Ficus villosa Blume

Etymology	Genus	From the Latin name for the fig (Ficus species)
	Species	Soft hairs
Family		Moraceae
Synonyms		Ficus barbata Wall. ex Miq., Ficus grossivenis Miq.
Common Names		Shaggy Leaf Fig, Villous Fig
Status		Native: Endangered
Form		Woody climber
Native Distribution		India, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore

Diagnostics:

Ficus villosa is a climber found in our nature reserves. The leaves have two different forms. The first has a very distinct heart-shaped leaf base and only appears when it is creeping up a tree, and lay flat on the trunk as if plastered onto it. The second leaf form is more elongated with less distinct heart-shaped base. The form occur when the branch hang freely downwards from the tree it climbed.The figs ripen to orange and is nipple-like because of the protruding ostioles.

Interesting Facts:

A convenient place to see an extensive growth of the Shaggy Leaf Fig is on the Calophyllum inophyllum tree (a designated heritage tree), just outside the library, at the Botany Centre, Singapore Botanic Gardens.

References

Ng BC. A Ng, B Lee, AL Chuah, SG Goh, JTK Lai, GC Tan & V D'Rozario. (2005) A Guide to the Fabulous Figs of Singapore. Singapore Science Centre, Singapore. 152 pp.


Author: Siyang
Posted: 2013-09-17 / Modified: 2025-10-28