeyheri, commonly known as the ploughbreaker, is a deciduous, geoxylic subshrub and member of the Fabaceae, which is endemic to southern Africa. It grows no more than 60 cm tall and occurs naturally in the higher elevation grasslands of South Africa's central plateau, and that of adjacent Lesotho. They favour deep clay soil in the vicinity of creeks and marshes, and often form colonies. Its specific name commemorates the 19th century botanist, Karl Zeyher.

<i>Ficus sur</i> Species of fig

Ficus sur, with the common names Cape fig and broom cluster fig, is a widespread Afrotropical species of cauliflorous fig.

<i>Ficus glumosa</i> Species of tree

Ficus glumosa, also known as the mountain fig or hairy rock fig, is an Afrotropical fig shrub or tree, growing up to 20 m tall. It is found over a range of altitudes and broken terrain types, including kopjes, outcrops, escarpments and lava flows, or in woodlands. It is for the greater part absent from the tropical rainforest zone, or the dry interior regions of Botswana, Namibia and South Africa.

<i>Ficus craterostoma</i> Species of fig

Ficus craterostoma, a species of strangler fig, is a fig shrub or tree of the Afrotropics that may grow up to 20 m tall. It is found in lowland tropical and swamp forests in the west, or in afromontane forests, including rocky situations, along Africa's eastern escarpments. The western and eastern populations may constitute separate species, as they occur at different altitudes where their ranges meet in central Africa, while they seem to have exclusive pollinating wasp species.

<i>Viscum rotundifolium</i> Species of flowering plant

Viscum rotundifolium, the red-berry mistletoe, is a variable, wide-ranging and monoecious mistletoe of southern Africa. It is a hardy, evergreen hemiparasite with a catholic variety of host plants, including other mistletoes. It may be found from near sea level to 1,950 m. Its fleshy, leathery leaves are dark or pale green and variable in shape, though usually broadly ovate to elliptic. While its creamy-green flowers are small and inconspicuous, the fruit are a brilliant, shiny orange-red colour when ripe. It is similar to V. schaeferiEngl. & K.Krause and V. pauciflorumL.f. with which it may be confused.

<i>Ficus salicifolia</i> Species or subspecies of Afrotropical fig

The Wonderboom is an evergreen fig species that ranges from the KwaZulu-Natal midlands northwards to tropical East Africa. It grows especially on outcrops, rocky hillsides and along cliffs fringing water courses and may rarely grow up to 10 m tall, and acquire a leafy spreading crown.

<i>Ficus auriculata</i> Species of fig

Ficus auriculata is a type of fig tree, native to subtropical and tropical mainland Asia. It is noted for its big and round leaves and edible fruit.

<i>Euclea crispa</i> Species of tree

Euclea crispa, commonly known as the blue guarri, is an Afrotropical plant species of the family Ebenaceae. The hardy and evergreen plants may form a dense stand of shrubs, or grow to tree size. It is widespread and common in the interior regions of southern Africa, and occurs northward to the tropics. Though some are present near the South African south and east coasts, they generally occur at middle to high altitudes. It is readily recognizable from its much-branched structure and dull bluish foliage colour. Those bearing lanceolate leaves may however resemble the Wild olive, another common species of the interior plateaus.

<i>Ficus cordata</i> Species of plant in the family Moraceae

Ficus cordata, the Namaqua rock fig, or Namaqua fig is a species of fig that occurs in two disjunct populations in Africa, one in the arid southwest of the continent, and a second in the northern subtropics. In the south it is often the largest and most prominent tree, and is virtually restricted to cliff faces and rock outcrops, where it has a rock-splitting habit.

<i>Ficus abutilifolia</i> African fig species known as the large-leaved rock fig

Ficus abutilifolia, the large-leaved rock fig, is a species of African rock-splitting fig that occurs in two disjunct regions, one population north, and another south of the equator. The two populations are pollinated by different fig wasps, and are morphologically distinct. It is named for the similarity of its broadly ovate leaves to that of Abutilon. It is virtually restricted to cliff faces and rock outcrops, and is easily recognized from its large, glabrous leaves and smooth, pale bark.

