Artocarpus is a genus of approximately 60 trees and shrubs of Southeast Asian and Pacific origin, belonging to the mulberry family, Moraceae. Most species of Artocarpus are restricted to Southeast Asia; a few cultivated species are more widely distributed, especially A. altilis (breadfruit) and A. heterophyllus (jackfruit), which are cultivated throughout the tropics.
Description All Artocarpus species are laticiferous trees or shrubs that are composed of leaves, twigs and stems capable of producing a milky sap. The flora type is monoecious and produces unisexual flowers; furthermore, both sexes are present within the same plant. The plants produce small, greenish, female flowers that grow on short, fleshy spikes. Following pollination, the flowers grow into a syncarpous fruit, and these are capable of growing into very large sizes. The stipulated leaves vary from small and entire (Artocarpus integer) to large and lobed (Artocarpus altilis), with the cordate leaves of the species A. altilis ending in long, sharp tips.
Taxonomy The name Artocarpus is derived from the Greek words artos ("bread") and karpos ("fruit"). This name was coined by Johann Reinhold Forster and J. Georg Adam Forster, a father-and-son team of botanists aboard HMS Resolution on James Cook's second voyage; they used it in their book Characteres generum plantarum. It is maintained as a conserved name.
Although fossils of Artocarpus have been reported from as early as the Late Cretaceous, these fossils generally that lack key diagnostic characters such as that could definitively place them in the genus. The last common ancestor of all living Artocarpus likely originated in the vicinity of Borneo, from which Artocarpus dispersed elsewhere in Asia and Oceania.
Subgenera Recent phylogenetic research, based on leaf arrangement, leaf anatomical characters and stipules, indicates that there are at least two subgenera in Artocarpus: Subgenus Artocarpus: Perianth of fruit is partially connate (fused). Subgenus Pseudojaca: Perianth is entirely connate. Subgenus Cauliflori Subgenus Pseudojaca is allied to the genus Prainea, and some researchers treat this taxon as a fourth subgenus of Artocarpus.
Extant species Subgenus Image Scientific name Common name Distribution Artocarpus Artocarpus altilis (Parkinson) Fosberg Breadfruit, Seedless breadfruit, Sukun, Kolo, Rimas, Anubing Oceania from New Guinea through the Indo-Malayan Archipelago to western Micronesia Artocarpus anisophyllus Miq. Popwan, Entawak, Mentawa Palawan (Philippines), Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo Artocarpus blancoi (Elmer) Merr. Antipolo Philippines (Endemic) Artocarpus brevipedunculatus (F. M. Jarrett) C. C. Berg Borneo Artocarpus camansi Blanco Breadnut, Kamansi, Kluwih, Deeball, Seeded breadfruit Philippines, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea Artocarpus corneri Kochummen Borneo (Sarawak) Artocarpus chama Buch.-Ham. Chaplaish Yunnan China, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Sikkim, Thailand Artocarpus elasticus Reinw. ex Blume Benda, Bendo, Teureup, Malagumihan Burma, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Java, Lesser Sunda Islands, Borneo, Philippines, Sulawesi, Moluccas Artocarpus excelsus Jarrett Borneo (Sabah)Artocarpus glaucus BlumeIndonesia, Malaysia, Australia Artocarpus hirsutus Lam. Anjily, WildJack, Jungle Jack, Angelin, Hirsute Artocarpus, Aini Maram, Aini Western Ghats, India Artocarpus hispidus Jarrett Peninsular Malaysia Artocarpus horridus Jarrett Maluku Artocarpus jarrettiae Kochummen Borneo (Sabah, Sarawak) Artocarpus kemando Miq. Pudau, Pudu Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo Artocarpus lanceifolius Roxb. Keledang Indonesia Artocarpus lowii King Peninsula Malaysia to Sumatera Artocarpus maingayi King Borneo Artocarpus mariannensis Trécul Dugdug Mariana Islands and Guam Artocarpus melinoxylus Gagnep. Vietnam Artocarpus multifidus Jarrett Philippines (Mindanao, Samar) Artocarpus nobilis Thwaites Ceylon breadfruit south western regions of Sri Lanka Artocarpus odoratissimus Blanco Johey oak, Terap, Marang, Morangbaum Borneo, Philippines (Palawan and Mindanao Island) Artocarpus obtusus Jarrett Borneo (Sarawak) Artocarpus pinnatisectus Merr. Philippines (Luzon, Mindanao) Artocarpus rigidus Blume Monkey jackfruit Indochina and Malesia Artocarpus sarawakensis F.M.Jarrett Pingan, Mountain Terap Sarawak Artocarpus scortechinii KingTwo winged Artocarpus, Black Terap Malaysia Artocarpus sepicanus Diels New Guinea Artocarpus sericicarpus F.M.Jarrett Peluntan, Gumihan, Pedalai, Hairy Terap Borneo (Sarawak), Malaysia (Sabah), the Philippines (Mindoro), and Indonesia (Kalimantan) Artocarpus sumatranus Jarrett Sumatra Artocarpus tamaran Becc. Elephant Jack, Tamaran Borneo Artocarpus teysmannii Miq. Nicobar Islands, Peninsula Thailand to W. New Guinea Artocarpus treculianus Elmer Tipuho, Pakak, Kabaya, Togop, Tugup