Deciduous shrubs or trees. Twigs
strongly marked with leaf scars. Stipules present or 0. Leaves alternate, crowded towards the ends of the branches, simple, entire. Inflorescences axillary, solitary or fasciculate, pedunculate, with an involucre composed of a whorl of 5-12 imbricate bracts surrounding the flowers. Male inflorescences many-flowered; the flowers sessile in spherical capitula, calyx
lobes imbricate; petals 0, disk 0; stamens (4-)5(-6), free. Female inflorescences 1-flowered; flowers sessile; calyx minute, disk-like; petals 0; disk 0; ovary (2-)3(-5)-locular with 2 ovules per loculus. Fruit drupaceous, indehiscent. Seeds flattened. Derivation of name: after the Madagascar vernacular name for the type species Uapaca thouarsii. Worldwide: 61 species in tropical Africa and Madagascar. Zambia: 9 taxa. The larvae of the following species of insect eat species of this genus: |
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