Synonym: Cullenia excelsa
Region: southern Western Ghats in India.
Genus: 3 species.
Clades: Durioneae, Helicteroideae, Malvaceae,
MalvalesHabitat: mid-elevation tropical wet evergreen rainforests; altitude of 700 m to 1400 m.
Culture: food plant for the lion-tailed macaque.
BotanyEvergreen tree; tal; dominant tree
Stem: straight; greyish white bark, flaking in mature trees; frequently buttressed; branches horizontal often with series of knob-like tubercles for cauliflorous flowers and fruits; young branchlets covered by golden brown peltate, or shield like scales.
Leaves: simple, alternate, glabrous, shiny green above and covered beneath with silvery or orangish peltate scales.
Flowers: tubular, hermaphroditic; covered by golden brown scales; 4–5 cm long; cream or pinkish brown; lack petals; formed of tubular bracteoles and tube-like calyx, obscurely 5-lobed; low in nectar but with fleshy sepals with nectaries; blooming between February and May.
Fruit: capsule, round, 5-valved; 10–13 cm in diameter; covered with spines; clustered along the branches; containing many reddish brown seeds about 4–5 cm long and 2–3 cm wide; dehisces open when mature and dry to release seeds.
Pollination: by bats; arboreal mammals, Lion-tailed Macaque, Brown Palm Civet, Indian Giant Squirrel, Nilgiri Langur, Indian Giant Flying Squirrel; birds, Indian White-Eye, Square-tailed Bulbul, Yellow-browed Bulbul, Brown-cheeked Fulvetta, Common Rosefinch, Kerala Laughingthrush, White-cheeked Barbet.
Seeds: covered, button surrounded by a fleshy, whitish aril.