Ficus villosa

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Ficus villosa
Ficus villosa.jpg
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. villosa
Binomial name
Ficus villosa
Synonyms [1]
  • Ficus barbataWall. ex Miq.
  • Ficus grossivenisMiq.

Ficus villosa, known as the shaggy-leaf fig or villous fig, is a species of Ficus native to South East Asia.

Contents

Etymology

The species epithet "villosa" is derived from Latin villōsa "hairy", from villus "hair" and the adjective suffix -ōsus "full of". This refers to the fine hairs that cover the leaves of this plant.

Biology

Description

F. villosa is a climbing vine that is reported to reach 2.4 m in length in the home garden, [2] but in the wild, it will grow several feet high on trees. When fully mature, its alternate, stalked leaves have thick, leathery blades up to 30cm long with sunken venation on the upper surfaces. The heart-shaped, hairy juvenile leaves measure about 3-6 cm, and have a reddish colour which fades to green as the leaf matures. The stems of F. villosa are woody and release latex when cut. Its flowers are small, inconspicuous and cream-coloured and develop into round orange fruits.

An illustration of the mature leaves Ficus villosa Blume -Choix des plantes rares ou nouvelles (1863-1864).jpg
An illustration of the mature leaves

Distribution

F. villosa is found throughout Southeast Asia from northeast India, southern China, south to Java, Sulawesi and the Maluku islands of Indonesia. [3] It is found at altitudes up to 1700 m, mainly in primary, secondary and swamp forests.

It proliferates within the Singapore Botanic Gardens where it is often seen growing scandent on Calophyllum inophyllum trees. [1]

Ecology

F. villosa is pollinated by fig wasps and its seeds are primarily dispersed by birds and small mammals.

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Banyan</span> Subgenus of plants, the banyans

A banyan, also spelled banian, is a fig that develops accessory trunks from adjacent prop roots, allowing the tree to spread outwards indefinitely. This distinguishes banyans from other trees with a strangler habit that begin life as an epiphyte, i.e. a plant that grows on another plant, when its seed germinates in a crack or crevice of a host tree or edifice. "Banyan" often specifically denotes Ficus benghalensis, which is the national tree of India, though the name has also been generalized to denominate all figs that share a common life cycle and used systematically in taxonomy to denominate the subgenus Urostigma.

<i>Ficus macrophylla</i> Species of banyan tree

Ficus macrophylla, commonly known as the Moreton Bay fig or Australian banyan, is a large evergreen banyan tree of the Mulberry Family (Moraceae) native to eastern Australia, from the Wide Bay–Burnett region in the north to the Illawarra in New South Wales, as well as Lord Howe Island where the subspecies F. m. columnaris is a banyan form covering 2.5 acres or more of ground. Its common name is derived from Moreton Bay in Queensland, Australia. It is best known for its imposing buttress roots.

<i>Ficus rubiginosa</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Moraceaea native to eastern Australia

Ficus rubiginosa, the rusty fig or Port Jackson fig, is a species of flowering plant native to eastern Australia in the genus Ficus. Beginning as a seedling that grows on other plants (hemiepiphyte) or rocks (lithophyte), F. rubiginosa matures into a tree 30 m (100 ft) high and nearly as wide with a yellow-brown buttressed trunk. The leaves are oval and glossy green and measure from 4 to 19.3 cm long and 1.25 to 13.2 cm wide.

<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 elastica</i> Species of banyan tree

Ficus elastica, the rubber fig, rubber bush, rubber tree, rubber plant, or Indian rubber bush, Indian rubber tree, is a species of flowering plant in the family Moraceae, native to eastern parts of South and Southeast Asia. It has become naturalized in Sri Lanka, the West Indies, and the US state of Florida. Despite its common names, it is not used in the commercial production of natural rubber.

<i>Ficus lyrata</i> Species of flowering plant in the fig and mulberry family Moraceae

Ficus lyrata, commonly known as the fiddle-leaf fig, banjo fig, fiddle-leaved fig tree, lyre leaf fig tree, or lyre-leaved fig tree, is a species of plant in the mulberry and fig family Moraceae. It is native to western Africa, but is cultivated around the world as an ornamental plant. It has received the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

<i>Ficus pumila</i> Species of climbing fig

Ficus pumila, commonly known as the creeping fig or climbing fig, is a species of flowering plant in the mulberry family, native to East Asia and naturalized in parts of the southeastern and south-central United States. It is also found in cultivation as a houseplant. The Latin specific epithet pumila means "dwarf", and refers to the very small leaves of the plant.

