Gen info
- Ficus villosa, known as shaggy-leaf fig or villous fig, is a species of Ficus native to South East Asia.
- Etymology: The genus name Ficus derives from Latin name for the edible fig Ficus carica. The specific epithet villosa derives from Latin villosa "hairy", from villus "hair" and adjective suffix -osus "full of", meaning 'covered by long soft hairs, alluding to the plant's furry leaves, stems, and fruits. (3) (5)
- Ecology: Plant is pollinated by fig wasps and seeds primarily dispersed by birds and small mammals. (5)

Botany
• Growth form: It is a latex-containing, root-climbing fig covered with soft hairs on its vegetative parts. Young plants typically creeping prostrately up trunks or on ground. Mature plants may dangle vine-like stems across trunks and shrubs. Foliage: Its alternate, stalked leaves have thickly leathery leaf blades that are 9–30 by 4.5–11 cm, elliptical to ovate, with rounded or slightly heart-shaped bases when matured, and sunken venation on its upper surfaces. Its young leaves have leaf blades that are very hairy, and softer, red to greenish orange. Stems: Woody, flexible, covered with fine hairs, inconspicuously hidden behind leaves. All parts of plant leak white latex when bruised. Flowers: Tiny, cream-coloured, massed together on inside of syconium wall. Syconia produced in clusters on stem nodes and leaf axils. Species is dioecious, with male and female flowers found on separate plants. Flowers pollinated by symbiont fig wasps. Fruit: Orange figs are round, beaked fruits. (Flora & Fauna Web)

• F. villosa is a climbing vine that is reported to reach 2.4 m in length in the home garden, but in the wild, it will grow several feet high on trees. When fully mature, its alternate, stalked leaves have thick, leathery blades up to 30cm long with sunken venation on the upper surfaces. The heart-shaped, hairy juvenile leaves measure about 3-6 cm, and have a reddish colour which fades to green as the leaf matures. The stems of F. villosa are woody and release latex when cut. Flowers are small, inconspicuous and cream-colored and develop into round orange fruits. (5)

Distribution
- Native to the Philippines. (1)
- In Luzon: Bataan, Ifugao, Ilocos norte, NCR, Nueva Vizcaya, Pampanga, Rizal.   (1)
- Also native to Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Bismarck Archipelago, Borneo, Burkina, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, China Southeast, Comoros, Congo, DR Congo, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Ghana, Hainan, India, Ivory Coast, Jawa, Kenya, KwaZulu-Natal, Lesser Sunda Is., Madagascar, Malawi, Malaya, Maluku, Mauritius, Mozambique, Myanmar, New Guinea, Niger, Nigeria, Northern Provinces, Northern Territory, Queensland, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Solomon Is., Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan-South Sudan, Sulawesi, Sumatera, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Uganda, Vietnam, Western Australia, Zambia, Zimbabwe. (2)

Constituents
- No studies found.

Properties
- Study suggested antibacterial property.

Parts used
Leaves, bark.

Uses
Edibility
- Fruit is probably edible but not commonly consumed.
- Described as bland tasting; neither sweet nor sour.
- Ripe fruits are eaten by frugivorous birds and mammals.
Folkloric
- No reported folkloric medicinal use in the Philippines.
- Leaves and bark used for treatment of swelling and pain.

Studies
• Antimicrobial Against Pathogenic Fish Strains: Study of evaluated evaluated the antimicrobial activity of ethanolic extract of leaves of F. villosa against Aeromonas species viz.,, A. sobria, A. hydrophila, A. salmonicida subsp. salmonicida, and Serratia liquefaciens, Yersinia ruckeri, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Shewanella putrefaciens for use in preventing infections caused by these fish pathogens in aquaculture. The ethanolic extract showed maximum activity against S. putrefaciens, A. sobria, and P. fluorescens. Shewanella putrefasciens showed highest sensitivity to the ethanol extract of leaves. Results showed potential sources of botanical drugs for controlling bacterial infections in aquaculture. (4)

Availability
- Wild-crafted.
- Plants in the cybermarket.

Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
Moraceae: Ficus villosa / Co's Digital Flora Database
(2)
Ficus villosa / KEW: Plants of the World Online
(3)
Ficus villosa Blume / National Parks: FLORA & FAUNA WEB
(4)
ANTIMICROBIAL POTENTIAL OF EXTRACT DERIVED FROM THE LEAVES OF FICUS VILLOSA BLUME AGAINST SOME FISH PATHOGENIC STRAINS / Tkaczenko Halina, Kurhaluk Natalia / The Scentific and Technical Bulletin of Livestock Farming Institute, 2023; Is 130 /
DOI: 10.32900/2312-8402-2023-130-244-258
(5)
Ficus villosa / Wikipedia

DOI: It is not uncommon for links on studies/sources to change. Copying and pasting the information on the search window or using the DOI (if available) will often redirect to the new link page. (Citing and Using a (DOI) Digital Object Identifier)