Ficus heteropleura


India (Andaman & Nicobar islands, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bengal, Tripura), Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Indochina, Malesia, Myanmar, Taiwan as per Synopsis of the Genus Ficus L. (Moraceae) in India Lal Babu Chaudhary*, Jana Venkata Sudhakar, Anoop Kumar, Omesh Bajpai, Rinkey Tiwari and G. V. S. Murthy- Taiwania, 57(2): 193-216, 2012;

Shrub or a small tree often epiphytic. Leaves alternate elliptic to ovate, 2-4 in long, 1.2-2.4 in wide leathery, coriaceous, glabrous, attenuated margin entire, apex acute to caudate, lateral veins 2-4 on either half, more prominent beneath, base narrowed at the base to the hairy petiole 1-1.5cm long, stipules subulate, minute. Figs axillary on normal leafy shoots, solitary or paires, globose, with short thick hairs, reddish yellow when ripe, basal bracts absent, peduncles hirsute, apical pore navel-like, sessile. Male flowers near apical pore, subsessile, calyx sepals 4, stamens 1, joined at the pistillode, Gall flowers shortly pedicellate, calyx sepals 3, ovary globose, style short. Female flowers calyx sepals 3, style short, stigma funnel shaped. Achenes obliquely ovoid. Syconus fruit.
Evergreen forests.
Asia: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam; Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura

(Attributions- Ganeshaiah, K. N., UAS, Bangalore, India & Kailash, B. R., UAS & ATREE, Bangalore, India)

 

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Help to identify this Ficus sp.
Date/Time- 31/08/2010- 11 AM
Location- Place, Altitude, GPS- Assam,
Habitat- Garden/ Urban/ Wild/ Type- Wild Type
Plant Habit- Tree/ Shrub/ Climber/ Herb- Small Tree
Height/Length- Leaf 10-15-6-8 cm
Flower- very small, 0.8-1.4cm across

I guess Ficus gibbosa

My guess is Ficus cyrtophylla. Pl check.

If the leaves have unequal bases then it should be F.gibbosa

Not only the leaf bases are unequal but one side of the leaf is more or less gibbous (swollen on one side or humped).

Here the second picture somewhat (more or less) shows that character. Further, small tree, 3-ribbed at leaf base, and smaller figs (usually about 0.6-0.9 cm in diameter) that are yellow when ripe scabrid (having a rough or scaly surface) are characters of F. gibbosa.
Hence this species is F. gibbosa of Moraceae family.

Again, according to “the plant list” the new name of Ficus gibbosa is Ficus tinctoria subsp. gibbosa (Blume) Corner.

(http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl/record/kew-2812576)

A link for Ficus tinctoria subsp. gibbosa

Somehow I am not convinced with Ficus gibbosa. Not sure, but acumen of the leaves are forcing me to go with F. cyrtophylla. Leaf base are also unequal here.
Providing herewith the links of the illustration provided in Fl. China for comparison:
F. cyrtophylla:
http://www.efloras.org/object_page.aspx?object_id=50263&flora_id=2
Ficus gibbosa:
http://www.efloras.org/object_page.aspx?object_id=50268&flora_id=2
Moreover, I am forwarding this mail to my friend Mr. … for confirmation. He has revised Moraceae (excluding Ficus) and has good knowledge on Indian Ficus. Hope he’ll respond soon.

Ficus heteropleura Blume (= Ficus urophylla Wall. ex Miq.)
Leaves are abruptly caudate, receptacles pedunculate, scabrid and hispid. Ficus gibbosa is synonymous to Ficus tinctoria subsp. gibbosa


 

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ID No. 09062011 RD_Ficus 01: 16 posts by 6 authors. Attachments (4)
Help to identify this Ficus sp.

Date/Time- 16/06/2010- 11 AM
Location- Place, Altitude, GPS- Assam,
Habitat- Garden/ Urban/ Wild/ Type- Wild Type
Plant Habit- Tree/ Shrub/ Climber/ Herb- Small Tree
Height/Length- Leaf 12-17-7-10 cm
Flower- Fig near the ground in clusters of many (1-2cm across)

Please check with Ficus parasitica

I agree with … The leaves and the fruits do point towards F. parasitica. i might be incorrect though………….

