Ficus caulocarpa growing on the bank of the Kinabatangan river opposite the police station at Kg Sukau in Sabah. All photos by Shuai LIAO taken on 18 September 2019. Collection #20190477.
NOTE: Two relatively common stranglers found throughout Borneo Ficus caulocarpa and Ficus virens may be confused in herbarium collections because their resting stipules which are short brown and conical look very similar. However these two figs in Section Urostigma may be easily distinguished because the leaf stalks of F. caulocarpa are always a rough reddish brown whilst the leaf stalks of Ficus virens are always pale green.
In addition Ficus caulocarpa tends to have swellings (pulvinus) which acts as hinges, both at the top and bottom of the leaf stalk whereas F. virens only has a pulvinus at the base.
Note that the figs grow densely packed on the previous seasons bare twigs known as ramiflori (ramiflorus). This is a distinguishing feature of Section Urostigma figs including Ficus virens.
