FIGS (Ficus Sp.)
Figs belong to a special group of plants which have minute flowers hidden inside inverted flower stalks. This genus is known as the genus Ficus. There are more than 900 species of figs distributed over the warm tropical regions of the world with the greater concentration of species in Southeast Asia.
There are about 48 fig species that are native to Singapore. Figs come in all sorts of growth form, ranging from small shrubs and climbers to giant forest trees. In Singapore, majority of fig species found locally are stranglers.
Any wayside trees in Singapore that is old enough to have ferns or orchids growing on it’s branches will probably be host to at least one species of fig. The figs that grow on them are mostly stranglers, a group that includes those known as banyans They start life as an epiphyte in the branches of trees, then sends roots down the trunk to the ground. Eventually, the trunk of the host tree becomes enveloped in fig roots and the crown must compete with the ever expanding branches of the fig trees. In the end, the host tree dies leaving a free standing fig tree. Figs also have a way to grow on seemingly inhospitable man-made structures such as rooftops and walls of old buildings. These roots spread and dig deep into cracks and crevices, quite often inflicting damage to the building structure.
Figs are very important components of forest ecosystems, as they support a wide variety of frugivorous animals. Large numbers of birds may converge upon a single tree to feast upon the figs, from bulbuls to hornbills. Even insectivorous birds join in, drawn by the insects that are inevitably attracted to the masses of ripening fruit. The birds are often joined by primates such as macaques, gibbons and orangutans, as well as smaller mammals such as squirrels and tree shrews, while fruit bats and civets eat their fill under the cover of darkness. On the ground, pheasants, pigs, deer and sun bear gorge themselves on the fallen fruit. Hence, a single tree may provide food for a large variety of forest creatures, as well as all the other species which do not directly feed upon the figs, but depend on the fig-eaters in one way or another. And because figs do not synchronize their fruiting periods, they provide a year-round supply of food, an especially vital resource for frugivores when other trees might not be bearing fruit at all. Figs can be considered to be keystone species, and the loss of a single fig tree can have serious consequences for all the fruit-eating creatures in a patch of forest.
The fig itself is actually a fleshy but hollow receptacle called a 'syconium' housing a collection of minute flowers. The flowers seem to hide in this hollow and grow from it's wall. It is this that prompted the Chinese to call the fig a Flowerless Fruit or 'Wu Hua Guo'. At the bottom of the fig, there is an opening called the 'ostiole' which is the door into the fig. The ostiole is lined with interlocking bracts or scales which can only be overcome by the persistence of a female wasp hoping to get inside to lay her eggs.
Despite the varieties, they all share a unique and complex method of pollination. The fig fruit is in fact a hollow swollen stem which bears hundreds of tiny flowers on it’s inside surface. These flowers are pollinated by tiny fig wasps (of the family Agaonidae). Close your eyes now and follow me on this fascinating pollination adventure.
" You are a tiny female wasp. Born inside a dark world of a ripe fig, instinct guides you to find an opening to fly out into the world outside. In the process of crawling inside the fig, you crawl over pollen laded male flowers inside the fig and in the process picked up the pollen on your body. Finally, you manage to make your way out and your natural instinct tells you that you need to seek another fig of the same species. You cannot see, but you can smell your destination (figs with mature flowers) from many miles away. Finally, your flight brings you to your destination. Landing on the fig, you seek out the tiny opening, squeeze your way through and finally reach the dark interior. You might lose a few wings and legs along the way, but you worry not as your prize now lays in front of you ; hundreds of receptive fig flowers within the fruit. You walk around in this tiny dark world, placing pollen on the waiting female flowers in the process and lay some eggs in some of the fig flowers that are suitable, just as your mother did, before finally dying inside the fruit. Your wingless and blind male off spring will emerge first, mate with the yet to developed female offspring and then die inside the fig. Your daughters will be fully developed by the time the fig ripens, emerge from the flowers and repeat the ritual for generations to come."
Some of the common FICUS species that you will encounter in Singapore are listed below.
