Dischidia astephana is a species of plant in the genus

Dischidia ''Dischidia'' is a genus of plants in the "dog-bane" family Apocynaceae, collectively known as the "milkweeds" (true perennial milkweeds in the ''Apocynaceae'' are found in the genus ''Asclepias''). They are epiphytes, native to tropical areas o ...

native to

Peninsular Malaysia Peninsular Malaysia, historically known as Malaya and also known as West Malaysia or the Malaysian Peninsula, is the western part of Malaysia that comprises the southern part of the Malay Peninsula on Mainland Southeast Asia and the list of isla ...

and

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

. A vining

epiphyte An epiphyte is a plant or plant-like organism that grows on the surface of another plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphyt ...

that can cover an entire tree branch in dense leaves, it is often found growing near other Dischidia including '' D. albida,'' '' D. parvifolia,'' and ''D. vadosa''. Its leaves are shaped like flat rings or domes, some of which will be tightly appressed to the surface of the tree where it grows. It lives symbiotically with ants of the ''

Crematogaster ''Crematogaster'' is an ecologically diverse genus of ants found worldwide, which are characterised by a distinctive heart-shaped gaster (insect anatomy), gaster (abdomen), which gives them one of their common names, the Saint Valentine ant. Mem ...

'' genus on trees, with the roots growing inside ant nests and using debris for nutrients.

References

astephana Plants described in 1908 Taxa named by James Sykes Gamble Taxa named by George King (botanist) {{Apocynaceae-stub