Ficus cordata

Namaqua fig
In the Fish River Canyon, Namibia
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Moraceae
Genus:	Ficus
Species:	F. cordata
Binomial name
Ficus cordata Thunb.

Ficus cordata, the Namaqua fig, is a species of fig that occurs in two disjunct populations in Africa, one in the arid southwest of the continent, and a second in the northern subtropics. In the south it is often the largest and most prominent tree,^[1] and is virtually restricted to cliff faces and rock outcrops,^[2] where it has a rock-splitting habit.^[3]

Races

The races are:^[4]

• F. c. cordata – southwestern Africa
• F. c. lecardii (Warb.) C.C.Berg – Senegal to central Africa^[5]

Range and habitat

The nominate race is native to arid western South Africa, Namibia and southwestern Angola,^[2] while a second race is native to Africa's northern subtropics. The nominate race is found in fynbos, succulent Karoo and Nama Karoo,^[2] while the northern race is found in savannah, up to 1,500 m above sea level.^[5]

Species associations

The nominate race is pollinated by the wasp Platyscapa desertorum Compton.. The wasp Comptoniella vannoorti Wiebes. is an associated non-pollinator that oviposits through the fig wall.^[2] The pollinator wasp of the northern race, F. c. lecardii, is as yet unknown.^[5]

Similar species

F. salicifolia,^[6] the Wonderboom, is sometimes deemed a third race of Ficus cordata, i.e. F. c. subsp. salicifolia (Vahl) C.C.Berg, but it lacks the yellowish sessile figs of F. cordata, and its range is much to the east.

Foliage

References