Figs belong to a special group of plants which have minute flowers hidden inside inverted flower stalks. This genus is known as the genus Ficus. There are more than 900 species of figs distributed over the warm tropical regions of the world with the greater concentration of species in Southeast Asia.
There are about 48 fig species that are native to Singapore. Figs come in all sorts of growth form, ranging from small shrubs and climbers to giant forest trees. In Singapore, majority of fig species found locally are stranglers.
Any wayside trees in Singapore that is old enough to have ferns or orchids growing on it’s branches will probably be host to at least one species of fig. The figs that grow on them are mostly stranglers, a group that includes those known as banyans They start life as an epiphyte in the branches of trees, then sends roots down the trunk to the ground. Eventually, the trunk of the host tree becomes enveloped in fig roots and the crown must compete with the ever expanding branches of the fig trees. In the end, the host tree dies leaving a free standing fig tree. Figs also have a way to grow on seemingly inhospitable man-made structures such as rooftops and walls of old buildings. These roots spread and dig deep into cracks and crevices, quite often inflicting damage to the building structure.
Figs are very important components of forest ecosystems, as they support a wide variety of frugivorous animals. Large numbers of birds may converge upon a single tree to feast upon the figs, from bulbuls to hornbills. Even insectivorous birds join in, drawn by the insects that are inevitably attracted to the masses of ripening fruit. The birds are often joined by primates such as macaques, gibbons and orangutans, as well as smaller mammals such as squirrels and tree shrews, while fruit bats and civets eat their fill under the cover of darkness. On the ground, pheasants, pigs, deer and sun bear gorge themselves on the fallen fruit. Hence, a single tree may provide food for a large variety of forest creatures, as well as all the other species which do not directly feed upon the figs, but depend on the fig-eaters in one way or another. And because figs do not synchronize their fruiting periods, they provide a year-round supply of food, an especially vital resource for frugivores when other trees might not be bearing fruit at all. Figs can be considered to be keystone species, and the loss of a single fig tree can have serious consequences for all the fruit-eating creatures in a patch of forest.
The fig itself is actually a fleshy but hollow receptacle called a 'syconium' housing a collection of minute flowers. The flowers seem to hide in this hollow and grow from it's wall. It is this that prompted the Chinese to call the fig a Flowerless Fruit or 'Wu Hua Guo'. At the bottom of the fig, there is an opening called the 'ostiole' which is the door into the fig. The ostiole is lined with interlocking bracts or scales which can only be overcome by the persistence of a female wasp hoping to get inside to lay her eggs.
Despite the varieties, they all share a unique and complex method of pollination. The fig fruit is in fact a hollow swollen stem which bears hundreds of tiny flowers on it’s inside surface. These flowers are pollinated by tiny fig wasps (of the family Agaonidae). Close your eyes now and follow me on this fascinating pollination adventure.
" You are a tiny female wasp. Born inside a dark world of a ripe fig, instinct guides you to find an opening to fly out into the world outside. In the process of crawling inside the fig, you crawl over pollen laded male flowers inside the fig and in the process picked up the pollen on your body. Finally, you manage to make your way out and your natural instinct tells you that you need to seek another fig of the same species. You cannot see, but you can smell your destination (figs with mature flowers) from many miles away. Finally, your flight brings you to your destination. Landing on the fig, you seek out the tiny opening, squeeze your way through and finally reach the dark interior. You might lose a few wings and legs along the way, but you worry not as your prize now lays in front of you ; hundreds of receptive fig flowers within the fruit. You walk around in this tiny dark world, placing pollen on the waiting female flowers in the process and lay some eggs in some of the fig flowers that are suitable, just as your mother did, before finally dying inside the fruit. Your wingless and blind male off spring will emerge first, mate with the yet to developed female offspring and then die inside the fig. Your daughters will be fully developed by the time the fig ripens, emerge from the flowers and repeat the ritual for generations to come."
Some of the common FICUS species that you will encounter in Singapore are listed below.