Although the leaves look like Ficus parasitica, the figs are born on pendulous leafless branches.

In Ficus parasitica in the figs are in the leaf axis mostly paired from a node(http://www.flickr.com/photos/dinesh_valke/5494138338/).
Therefore the plant in the picture is not Ficus parasitica. Please check the species Ficus oligodon in the following link and elsewhere.

http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=242322373

…, the link you have cited doesnt proof that its not F. parasitica, the foto of Dinesh valke is just of one branch and not of full plant or even another plant to compare…

and i dont think that F.parasitica fruits always comes in pair..?????
and coming to F. oligodon, i your link of Fl. of China its clearly written ripe fruits are red, where in this case its yellowish-orange..

Thank you for your detailed mail. It is getting interested.

As far as I know, in F.parasitica, figs are not born on separate leafless branches as seen in the pictures given. 

…, Please go through the conversation/s and put your thoughts in. It would be nice to know whether the ripened fruits turns red or not.

Thank you so much for leading the discussion, as this fig makes me little confusion. Firstly, let me tell about this species… This is a moderate (c 4-5m tall) tree and the ripened fig are orange-yellow, not red and size is 1-1.5cm across. There were no ridges seen in this figs. Secondly, As far as I know, F oligodon is tall tree with wide crown and figs have longitudinal ridges and borne in cluster. So I have attached few pics from my stock. Hope this could be F oligodon. Moreover, the shape of leaves is different in both the species, in F oligodon it is obovate but here it is elliptic. Size of fig in F oligodon is about 3-5cm and pear shaped and red in colour (as in this pic 1).

Thank you very much for the detailed information and wonderful pictures that are self explanatory this matches with the illustration and description in flora of China.

I still dont think that your first posting was of F. parasitica because of the figs are in separate leafless branches.

You are right. I too dont think this could be F parasitica. My first choice is F conglobata. Because the habitat as described is wet places in semievergreen forest matches with this one, another point is fig borne on special branches near the base of the stem which is prominent here. But have doubt on leaves arrangement. I dont have detail literature on this species. So if anyone in the Efl group have description on F conglobata please share with us.

My search for the said species was not successful. Waiting for reference with description and if possible key to the species.

Ficus congloblata King, Ann. Roy. Bot. Gard. (Calcutta) 1: 99 1888 is described in Brandis, Indian Trees, page 606.

The plant is closer to F. hispida and found in Sikkim outer hills to 3000 ft, Bhutan, Manipur, Chittagong
A small tree, young shoots and leaves harsh-silky with long ferruginous hairs, branchlets, petioles and nerves on underside of leaves covered with stiff rusty hairs; leaves opposite or alternate, regularly serrate, base often cordate, petiole 1-5 inches long; receptacles in axils of scarious bracts, from the base of the stem, in densely crowded corymbson stout branches creeping along or under the ground’ sterile receptacles small, numerous, with few fertile ones 1/2 inch in diam. on slender peduncles up to 5 inch long usually narrowed into a stalk, at the base of which are 3 large united bracts; ovary and style without hairs.
It Belongs to section Covellia in which receptacles occur on leafless branches from old wood, generally on trunk.
F. parasitica in this book is treated as synonym of F. gibbosa; receptacles are only 6-8 mm on up to 8 mm long peduncles.
Perhaps this information should help in fixing species.

As per plant details given, for a tree chances of Ficus heteropleura are higher and if this is a scandent shrub then Ficus sinuata. Since leaves in Ficus heteropleura and Ficus sinuata resemble very close as both are caudate acuminate with a difference that in F. sinuata leaves are sub-sinuately toothed (Ref: Flora of Assam).
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MS May,16/10 Ficus sp. for ID : 4 posts by 2 authors. Attachments (1)
Loation : Zotlang, Mizoram
Date : 03-05-2016
Habit : Shrub or small tree
Habitat : Wild

Pl. send the close up of the figs.
If you send three to four or more pictures for Id, it will always be helpful in finding quicker & more correct Id.

Should be Ficus heteropleura Blume

 


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