Ficus ovata Vahl

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Ficus ovata

Solwezi Floriana Lodge; Nov 2011.
Photo: Mike Bingham

Ficus ovata

Lusaka SE, grown from seed collected from Ndola; Jun 2013.
Photo: Mike Bingham

Ficus ovata

Samfya beach; Sep 2008.
Photo: Mike Bingham

Ficus ovata

Samfya beach; Sep 2008.
Photo: Mike Bingham

Ficus ovata

Lusaka SE, grown from seed collected from Ndola; Apr 2013.
Photo: Mike Bingham

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Species details: Click on each item to see an explanation of that item (Note: opens a new window)

Synonyms: Ficus brachypoda Hutch.
Common names: Cilemba (Bemba) Cilemba (Kunda)
Frequency: Occasional to common
Status: Native
Description:
Tree to about 15 m. tall, or a shrub, terrestrial or starting as an epiphyte or lithophyte. The bark is pale grey-brown with regularly spaced paler latitudinal stripes, and small crumb-like scales over the general surface on top of longitudinal papery scales. The leaves are discolorous, glabrous above and finely tomentose below. The figs are borne singly or in pairs in the leaf axils or on old wood. The mature figs are typically ellipsoid, green with whitish spots.
Type location:
Ghana
Notes: Classification: subgenus Urostigma, section Galoglychia, subsection Caulocarpae
Derivation of specific name: ovata: egg shaped
Habitat: Mostly open situations or margins of riverine forest, but also miombo woodland, and disturbed areas, cracks in buildings, and road verges.
Altitude range: Up to 2100 m
Flowering time:
Worldwide distribution: Widespread in tropical Africa. In Zambia restricted to the northern higher rainfall provinces,, Malawi and Mozambique.
Zambian distribution (Flora Zambesiaca): N,W
Zambian distribution (Provinces): Nw,Cb,Lp,Mc
Growth form(s): Tree.
Endemic status:
Red data list status: Lower Risk - least concern
Insects associated with this species: Courtella hamifera (Pollinated by this insect)
Spot characters: Display spot characters for this species
Content last updated: Friday 5 July 2013
Literature:

Berg C.C. & Wiebes J.T. (1992). African fig trees and fig wasps. Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen. Amsterdam

Berg, C.C. (1991). Moraceae Flora Zambesiaca 9(6)

Burrows, J.E. & Burrows, S.M. (2003). Figs of Southern and South-Central Africa Umdaus Press, South Africa Pages 208 - 211. (Includes a picture).

Burrows, J.E. & Willis, C.K. (eds) (2005). Plants of the Nyika Plateau Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 31 SABONET, Pretoria Page 215.

Burrows, J.E., Burrows, S.M., Lötter, M.C. & Schmidt, E. (2018). Trees and Shrubs Mozambique Publishing Print Matters (Pty), Cape Town. Page 91. (Includes a picture).

Setshogo, M.P. (2005). Preliminary checklist of the plants of Botswana. Sabonet Report no. 37. Sabonet, Pretoria and Gaborone Page 88.

Other sources of information about Ficus ovata:

Our websites:

Flora of Botswana: Ficus ovata
Flora of Caprivi: cultivated Ficus ovata
Flora of Malawi: Ficus ovata
Flora of Mozambique: Ficus ovata

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Ficus ovata
African Plant Database: Ficus ovata
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Ficus ovata
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Ficus ovata
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Ficus ovata
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Ficus ovata
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Ficus ovata
JSTOR Plant Science: Ficus ovata
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Ficus ovata
Plants of the World Online: Ficus ovata
Tropicos: Ficus ovata
Wikipedia: Ficus ovata


Copyright: Mike Bingham, Annette Willemen, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Mark Hyde, 2011-24

Bingham, M.G., Willemen, A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. and Hyde, M.A. (2024). Flora of Zambia: Species information: Ficus ovata.
https://www.zambiaflora.com/speciesdata/species.php?species_id=184280, retrieved 19 March 2024

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