Malesian Euphorbiaceae Descriptions

19. BOTRYOPHORA (Euphorbiaceae)

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Botryophora Hook.f.

Botryophora Hook.f., Fl. Brit. Ind. 5 (1888) 476, nom. cons. (against Botryophora Bompard, Chlorophyta); Pax in Engl. & Prantl, Pflanzenfam. III, 5 (1891) 116; Pax & K.Hoffm. in Engl. & Harms, Natürl. Pflanzenfam. ed. 2, 19c (1931) 228; Airy Shaw, Kew Bull. 3 (1949) 484; 14 (1960) 374; Hooker’s Icon. Pl. 36 (1962) t. 3576; Kew Bull. 26 (1972) 224; Whitmore, Tree Fl. Malaya 2 (1973) 72; Airy Shaw, Kew Bull., Add. Ser. 4 (1975) 61; Kew Bull. 36 (1981) 269; G.L.Webster, Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 81 (1994) 77; Radcl.-Sm., Gen. Euphorbiacearum (2001) 174; Chayam. in Chayam. & Welzen, Fl. Thailand 8, 1 (2005) 132; G.L.Webster in Kubitzki, Fam. Gen. Vasc. Pl. 11 (2014) 126. — Type: Botryophora kingii Hook.f. [= Botryophora geniculata (Miq.) Beumée ex Airy Shaw].

(Shrubs to) trees, dioecious; branches terete, single long nodes interchanging with several short nodes, latter somewhat thickened, with groups of leaves, branches sometimes hollow. Indumentum short, hirsute, whitish simple hairs, glabrescent, usually absent on most parts. Stipules absent. Leaves alternate, but grouped due to short internodes, simple; petiole slightly dorsoventrally flattened, basally and apically pulvinate, apically geniculate, glabrous (to hairy); blade symmetric, stiff papery to somewhat coriaceous, small extrafloral nectaries between secondary veins within loops on both sides, penninerved, tertiary veins ± scalariform, looped and closed near margin, quarternary and higher order veins reticulate. Inflorescences cauli- to ramiflorous (according to Radcliffe-Smith, 2001: also terminal and axillary, but latter not observed), pendent, drying blackish; staminate ones paniculate, with only horizontal, 1-order branches, (glabrous to) somewhat hirsute; pistillate inflorescences racemose. Flowers without petals. Staminate flowers single or in twos, subsessile with apical bract on pedicel; sepals 2, valvate, strongly concave; disc glands surrounding the stamens as low, irregular ridges; stamens 50–60, forming dense convex mass, consisting of short, terete filament with on top a horizontal connective, latter forming a flat, toothed cap from which on one side two pairs of 2 thecae hang, latter longitudinally dehiscent; staminode absent. Pistillate flowers not seen, description mainly from Airy Shaw (1960), Radcliffe-Smith (2001): subsessile; sepals 3 or 4, occluded beneath the disc, closely appressed to it; disc big, 6–8-lobed; ovary 3(4)-locular, ovules single per locule, style mainly absent, stigmas short, apically entire, densely papillose above. Fruits 3(4)-cornered ovoid capsules, slightly ridged along the locules, opening only tardily loculicidally, glabrous; wall thin, somewhat woody when dry; columella stout, apically widened. Seeds 3(4), rounded-squarish, dorsoventrally flattened, ecarunculate.

Distribution — Monotypic, Lower Burma (no specimens seen), Peninsular Thailand (Phuket), Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, SW Java, Borneo (Sabah, E Kalimantan).

Botryophora geniculata (Miq.) Airy Shaw

Botryophora geniculata (Miq.) Beumée [Hoe het groeide (1947)] ex Airy Shaw, Kew Bull. 3 (1949) 484; Kew Bull. 14 (1960) 375; Hook. Ic. Pl. 36 (1962) t. 3576; Steenis, Blumea 12 (1963) 15; W.Meijer, Bot. News Bull., Sandakan 7 (1967) 29; Bot. News Bull., Sandakan 10 (1968) tab. opp. p. 64; Airy Shaw, Kew Bull. 26 (1972) 224; Whitmore, Tree Fl. Malaya 2 (1973) 72; Airy Shaw, Kew Bull., Addit. Ser. 4 (1975) 61; Kew Bull. 36 (1981) 271, Fig. 4; Kew Bull., Addit. Ser. 4 (1975) 61. — Sterculia geniculata Miq., Fl. Ned. Ind., Eerste Bijv. (1861) 164, 400. — Type: Diepenhorst HB 694 (holo U), Sumatra, Priaman.

