The native range of the African ebony is Tropical Africa (Northeast, East, West-Central, West, and South), Southern Africa, and the Southwestern section of the Arabian Peninsula. Diospyros mespiliformis mostly occurs in woodland and wooded savanna, sometimes also in fringes of more humid forest, up to 1350 meters altitude, rarely up to 2000 meters. In many drier regions it is commonly found in riparian forest. The mean annual rainfall in the area of distribution is from 300 to 2000 mm, with a dry season of up to 8 months. The African ebony is usually found on more fertile, deep soils, often on alluvial soils and termite mounds, but it is occasionally found on rocky hill slopes.
In Africa, Diospyros mespiliformis is extremely widespread, occurring from Senegal east to Eritrea, Ethiopia and Kenya, and south to Namibia, northern South Africa and Swaziland. But it is nearly absent in the more humid forest zones of West and Central Africa.
In Eritrea, the African ebony is an evergreen tree of medium- to low-altitudes. It grows mostly in woodlands, on rocky hillsides in lowland savannah, in Euphorbia thickets and along river banks, between 700 and 1600 meters above sea level.
In Ethiopia, Diospyros mespiliformis is also an evergreen tree of medium to low altitudes. It occurs in the Bereha, Dry, Moist, and Wet Kolla and Weyna Dega agroclimatic zones of most administrative regions. It mostly grows naturally on rocky hillsides in lowland savannah, Euphorbia thickets and along river banks between 300 and 2,000 meters above sea level.
In the Arabian Peninsula, the African ebony is confined to the Southwestern highlands and their foothills. It is primarily found in Yemen, along the banks of seasonal rivers and moisture-rich Escarpment mountains. It is also rarely encountered in Saudi Arabia in few localities with high humidity or permanent groundwater.
Diospyros mespiliformis is an ecological anchor. Different insects such as bees and wasps play a role in pollinating the flowers. Seeds are dispersed either through wash-off by rain or in the droppings of animals that feed on the fruits. Termites often build their nests around the tree and feed on the roots. The tree benefits from moisture and aeration as a result of termites burrowing in the soil under the tree. Snakes like to reside close to or around the African ebony as they prey on the rodents and certain birds that feed on the fruits. By so doing, they become resident security guards that prevent excessive eating of its seeds and the destruction of young trees.
Many animals feed on the African ebony. Birds like pigeons and parrots, monkeys, apes, etc eat the fruits while they are still on the branches. Fallen fruit is eaten by, among others, by the kudu, impala, nyala and jackal. The leaves are eaten by domestic and wild animals including cattle, goats, elephants, kudu and eland.
References
Bein, E. and others (1996) Useful Trees and Shrubs in Eritrea: Identification, Propagation and Management for Agricultural and Pastoral Communities. Regional Soil Conservation Unit: Nairobi.
Bekele-Tesemma, Azene (2007) Useful Trees of Ethiopia: Identification, Propagation and Management in 17 Agroecological Zones. RELMA in ICRAF Project: Nairobi.
Ferret, Pierre Victor Adolphe et Galinier, Joseph Germain (1848) Voyage en Abyssinie dans les provinces du tigre, du samen et de L’amhara: Atlas. Paulin: Paris.
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Kew Science – Plants of the World Online. Diospyros mespiliformis Hochst. ex A.DC. Retrieved from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:322702-1#:~:text=Angola%2C%20Benin%2C%20Botswana%2C%20Burkina,Sudan%2C%20Tanzania%2C%20Uganda%2C%20Yemen
Alaklabi, A. et al. (2014). Nucleotide based validation of the endangered plant “Diospyros mespiliformis” (Ebenaceae) by evaluating short sequence region of plastid rbcL gene. Plant Omics, 7(2), 102–107. https://search.informit.org/doi/10.3316/informit.319956566080418