The Laurel fig (''Ficus ilicina'') is a species of rock-splitting
that is native to the semi-desert regions of southwestern Africa. It is only found on rocks,
up to an altitude of .
Description
It is generally a scrambler on rocks, but also a medium-sized shrub, or rarely a large tree of tall or more.
[ It is mostly evergreen, though a few are bare in spring, just before new foliage emerges. The elliptic leaves are more than twice as long as they are wide, shiny above and matte below.][ The sessile or stalked figs are produced in the summer months. They are about in diameter and appear in the leaf axils near the branch tips.][
]
Range
It occurs in southwestern Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...
, the Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...
n escarpment
An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations.
Due to the similarity, the term '' scarp'' may mistakenly be incorrectly used inte ...
and Khomas hochland, and in the Northern Cape
The Northern Cape ( ; ; ) is the largest and most sparsely populated Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. It was created in 1994 when the Cape Province was split up. Its capital is Kimberley, South Africa, Kimberley. It includes ...
, South Africa.
Species associations
The pollinating wasp is '' Elisabethiella enriquesi'' (Grandi).[ The figs are eaten by birds and people.][
]
References
External links
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15475372
Trees of Africa
Flora of Southern Africa
ilicina
Taxa named by Friedrich Anton Wilhelm Miquel