Trees to 12 m tall; trunk to 20 cm d.b.h.; bark gray or dark gray, falling off in thick flakes exposing pale brown cortex. Leafy branchlets horizontal or pendulous, rhombic-elliptic, ± flabellate or broadly obovate in outline, 7-9 × 5-10 cm, axis green turning greenish brown in 1st year, thereafter reddish brown and glossy. Leaves borne at 20-60° to branchlet axis, adjacent leaves (especially distal ones), with blades twisted through ca. 90° so that their surfaces nest within each other; petiole 1-2 mm, twisted; blade deep shining green adaxially, linear to linear-lanceolate, very gradually tapered from proximal 1/3 into apex, distally ± falcate, (2.5-)3-7(-9) cm × (2.5-)3-3.8(-4) mm, leathery, with 2 raised ridges extending from base to near apex, midvein extremely indistinct adaxially, strongly raised abaxially with a flat band on either side, whole midvein band ca. 1.2 mm wide, stomatal bands with silver-gray powder initially but finally brown, 0.1-0.2 mm wide, ca. 12 rows, marginal bands 0.5-0.7 mm wide, base cuneate, slightly asymmetric, strongly twisted, margin thickened abaxially and slightly downcurved but not revolute, apex cuspidate, cusp slender, tapered, 1-1.5 mm, often breaking off. Aril white powdery, with small mucro. Seed obovoid, 2-3 × ca. 1.2 cm; female gametophyte tissue deeply ruminate within. Seed maturity autumn.
Evergreen broad-leaved forest, along streams, on steep slopes in shade or in secondary vegetation usually near moisture; at elevations from 120-1,320 metres.
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