<i>Ficus insipida</i> Species of fig tree from the Neotropics

Ficus insipida is a common tropical tree in the fig genus of the family Moraceae growing in forest habitats along rivers. It ranges from Mexico to northern South America.

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

Ficus coronata, commonly known as the sandpaper fig or creek sandpaper fig, is a cauliflorous species of fig tree, native to Australia. It is found along the east coast from Mackay in Central Queensland, through New South Wales and just into Victoria near Mallacoota. It grows along river banks and gullies in rainforest and open forest. Its common name is derived from its rough sandpapery leaves, which it shares with the other sandpaper figs.

<i>Ficus obliqua</i> A tree, the small-leaved fig

Ficus obliqua, commonly known as the small-leaved fig, is a tree in the family Moraceae, native to eastern Australia, New Guinea, eastern Indonesia to Sulawesi and islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. Previously known for many years as Ficus eugenioides, it is a banyan of the genus Ficus, which contains around 750 species worldwide in warm climates, including the edible fig. Beginning life as a seedling, which grows on other plants (epiphyte) or on rocks (lithophyte), F. obliqua can grow to 60 m (200 ft) high and nearly as wide with a pale grey buttressed trunk, and glossy green leaves.

<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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fig</span> Species of flowering plant known as the common fig

The fig is the edible fruit of Ficus carica, a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae, native to the Mediterranean region, together with western and southern Asia. It has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world. Ficus carica is the type species of the genus Ficus, containing over 800 tropical and subtropical plant species.

Ficus yoponensis is a species of fig tree found in Central and South America. It can grow to heights of 40–50 metres (130–160 ft) tall, having a trunk diameter of 1 metre (3.3 ft). The trunk is buttressed, light grey in colour and reasonably smooth. Its petioles are 1–2.5 centimetres (0.39–0.98 in) long, the stipules are straight and 3–5 centimetres (1.2–2.0 in) long. The leaves and stems are hairless. The leaves are 6–11 centimetres (2.4–4.3 in) long and 2.5–4 centimetres (0.98–1.57 in) wide, but larger in juveniles, being up to 28 centimetres (11 in) long and 5 centimetres (2.0 in) wide. The time at which they flower varies between individuals, but each tree tends to flower at a similar time each year. As in all figs, the flowers are enclosed inside the fig and can only be accessed by fig wasps, which enter to pollinate the flowers and lay their own eggs. The resulting fruit grows to 1.8 centimetres (0.71 in) in diameter and turns from green to purple with maturity. On average in Panama, F. yoponensis produce a new flush of leaves every 20 weeks and flower every 25 weeks. The species is similar in appearance to Ficus insipida but has smaller leaves, stipules and fruits and only occurs in primary forest whereas F. insipida is also found in secondary forest.

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

Ficus subpisocarpa is a species of small deciduous tree native to Japan, China, Taiwan and southeast Asia to the Moluccas (Ceram). Two subspecies are recognised. Terrestrial or hemiepiphytic, it reaches a height of 7 m (23 ft). Ants predominantly of the genus Crematogaster have been recorded living in stem cavities. Ficus subpisocarpa is pollinated by Platyscapa ishiiana (Agaonidae).

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

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

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

Ficus altissima, commonly known as the council tree and lofty fig, is a species of flowering plant, a fig tree in the family Moraceae. It is a large, stately evergreen hemiepiphyte and is native to southeastern Asia.

<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.

<i>Pseuduvaria villosa</i> Species of plant in the family Annonaceae

Pseuduvaria villosa is a species of plant in the family Annonaceae. It is endemic to Australia. L.W. Jessup, the botanist who first formally described the species, named it after its leaves and branchlets which are shaggy with long soft hairs.

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

Ficus grossularioides, the white-leaved fig, is a species of flowering plant that belongs to Moraceae, the fig or mulberry family, it is native to Southeast Asia.

References

  1. 1 2 "Shaggy Leaf Fig - Ficus villosa". uforest.org. Retrieved 2022-12-08.[ permanent dead link ]
  2. "Ficus Villosa - Jungle Jewel Exotics". junglejewelexotics.com. 2020-08-13. Retrieved 2022-12-08.
  3. "NParks | Ficus villosa". www.nparks.gov.sg. Retrieved 2022-12-08.