Batanes (Philippines) Cauliflori (F.M. Jarrett) Zerega, Supardi, and Motley Artocarpus annulatus Jarrett Borneo (Sarawak) Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam. Nangka, Langka, Jackfruit India, South East of Indian Subcontinent, China, Philippines Artocarpus integer (Thunb.) Merr. Cempedak, Badak southeast Asia, especially from Malaysia and can be found in Indonesia to the island of New Guinea, Palawan, Philippines Pseudojaca Trécul Artocarpus albobrunneus Berg Borneo (Kalimantan) Artocarpus altissimus (Miq.) J. J. Smith Peninsula Thailand, Sumatra, Borneo (Kalimantan) Artocarpus borneensis Merr. Tampang Borneo Artocarpus dadah Miq. Dadah, Tampang Sumatra Artocarpus fretessii Teysm. & Binnend. Eastern Borneo, the Philippines, Sulawesi, the Moluccas and Irian Jaya Artocarpus fulvicortex Jarrett Malaya to Sumatera Artocarpus gomezianus Wall. ex Trécul Sampang Assam to W. Malesia Artocarpus gongshanensis S.K.Wu ex C.Y.Wu & S.S.Chang NW Yunnan, China Artocarpus griffithii (King) Merr. Beruni, Selanking Southern China to Sumatra, Singapore and Borneo Artocarpus humilis Becc. Beruni, Selanking Borneo Artocarpus hypargyreus Hance ex Benth. White Kwai Muk China Artocarpus lacucha Buch.-Ham. Lakoocha, Monkey fruit Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia Artocarpus lamellosus BlancoButong China (Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, S Hunan, S Yunnan), Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam Artocarpus longifolius Becc. Borneo Artocarpus nanchuanensis S.S.Chang et al. Chongqing (Nanchuan), China Artocarpus nigrifolius C.Y.Wu S Yunnan (Jinping), China Artocarpus ovatus Blanco Philippines Artocarpus parvus Gagnep. Kwai muk South-East Asia, China Artocarpus petelotii Gagnepain China (SE Yunnan), N Vietnam Artocarpus pithecogallus C.Y.Wu China (Xishuangbanna, Yunnan) Artocarpus primackiana Kochummen Borneo (Sabah, Sarawak) Artocarpus reticulatus Miq. Sulawesi to Maluku Artocarpus rubrovenia Warb. Kalulot Philippines Artocarpus subrotundifolius Elmer Philippines Artocarpus styracifolius Pierre China (Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, SW Hunan, SE Yunnan), Laos, Vietnam Artocarpus thailandicus C.C.Berg N Thailand Artocarpus tomentosulus Jarrett NE Borneo Artocarpus tonkinensis A.Chev. ex Gagnep. China (Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, S Yunnan), Cambodia, N Vietnam Artocarpus vrieseanus Miq. Sulawesi to New Guinea Artocarpus xanthocarpus Merr. Taiwan (Lan Yu), Indonesia (Kalimantan), Philippines
Fossil record Fossil leaves and fruits of †Artocarpus dicksoni have been found in Cretaceous formations of West Greenland. Fossil leaves of †Artocarpus ordinarius have been found in Cretaceous stratum at the south bank of the Yukon River just above Rampart, Alaska.The Tertiary floras of Alaska: Issues 181–184 by Charles Arthur Hollick – 1 January 1936 – U.S. Gov't. Print. Off. Fossils of †Artocarpus californica have been described from Eocene and Miocene strata of the Pacific coast of California and Oregon.The Lower Ecene Floras of Southeastern North America by Edward Wilber Berry, Professional Paper – United States Geological Survey, The Survey, 1916 Eight fossil species of Artocarpus (†A. capellinii, †A. isseli, †A. macrophylla, †A. massalongoi, †A. multinervis, †A. ovalifolia, †A. sismondai and †A. taramellii), from the lower Oligocene, have been described from a fossil leaves collected from 1857 to 1889 in Santa Giustina and Sassello in Central Liguria, Italy.Oligocene fossil leaves of the Perrando Collection: history, preservation and paleoclimatic meaning by Maria Cristina Bonci, Grazia Vannucci, Simona Tacchino & Michele Piazza – Bollettino della Società Paleontologica Italiana, 50 (3), 2011, 145–164. Modena, 30 dicembre 2011 – ISSN 0375-7633 – doi:10.4435/BSPI.2011.14
Uses Several species in the genus bear edible fruit and are commonly cultivated: Breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis), Cempedak (Artocarpus integer), Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus), Kwai Muk (Artocarpus parvus), Lakoocha (Artocarpus lakoocha), Pudau (Artocarpus kemando), Anjily (a.k.a. Jungle Jack) (Artocarpus hirsutus), Chaplaish (Artocarpus chama), and Marang (Artocarpus odoratissimus).
Breadfruit and jackfruit are cultivated widely in the tropical Southeast Asia. Other species are cultivated locally for their timber, fruit or edible seeds. Anjily, A. hirsutus, is grown for fruit and timber in the Western Ghats.
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See also Domesticated plants and animals of Austronesia
Notes
References Zerega, N. J. C. and T. J. Motley. 2001. Artocarpus (Moraceae) molecular phylogeny and the systematics and origins of breadfruit, Artocarpus altilis. Botanical Society of America Annual Meeting. Albuquerque, NM. August 12–16, 2001.
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