red-leaved fig

The smooth and leathery, dull-green leaves are narrowly ovate oblong, bright red brown when young, with conspicuous yellow veins that are prominent beneath and loop along the leaf margin. A leaf measures some 16.5 by 8.5 centimetres (6.5 by 3.3 in), with the base mostly square or cordate, sometimes broadly rounded, and the apex tapering to a blunt point. Old leaves turn to a reddish-copper colour in autumn. The almost spherical figs are produced year-round but mainly in summer. They are 0.9 to 1.2 centimetres (0.35 to 0.47 in) in diameter and carried on very short stalks, just below or among the terminal cluster of leaves. They ripen first to a white and eventually a purple or yellowish-brown colour. The smooth bark is pale grey, while younger branches have a yellow tinge. Bruised or cut stems and leaves exude a non-toxic, milky latex.

It is widespread in northern and eastern sub-Saharan Africa, with a more or less contiguous range from Senegal in the west, eastwards to Eritrea, and southwards to the Eastern Cape, South Africa. It is extant in the Saharo-montane woodlands of the Tassili n'Ajjer, the Hoggar, Aïr and Tibesti mountains, and the Kerkour Nourene massif. It is also found in southernmost Oman, mainly in the region south of Dhofar, called Salalah. It is found on rock faces and outcrops, rocky slopes, riparian and wadi fringes, and in dense woodlands. Substrates include lava flows, coral and limestone in drier, exposed areas, and sandstone or dolomite in bushveld.

In northern Nigeria the figs, and in Kenya the leaves and figs, have been recorded as famine food. In South Africa a decoction of the bark mixed with cow feed is said to increase the flow of milk, though the leaves have been shown to be toxic to cattle, and sometimes to sheep. When ripe, the figs are readily eaten by several species of bird. The pollinator wasp is Platyscapa soraria Wiebes., while Otitesella longicauda and O. rotunda are non-pollinators.