Volume 7 > Part 3 > Year 2001 > Page 578 > Sterculiaceae > Heritiera

3. Heritiera littoralis Ait.wfo-0000720317

Hort. Kew. ed. 1, 3: 546. 1789; Mast, in Fl. Brit. Ind. 1: 363. 1874; Kurz, Fl. Burm. 1: 140. 1877; Gagnep. in Fl. Gén. I.-C. 1: 483. 1911; Ridl., Fl. Malay Penins. 1: 279. 1922; Craib in Fl. Siam. Enum. 1: 170. 1925; Kosterm., Reinwardtia 4: 473. 1959; Kou-mei, Fl. Reipubl. Popularis Sin. 49(2): 140, fig. 39. 1984. Fig. 78; Plate XXI: E.

Accepted Name : This is currently accepted.

Description : Tree, 5–15 m high; bark pinkish brown with longitudinal fissure; when cut pink, laminated; twigs slender and terete, usually with prominent leaf scars. Leaves simple, entire, spirally arranged, ovate to oblong, 10–22 x 3.5–10 cm, apex acute to broadly acute, base obtuse to subtruncate and oblique, coriaceous, glabrous on upper surface, white indumentum on lower surface; nerves faint. Petiole stout and wrinkled when dry, 1–2 cm long. Inflorescence a lax panicle, up to 15 cm long, axillary or in upper leaf scars. Sepals 5, campanulate, yellowish, ca 5 mm long, divided to one third of length, hairy on both surfaces. Stamens 8(–10), sessile, on the top of a broad based column, then narrowed in the upper half, around a sterile ovary in male flowers. Ovary in female flowers with 4(–5) ellipsoid locules; each with one ovule. Fruit ellipsoid, woody, ca 6 x 4 cm, with a longitudinal ridge, glabrous, epicarp shining.

Thailand : CENTRAL: Samut Prakan; SOUTH-EASTERN: Rayong, Chanthaburi, Trat; PENINSULAR: Ranong, Surat Thani, Phangnga, Krabi, Trang, Satun, Narathiwat.

Distribution : East India Islands (type), Sri Lanka, Burma, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malay Peninsula, Indonesia, Australia, E Africa.

Ecology : Common in landward fringe of mangrove, up to 10 m alt. Flowering: April–November; fruiting: May–December.

Vernacular : Ngonkai (หงอนไก่), ngonkai thale (หงอนไก่ทะเล)(Central, Southeastern, Peninsular); duhun bai yai (ดุนหุนใบใหญ่), khai khwai (ไข่ควาย)(Peninsular).

Uses: Timber used for post, ribs of wooden boats, wheels of carts, tool handles and interior construction.