''Ceriops tagal'', commonly known as spurred mangrove or Indian mangrove, is a mangrove tree species in the family

Rhizophoraceae The Rhizophoraceae is a family of tropical or subtropical flowering plants. It includes around 147 species distributed in 15 genera.Setoguchi, H., Kosuge, K., & Tobe, H. (1999). Molecular Phylogeny of Rhizophoraceae Based on rbcL Gene Sequences. ...

. It is a protected tree in South Africa. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

' is a plant name from the Tagalog language.

Description

''Ceriops tagal'' is a medium-sized tree growing to a height of with a trunk diameter of up to . The growth habit is columnar or multi-stemmed and the tree develops large buttress roots. The radiating anchor roots are sometimes exposed and may loop up in places. The bark is silvery-grey to orangeish-brown, smooth with occasional pustular

lenticel A lenticel is a porous tissue consisting of cells with large intercellular spaces in the periderm of the secondarily thickened organs and the bark of woody stems and roots of dicotyledonous flowering plants. It functions as a pore, providing a ...

s. The leaves are in opposite pairs, glossy yellowish-green above, obovate with entire margins, up to long and wide. The flowers are borne singly in the leaf axils; each has a long stalk and a short calyx tube, and parts in fives or sixes. The paired stamens are enclosed in the petals which open explosively when disturbed. The

ovoid An oval () is a closed curve in a plane which resembles the outline of an egg. The term is not very specific, but in some areas (projective geometry, technical drawing, etc.) it is given a more precise definition, which may include either one or ...

fruits are up to long suspended from the shrunken calyx tube. Brown at first, they change colour as they mature and the

hypocotyl The hypocotyl (short for "hypocotyledonous stem", meaning "below seed leaf") is the stem of a germinating seedling, found below the cotyledons (seed leaves) and above the radicle (root). Eudicots As the plant embryo grows at germination, it send ...

emerges. The hypocotyl is long and slender, growing to about long, and is ribbed, a characteristic that distinguishes this mangrove from the smooth-fruited yellow mangrove (''Ceriops australis'').

Distribution and habitat

''Ceriops tagal'' grows naturally in eastern and southern Africa,

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (french: link=no, République des Seychelles; Creole: ''La Repiblik Sesel''), is an archipelagic state consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, V ...

, India, Maldives, China, Indo-China,

Malesia Malesia is a biogeographical region straddling the Equator and the boundaries of the Indomalayan and Australasian realms, and also a phytogeographical floristic region in the Paleotropical Kingdom. It has been given different definitions. The ...

Papuasia Papuasia is a Level 2 botanical region defined in the World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions (WGSRPD). It lies in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, in the Melanesia ecoregion of Oceania and Tropical Asia. It comprises the f ...

, the

Caroline Islands The Caroline Islands (or the Carolines) are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically, they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) in the centra ...

New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. Its habitat is in brackish water areas in tidal zones.

Uses

The durable wood is used in house construction. It is also used in the manufacture of charcoal, and is favoured as firewood, being second only to ''

Rhizophora ''Rhizophora'' is a genus of tropical mangrove trees, sometimes collectively called true mangroves. The most notable species is the red mangrove (''Rhizophora mangle'') but some other species and a few natural hybrids are known. ''Rhizophora'' sp ...

'' spp., and a dye can be extracted from the bark. Among the mangrove species, its bark and sap yield red and black dyes which are used in batik and tanning leather. In the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, the extracts (''barok'') from the dried bark (''marka tungog'' or ''tangal'') are used as bittering and fermenting agents for the traditional bahalina

palm wine Palm wine, known by several #Names, local names, is an alcoholic beverage created from the sap of various species of palm tree such as the Borassus, palmyra, date palms, and coconut palms. It is known by various names in different regions and i ...

s, giving them a deep brown-orange color and a bitter tangy aftertaste. It is also used to tan and dye leather.

Gallery

Ceriops tagal 50590387.jpg, Growth habit Ceriops tagal 50590307.jpg, Ribbed hypocotyls on fruit Ceriops tagal 50589978.jpg, Flowers & upright leaves Ceriops tagal 50590292.jpg, Flower detail

References

External links