Muntingia is a genus of plants in the family Muntingiaceae, comprising only one species, Muntingia calabura, named in honour of Abraham Munting. It is native from southern Mexico to Bolivia and Argentina. Its fruit is edible, and it has been widely introduced in other tropical areas.
Description
Illustration of M. calabura.
Muntingia calabura is a shrub or tree that quickly grows to between 7.5 and 12 m tall, with spreading branches. The leaves are alternate, distichous, oblong or lanceolate, 4–15 cm long and 1–6 cm wide, with toothed margin and covered in short hairs.
The flowers are small (up to 3 cm wide), solitary or in inflorescences of two or three flowers, with five lanceolate sepals, hairy, five obovate white petals, many stamens with yellow anthers, and a smooth ovoid ovary. The flowers last only one day, their petals drop in the afternoon.
Its fruit is an edible berry about 1.5 cm in diameter and with smooth, thin skin; they are green when unripe, turning red when mature. Its pulp is light-brown and juicy, with very fine seeds; the pulp tastes like fig.
A tree in Hyderabad, India
Distribution and habitat
M. calabura is native to southern Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and western South America south to Bolivia and Argentina. It is present in tropical climate in disturbed lowland areas from sea level to 1000 m of elevation. In South India, it is seen in areas adjacent to the Western Ghats.
Ecology
This species colonizes disturbed habitats in tropical lowland areas, becoming part of the secondary vegetation, as well as gallery forests. It thrives in poor soil, able to tolerate acidic and alkaline conditions and drought, but doesn't grow in saline conditions.
The seeds are dispersed by birds and fruit bats.
Although native to tropical America, M. calabura has been introduced in Southeast Asia and naturalized there and in other tropical parts of the world.
