Ficus obliqua

Small-leaved fig
Ficus obliqua, Milton, New South Wales
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Moraceae
Genus: Ficus
Species:
F. obliqua
Binomial name
Ficus obliqua
Synonyms[2]

Ficus obliqua G.Forst. var. obliqua
Ficus backhousei (Miq.) Miq.
Ficus eugenioides (Miq.) F.Muell. ex Miq.
Ficus tryonii F.M.Bailey
Ficus virginea Banks & Sol. ex Hiern
Urostigma backhousei Miq.
Urostigma eugenioides Miq.
Urostigma obliquum (G.Forst.) Miq.

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 (Ficus carica). 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.

The small round yellow fruit ripen and turn red at any time of year, although ripening peaks in autumn and winter (April to July). Known as a syconium, the fruit is an inverted inflorescence with the flowers lining an internal cavity. Ficus obliqua is pollinated by two species of fig waspPleistodontes greenwoodi and P. xanthocephalus. Many species of bird, including pigeons, parrots and various passerines, eat the fruit. The range is along the east coast from Queensland, through New South Wales in rainforest, savanna woodland, sclerophyll forest and gallery forest. It is used as a shade tree in parks and public spaces, and is well-suited for use as an indoor plant or in bonsai. All parts of the tree have been used in traditional medicine in Fiji.

  1. ^ Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI).; IUCN SSC Global Tree Specialist Group (2018). "Ficus obliqua". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2018: e.T61886108A135882548. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T61886108A135882548.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Ficus obliqua G.Forst.". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI), IBIS database. Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government. Retrieved 1 October 2013.