Euclea pseudebenus 

Euclea pseudebenus E.Mey. ex A.DC.

Family     :  Ebenaceae

Common Name         :  ബ്ലാക്ക്  എബണി (Mal)

      : Black Ebony (Eng)

IUCN Status : Least concern (LC) ꟷ

Shrub or small tree up to 10 m tall; bole up to 30(–50) cm in diameter; bark surface deeply cracked, dark grey; branches drooping, twigs slender, hanging straight down, finely hairy. Leaves alternate, simple and entire; stipules absent; petiole up to 3 mm long; blade linear, often slightly curved, 1.5–5 cm × 2–5 mm, cuneate at base, acuminate at apex, leathery, glabrous. Inflorescence a small axillary fascicle, hairy, male one 3–7-flowered, female one 1(–3)-flowered. Flowers unisexual, regular, 5–6-merous; calyx up to 1 mm long, short-hairy; corolla urn-shaped, c. 3 mm long, shallowly lobed; male flowers with 12–20 stamens and rudimentary ovary; female flowers slightly smaller than male ones, with superior, ovoid, densely hairy ovary, usually 4-celled, styles 2, very short. Fruit a globose berry 5–8 mm in diameter, black when ripe, usually 1-seeded. Seed globose, 3–5 mm in diameter, with 2 thin lines and a groove. Seedlings have been reported to grow rapidly in dry river beds, reaching about 60 cm tall in one year. The flowers are visited by bees and butterflies, which may serve as pollinators. The fruits are mainly eaten by birds, which disperse the seeds.