Swintonia acuta Engl.

Tree up to 30(-45) m high and 65(-93) cm Ø. Buttresses occasionally present, 3 m high, 2-3 m wide. Bark grey, red-brown, or black, rather smooth, or narrowly and shallowly furrowed. Leaves chartaceous or subcoriaceous, elliptic to elliptic-lanceolate, ovate-oblong or lanceolate, (5—)7—16 by (174)274-6 cm, glabrous; occasionally with glabrous, dome-like domatia; papillae distinct, rather compact, sometimes obscure, on the lower surface except on the midrib and nerves; base cuneate or decurrent (margins separate); apex acute to acuminate; nerves 9-19 pairs; veins reticulate, some slightly parallel and cross-bar-like, often distinct; petiole ½-5 cm, flat, slightly concave, or bicanaliculate above, convex beneath. Panicles up to 27 cm long, puberulous, glabrescent, or glabrous; terminal parts of branches laxly branched, with spacious internodes, loosely flowered; floral bracts ovate to lanceolate, 74-174 mm long; pedicels ⅓-2 mm. Flowers white. Calyx divided almost to the base, lobes suborbiculate or broadly obovate, 1-1½ mm long. Floral axis between calyx and stamens not elongated. Petals elliptic, obovate, or oblanceolate, 2½-3½ by ¾-1½ mm, cuneate or obtuse at the base, sparsely puberulous at the apical part on both surfaces, usually glabrescent, sometimes also sparsely papillose at the lower half inside. Disk lobes confluent with the base of filaments. Stamens ¾-1¾ mm; anthers broadly ovoid or ellipsoid, ⅓-½ mm long. Ovary globose or subglobose, ½-l mm Ø; style 72 mm; stigma capitellate. Abortive pistil in ø c. lf2 mm long. Drupe ellipsoid, 1-2 by ⅔-1¾ cm; enlarged petals reddish when fresh, narrowly elliptic or oblanceolate, 4-6 by ⅔-1½ cm.

Lowland forest, sometimes up to 750 m, occasionally on flat swampy land, on riverbanks, or on coral limestone rocks. Fl. April, July, Sept., Nov.; fr. Jan.-Dec.