<i>Ficus ilicina</i> Species of tree

The Laurel fig is a species of rock-splitting fig that is native to the semi-desert regions of southwestern Africa. It is only found on rocks, up to an altitude of 1,300 m (4,300 ft).

<i>Ficus coronulata</i> Species of fig

Ficus coronulata, commonly known as the peach-leaf fig, and in the Northern Territory as river fig and crown fig, is one of several fig species commonly known as sandpaper figs. It is native to Western Australia and the Northern Territory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wonderboom (tree)</span> Dense grove of parent and daughter trees of the species Ficus salicifolia

The Wonderboom is a dense grove of parent and daughter trees of the species Ficus salicifolia, that descended from a central bole of about a thousand years old. It is situated in the Wonderboom Nature Reserve, Pretoria, and two circular walkways currently protect it from pedestrian traffic around its trunk and roots. As it has grown, its outlying branches have rooted themselves around the parent tree. This has repeated until there are now three layers of daughter trees encircling the mother fig, with 13 distinct trunks, covering an area with a diameter of over 50 metres.

<i>Ficus asperifolia</i> Species of plant

Ficus asperifolia is a species of shrub or small sized gynodioecious fig tree belonging to the family Moraceae. It grows up to 6 m high and often has climbing branches.

Ficus tremula is an hemi-epiphytic species within the family Moraceae. It is pollinated by the fig wasp, Courtella wardi.

References

  1. Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) & IUCN SSC Global Tree Specialist Group (2019). "Ficus ingens". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2019: e.T146188374A146218605. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-2.RLTS.T146188374A146218605.en . Retrieved 27 July 2024.
  2. "Ficus ingens (Miq.) Miq". Plants of the World Online . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved 27 July 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 "Ficus ingens (Miq.) Miq". African Plant Database. Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques & South African National Biodiversity Institute. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  4. 1 2 van Noort, S.; Rasplus, J. "Ficus ingens (Miquel) Miquel 1867". Figweb. isiko museums. Archived from the original on 5 November 2014. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Palgrave, K. C. (1984). Trees of Southern Africa. Cape Town: Struik. p. 110. ISBN   0-86977-081-0.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Jordaan, Marie. "Ficus ingens (Miq.) Miq". PlantZAfrica.com. SANBI. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  7. "Records: Ficus ingens (Miq.) Miq". Tropicos. Missouri Botanical Garden. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  8. De Winter, B.; De Winter, M.; Killick, D. J. B. (1966). Sixty-Six Transvaal Trees. National Tree List for South Africa. pp. 24–25.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Palmer, Eve (1977). A Field Guide to the Trees of Southern Africa. London, Johannesburg: Collins. pp. 90–91. ISBN   0-620-05468-9.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Trees and Shrubs of the Witwatersrand. Johannesburg: Tree Society of South Africa, Witwatersrand University Press. 1974. pp. 24–25. ISBN   0-85494-236-X.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 Mogg, A. O. D. (1975). Important plants of Sterkfontein. Johannesburg: University of the Witwatersrand. pp. 78–79. ISBN   0-85494-426-5.
  12. 1 2 Myburgh, Jan G.; Fourie, Niel; Kellerman, T. Stephanus; Cornelius, S.T.; Ward, Caroline; Van der Lugt, Jaco J.; Verwoerd, Daniel Wynand (1994). "A nervous disorder in cattle cause by the plants Ficus ingens var. ingens and Ficus cordata subsp. salicifolia" (PDF). Onderstepoort Journal of Veterinary Research (61): 171–176. hdl:2263/32751 . Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  13. Freedman, Robert. "Famine Foods: Moraceae". Purdue Agriculture. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
  14. Lansky, E. P.; Paavilainen, H. M. (2010). Figs: The Genus Ficus, Traditional Herbal Medicines for Modern Times. Hoboken: CRC Press. p. 99. ISBN   978-1420089677.