Elaeocarpus stipularis


Elaeocarpus stipularis is a tree in the Elaeocarpaceae family. It is found from the Aru Islands, eastern Indonesia, to Philippines, and through Mainland Southeast Asia to Odisha, India. It has edible fruit, its wood is used and some medical uses are ascribed to it.

Description

The evergreen, tall tree has a simple broad leaves. Its wood density is 0.46g/cm3 It fruits from November to May in Selangor, Malaysia.

Infraspecifics

The following varieties are accepted:
  • Elaeocarpus stipularis var. alticola Coode
  • Elaeocarpus stipularis var. atjehensis Coode
  • Elaeocarpus stipularis var. brevipes Coode
  • Elaeocarpus stipularis var. castaneus Coode
  • Elaeocarpus stipularis var. longipetiolatus Coode
  • Elaeocarpus stipularis var. nutans Coode
  • Elaeocarpus stipularis var. rejangensis Coode
  • Elaeocarpus stipularis var. siamensis Coode
Some of these varieties are synonymous with formerly accepted species:
  • variety brevipes has the synonyms: Elaeocarpus baramensis Knuth; Elaeocarpus brevipes Merr.
  • variety castaneus has the synonyms: Elaeocarpus castaneus Merr.; Elaeocarpus gambir Becc.
  • variety longipetiolatus has the synonym Elaeocarpus longipetiolatus Merr.
  • variety nutans has the synonym Elaeocarpus nutans Knuth.
  • variety rejangensis has the synonym Elaeocarpus rejangensis Knuth.
  • variety siamensis has the synonyms: Elaeocarpus siamensis Craib; Elaeocarpus wallichii Kurz.

Distribution

The species is found from northwestern islands of the Sahul/Australian continent, across southern Wallacea and throughout Southeast Asia: Indonesia, Timor Leste, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and India.
The varieties alticola and atjehensis are found in Sumatera.
The varieties brevipes, castaneus and rejangensis are found in Borneo.
The varieties longipetiolatus and nutans are found from Borneo to the Philippines
The variety siamensis is found in Thailand, Myanmar and India.

Habitat

In Cambodia and Vietnam it is found in open formations and in gallery forests, the edges of dense/closed forests. In Thailand's Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary it is a component of semievergreen forest.

Ecology

Parts of the plant are eaten by the fruitbats Balionycteris maculata, Chironax melanocephalus, Cynopterus brachyotis and Cynopterus horsfieldii, the kanchil Tragulus kanchil, the langur Presbytis femoralis, the pheasant Lophura erythrophthalma, the porcupine Trichys fasciculata, the rats Leopoldamys sabanus and Maxomys whiteheadi, the squirrels Rhinosciurus laticaudatus and Lariscus insignis, and the treeshrew Tupaia glis. In Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary, Thailand, the Asian black bear and the sun bear consume the fruit.

Vernacular names

Common names for the tree include: balunijok ;
mendong.
sa:ng nha:ng ;
sein-se-ba-lu.

Uses

The trunk of the species is used to make short-lived constructions in Cambodia, while the twigs are often used as firewood. Amongst inhabitants of southern Shan State, Myanmar, the fruit of the var. siamensis are eaten. The bark of the taxa is used by the Karo people of Sumatera to treat impotence. The Temuan people living in the Ayer Hitam Forest of Selangor, Malaysia, use a poultice of pulped leaves of the tree to treat sores.

History

Karl Ludwig von Blume, a botanist born in Braunschweig but who studied in the Netherlands, described the nominate species in his Bijdragen tot de Flora van Nederlandsch Indië in 1825.
Mark James Elgar Coode, British botanist, reviewed the taxa and published the accepted varieties in the Kew Bulletin in 2001, see below.