Ficus subpisocarpa
Ficus subpisocarpa | |
---|---|
Ficus subpisocarpa in Taiwan | |
Ant nest within Ficus subpisocarpa branch | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Rosales |
Family: | Moraceae |
Genus: | Ficus |
Subgenus: | F. subg. Urostigma |
Species: | F. subpisocarpa
|
Binomial name | |
Ficus subpisocarpa | |
Synonyms[2] | |
|
Ficus subpisocarpa (called 笔管榕 in
Taxonomy
French botanist François Gagnepain described Ficus subpisocarpa in 1927, from a collection near Haiphong in Vietnam. It was reduced to a synonym of F. superba variety japonica by E. J. H. Corner in 1965,[4] before being raised to species status again by Cornelis Christiaan Berg in 2005. Two subspecies are recognised. Within the genus, Ficus subpisocarpa belongs in the banyan subgenus Urostigma section Urostigma subsection Urostigma.[2]
Description
Ficus subpisocarpa is a tree that grows up to 7 metres (23 feet) high, growing from the ground or directly on other trees (
Subspecies pubipoda is distinguished by having the base of the petiole covered in white fur.[2]
Distribution and habitat
The nominate subspecies is found from Southern Japan, Taiwan, Hainan and eastern China (where it occurs in Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, southern Yunnan and southeastern Zhejiang provinces), through Vietnam, Laos and Thailand into Indonesia where it reaches Ceram in the Moluccas. It is possibly found in Cambodia.[2][5] Subspecies pubipoda is found in Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Peninsular Malaysia.[2]
Both subspecies are found in deciduous and evergreen forests, the nominate at low altitudes and subspecies pubipoda to 1,400 m (4,600 ft).[2]
Ecology
In a field study in Taiwan, ants were found to inhabit cavities within internodes of young branches of Ficus subpisocarpa.[6] They feed on wasps, more commonly on non-pollinating rather than the pollinating species necessary for the fig to reproduce. It is possible that the fig developed the cavities to accommodate the ants. 75% of ants recorded in the study belonged to the genus Crematogaster, with the remainder belonging to the genera Technomyrmex, Myrmica and Prenolepis. Sometimes two ant species shared the cavities. The cavities mostly ranged between 2 and 14 cm (1 and 5.5 in) in length. The ants appear to tend aphids and scale insects that are present on the fig plant.[6] Ficus subpisocarpa is the second Ficus species observed with ants inhabiting branch cavities, the first observation was done in Borneo on Ficus obscura var. borneensis.[7]
References
- . Retrieved 9 February 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Berg, Cornelis C. (2007). "Precursory taxonomic studies on Ficus (Moraceae) for the Flora of Thailand" (PDF). Thai Forest Bulletin. Botany. 35: 4–28. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-02-21.
- ISBN 1-930723-40-7.
- ^ Corner, E. J. H. (1965). "Check-list of Ficus in Asia and Australasia with keys to identification". The Gardens' Bulletin Singapore. (digitised, online, via biodiversitylibrary.org). 21 (1): 1–186. Retrieved 5 Feb 2014.
- ^ ISBN 1-930723-40-7.
- ^ .
- ^ Maschwitz, U.; Fiala, B.; Saw, L.G.; Yusoff, N.-R. & Idris, A.H. (1994). "Ficus obscura var. borneensis (Moraceae), a new non-specific ant-plant from Malesia". Malayan Nature Journal. 47: 409–16.