Microcos antidesmifolia (King) Burret

Chung, R. C. K. & Soepadmo, E., 2011, Taxonomic revision of the genus Microcos (Malvaceae-Grewioideae) in Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, Blumea 56 (3), pp. 273-299 : 275-277

1. Microcos antidesmifolia (King) Burret

Microcos antidesmifolia (King) Burret (1926) 780; I.M.Turner (1997) 487; R.C.K. Chung et al. (2005b) 105. — Grewia antidesmifolia King (1891) 113 (as ‘ antidesmaefolia ’); Ridl.(1922) 302; Kochummen (1973) 397, p.p.; (1997) 428; Corner (1988) 733. — Lectotype ( Chung et al. 2005b): King’s Collector 4029 (holo K), Peninsular Malaysia, Perak, Larut.

Medium-sized tree to 24 m tall, dbh to 50 cm; buttresses occasionally present, short plank-like. Outer bark smooth to minutely dippled, greenish grey to greyish brown; inner bark pinkish brown to orange-brown, fibrous; sapwood pale yellow to whitish. Twigs striate, greyish brown or pale brown to brown, densely or sparsely covered with stellate hairs when young, glabrescent when older. Stipules unlobed, early caducous or persistent. Leaves greenish brown or pale green to olive-green on both sides, chartaceous, glabrous or sparsely covered with stellate hairs on midrib and secondary veins above, glabrous or sparsely covered with stellate hairs beneath; petioles (5–)6 – 20(– 25) mm long, 1–1.5(–2) mm thick, olive-green or brown to dark brown when dried, apically not swollen, densely or sparsely covered with stellate hairs to glabrescent; blade narrowly elliptic or oblong, equilateral or inequilateral, (7.5–)9– 22(–27) by (3–)4 –8(–9) cm, base cuneate or obtuse to rounded, margin entire, not ciliate, apex acute or acuminate, acumen 0.5 –1.5 cm long with a blunt tip; midrib and secondary veins flattened above, raised beneath, secondary veins 5 –7(– 8) pairs, basal pair reaching between 0.5 and 0.75 of blade length, forming an angle to 45° with the midrib; domatia absent or pocket-type and hairy inside, or sometimes covered with stellate hairs without pocket, in axils of basal vein pair and other veins beneath; tertiary veins reticulate, inconspicuous above, conspicuous or obscure beneath. Inflorescences Type A and/or Type B panicles, terminal or axillary, (1.5–)2–7.5(–10) cm long, densely covered with stellate hairs; bracts unlobed, narrowly oblong, 3– 4 by 0.8 –1 mm, densely covered with stellate hairs on both sides, caducous; involucral bracts of outer whorl 2.5 – 4.5 mm long, (2–)3-lobed or (2–)3-cleft, lobes lanceolate to ovate, 0.5 –1.5 mm long, apex acute, smooth outside, densely covered with stellate hairs on both sides, that of inner whorl oblanceolate, narrowly oblong or rarely linear, 1.5 – 4 by (0.2–) 1–1.5 mm, apex acute, obtuse or obliquely truncate, densely covered with stellate hairs on both sides. Flower buds oblong or occasionally ellipsoid, 2 – 4(– 5.5) by 1– 2.2(– 2.5) mm, densely covered with stellate hairs; pedicels 0.5–1.5(–2) mm long, 0.4– 0.9 mm thick, densely covered with stellate hairs; sepals narrowly oblong, oblong or oblanceolate, 3 –6(–6.5) by 0.7–1.5(–2) mm, densely covered with stellate hairs outside, sparsely covered with stellate hairs inside; petals absent or 5, elliptic, oblong or obovate, 1.2 –2.5 by 0.7–1 mm, apex obtuse, rounded or truncate (1– 2-lobed), outside sparsely covered with glandular trichomes or sparsely covered with stellate hairs near base and sparsely covered with glandular trichomes towards the apex, inside densely covered with stellate hairs around the glands reaching between 0.5 and 0.75 of its length and sparsely covered with glandular trichomes towards the apex; glands globose, broadly ovoid or broadly depressed ovoid; androgynophore concave in outline, 0.5 –1.5 mm long, 0.5 –1 mm diam, very shallowly longitudinally grooved, glabrous, apical part expanded into a platform-like structure of c. 0.3 mm wide with undulate rim covered with stellate hairs; stamens with filaments 2.5– 4.2 mm long, glabrous or sparsely covered with stellate hairs at base to c. 0.25 of its length and glabrous towards the apex, anthers c. 0.2 mm diam; ovary 3(–4)-locular, ovoid or subglobose to globose, 0.7–1.5 mm diam, oblate, depressed ovate or depressed obovate in cross section, densely covered with stellate hairs (in buds), glabrescent or sparsely covered with glandular trichomes (in flowers); style 1.5– 3.2 mm long, glabrous. Infructescences sparsely covered with stellate hairs. Fruits ripening orange to red, pyriform, with 3 – 4 shallow vertical lobes, 1.5 – 2.5 by 0.7–1.5 cm, drying dark brown to black, glabrous; apex obtuse to rounded or with tiny beaked; pseudostalk narrowed, 4 –10 mm long; exocarp membranous; mesocarp 1–2 mm thick; endocarp 0.5–1 mm thick, woody. Pyrenes 3 –4, partly connate or free; fertile pyrenes 1–2(–3), 1-seeded, 7–10 mm long; sterile pyrenes 1–2(–3), conspicuous; pyrenes arranged triangularly, with the fertile one larger than the sterile pyrenes.

Distribution — Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo.

Note — Two varieties are recognised and can be distinguished by the characters shown in the key below.