Botryophora kingii Hook.f., Fl. Brit. India 5 (1888) 476; Pax in Engl. & Prantl, Pflanzenfam. III, 5 (1891) 116; Ridl., J. Fed. Malay States Mus. 10 (1920) 116; Fl. Malay Penins. 3 (1924) 282; Merr., Paper Mich. Acad. Sci. 20 (1935) 101 [non Gage, Nova Guinea 12 (1917) 486 (Pulle 230 = Endospermum moluccanum (Teijsm. & Binn.) Kurz, see Steenis, Nova Guinea II, 7 (1956) 8]. — Type: King’s collector 7557 (holo K), Malaysia, Perak, Larut.

Ostodes sp.: Burkill ex Merr., Pl. Elmer. (1929) 164.

(Shrubs to) trees up to 22.5 m high, dbh up to 40 cm, bole up to 12 m high, young parts glabrous (to hairy); flowering branches 8.5–11 mm in diam. Outer bark cracking, scaly, brown-grey to greyish, brittle, 0.5–2 mm thick; inner bark soft, orange to brownish yellow to brown to blackish, c. 3 mm thick; sapwood pale yellow to yellow, wood very hard. Leaves purplish green when young; petioles 1.3–20 cm long; blade (ovate to) elliptic, 9.7–60 by 2.5–20 cm, length/width ratio 2.8–4.3, base slightly emarginate to broadly acute, margin entire, flat, apex (acuminate to) caudate, upper and lower surface smooth, glabrous (to slightly hairy on venation), glossy bright green, venation distinct, slightly raised above to nerves depressed in large blades, raised underneath, nerves 11–17 per side. Staminate inflorescences up to 35 cm long, dark red to purple, branches up to 5.3 cm long; bracts to staminate flowers on top of short pedicel, ovate, 0.9–1 by 0.2–0.3 mm, glabrous to generally hairy outside. Staminate flowers 3.5–4 mm in diam., glabrous, yellow to partly red to reddish purple; buds globular, apiculate, 1.6–2.2 mm in diam., purplish pale green to red to purple; pedicels 0.2–0.8 mm long; sepals ovate, 2.2–3 by 2.6–2.8 mm; disc glands red-violet; stamens yellow, filaments c. 0.4 mm long, connective 0.7–1 by c. 0.7 mm, yellow, thecae c. 0.2 by 0.2 mm. Pistillate inflorescences up to 16 cm long (Airy Shaw, 1960), with single flowers per node. Pistillate flowers (Airy Shaw, 1960): sepals minute, triangular-subulate, c. 0.8 mm long; disc 1–2 mm high; ovary 2–3 by c. 2 mm; stigmas 1.3–2 mm long. Young fruits: pedicel c. 3.5 mm long; disc c. 1.5–2 mm high. Fruits c. 3.9 cm wide by 3.5 cm high, crimson to dark brown; columella c. 22 mm high. Seeds 15–20 mm high by 13–15 mm wide by 9–10.5 mm thick, dark brown.

Distribution — As the genus.

Habitat & Ecology — Primary and secondary forests, logged forest, swamp forest, river banks. Soil: clayey, sandy loam on lime. Altitude: 16–700 m. Flowering: February–May, September–December; fruiting: March, October, November.

Vernacular names — Sumatra: Kajoe si rahrah, Kajoe si rah-rah tombak; Pauh-rimbo (Malay; Miquel, 1861). Borneo, Kalimantan Timur: Koelakak.

Note — Only several (not all) specimens on the Malay Peninsular had hairy twigs, petioles and leaf blade venation. On Borneo the leaves and inflorescences (perhaps also the fruits) tend to be smaller; Bornean specimens are also more glabrous.