Aporosa falcifera Hook.f., Fl. Brit. India 5 (1887)

Synonyms
Aporusa acuminatissima Merr.
Aporusa hosei Merr.
Aporusa merrilliana Govaerts & Radcl.

Diagnostics
Mid-canopy tree up to 33 m tall and 47 cm dbh. Stipules ca. 15 mm long, curved. Leaves alternate, simple, penni-veined, glabrous. Flowers ca. 1 mm in diameter, yellowish, placed in compacted racemes. Fruits ca. 12 mm long, red, dehiscent capsule, seeds with aril.

Description
Tree, up to 30(-33) m high, up to 40(-47) cm diameter. Bark black to grey brown, smooth, flaky, fissured, sometimes lenticelled, not peeling, 1 mm thick; inner bark red to whitish, soft, 2.5 mm thick. Wood pale brown, reddish to yellowish, or white. Twigs grey, (sparsely) puberulous. Stipules falcate, 4-9 by 11-18 mm, present in young stages, black disc-like glands along margin beneath, puberulous at base beneath, glabrescent. Petiole terete, smooth, 9-17 by 1-1.5 mm, sparsely puberulous, lower pulvinus 2-2.5 by c. 2 mm, upper pulvinus 2-6 by 1.5-2.5 mm, both distinct. Leaves narrowly elliptic, sometimes linear elliptic, 8-25 by 2.5-7 cm; base subcordate to rounded, basal glands absent; margin subentire to lowly undulate, marginal glands regular, small, blackish, indistinct, in margin; apex acuminate; blade thickish, smooth, shiny, not brittle, drying bluish green above, golden brownish beneath, glabrous above, midrib and nerves sparsely puberulous beneath; dots irregularly set, fine, greyish, fading; disc-like glands regular to many, along margin, black, mostly distinct. Nervation: midrib slightly prominent to flat above, prominent beneath; nerves 10-14 pairs, slightly prominent to flat above, prominent beneath, marginal arches distinct to slightly fading, 1-3 mm from the margin; tertiary veins and venation fading, densely reticulate, slightly scalariform, flat above, slightly prominent to flat beneath. Inflorescences axillary or just below the leaves. Staminate inflorescences 2-5 clustered together, 8-16 by 2-3 mm, puberulous; peduncle 1-4 by 0.5-1 mm; bracts ovate, inconspicuous, 0.7-0.9 mm long, hairy outside, glabrous inside; glomerules indistinct, ellipsoid, consisting of 9-13 densely set flowers, spaced continuously along apical part of the rachis; pedicel minute. Staminate flowers 1-2 mm long; sepals 4 or 5, obovate, 0.3-0.6 mm long, connate to halfway, sparsely hairy outside, glabrous inside; stamens 2 (or 3), strongly exserted, 1-1.8 mm long; anthers 0.1-0.2 mm long, connective glabrous; pistillode often indistinct. Pistillate inflorescences 2 or 3 clustered together, 7-15 by 0.8-1 mm, puberulous, flowers up to 11, densely set at apical 3/4th of rachis; bracts broadly triangular, 0.2-0.3 mm long, sparsely hairy outside, glabrous inside; bracteoles ovate, 0.1-0.2 mm long, sparsely hairy outside, glabrous inside; pedicel c. 1 mm long, sericeous. Pistillate flowers 2-2.5 mm long; sepals 4 or 5, ovate, patent, 0.5-0.7 mm long, thin, sparsely hairy outside, glabrous inside; ovary ellipsoid, 2-2.5 mm long, 3-locular, smooth, sericeous at base, glabrescent towards apex or subglabrous; stigmas sessile, elongated, flattened to the sides of the ovary, apically bifid to near base, straight, 2-2.5 mm long, lowly longitudinally ribbed above, glabrous, beneath smooth, glabrous, style remnant absent. Infructescences 9-25 by 1-1.5 mm, sericeous; fruiting pedicel 2-5 mm long, sericeous. Fruits ovoid, not stiped, not beaked, 9-15 by 6-12 mm, punctulate to smooth, drying dark to greyish brown, sparsely hairy, glabrescent; pericarp 0.3-0.8 mm thick, not fleshy; septae and column glabrous. Seeds 3, half-terete, ellipsoid, 5-6 by 3-4 by 2-3 mm. [from Flora Malesiana: http://www.nationaalherbarium.nl/Euphorbs/specA/AporosaT.htm]

Ecology
Primary forest; low undulating land; on ridges, slopes, and along river banks. Soil: sandy loam, rich, dark or greyish, also on limestone. Altitude: 5-1400 m.

Distribution
Peninsular Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, Northern Sulawesi.

Local names
Borneo: Biling, Damak-damak, Kayu dusun, Tambau, Untapulu. Peninsular Malaysia: Pisang-pisang.