Ficus cordata, the Namaqua rock fig,[1] or Namaqua fig[2] is a species of fig that occurs in two disjunct populations in Africa, one in the arid southwest of the continent, and a second in the northern subtropics. In the south it is often the largest and most prominent tree,[3] and is virtually restricted to cliff faces and rock outcrops,[4] where it has a rock-splitting habit.[5]
F. c. lecardii (Warb.) C.C.Berg – Senegal to central Africa[7]
Range and habitat
The nominate subspecies is native to arid western South Africa, Namibia and southwestern Angola,[4] while a second subspecies is native to Africa's northern subtropics. The nominate subspecies is found in fynbos, succulent Karoo and Nama Karoo,[4] while the northern subspecies is found in savannah, up to 1,500 m above sea level.[7]
Species associations
The nominate subspecies is pollinated by the wasp Platyscapa desertorum Compton. The wasp Comptoniella vannoorti Wiebes is an associated non-pollinator that oviposits through the fig wall.[4] The pollinator wasp of the northern subspecies, F. c. lecardii, is as yet unknown.[7]
Similar species
F. salicifolia,[8] the Wonderboom, is sometimes deemed a third subspecies of Ficus cordata, i.e. F. c. subsp. salicifolia (Vahl) C.C.Berg, but it lacks the yellowish sessile figs of F. cordata, and its range is much to the east.
