Ebenaceae
| Ebenaceae | |
|---|---|
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| Diospyros sandwicensis | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Asterids |
| Order: | Ericales |
| Family: |
Ebenaceae Gürke |
| Genera | |
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The Ebenaceae are a family of flowering plants belonging to order Ericales. It includes ebony and persimmon among about 768species of trees and shrubs. The family is distributed across the tropical and warmer temperate regions of the world. The family is most diverse in the rainforests of Malesia, India, tropical Africa and tropical America.
Many species are valued for their wood, particularly ebony, for fruit, and as ornamental plants.
The fruits contain tannins, a plant defense against herbivory, so they are often avoided by animals when unripe. The ripe fruits of many species are a food source for diverse animal taxa. The foliage is consumed by insects.
The plants may have a strong scent. Some species have aromatic wood. They are important and conspicuous trees in many of their native ecosystems, such as lowland dry forests of the former Maui Nui in Hawaii,Caspian Hyrcanian mixed forests, Kathiarbar-Gir dry deciduous forests, Louisiade Archipelago rain forests, Madagascar lowland forests, Narmada Valley dry deciduous forests, New Guinea mangroves, and South Western Ghats montane rain forests.
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