Myrobalanus bellirica Gaertner, Fruct. Sem. Pl. 2: 90. 1790 ["bellirina"]; M. laurinoides (Teijsmann & Binnendijk) Kuntze; Terminalia attenuata Edgeworth; T. bellirica var. laurinoides (Teijsmann & Binnendijk) C. B. Clarke; T. eglandulosa Roxburgh ex C. B. Clarke; T. gella Dalzell; T. laurinoides Teijsmann & Binnendijk; T. punctata Roth.

Trees deciduous, to 35 m tall; trunk to 1 m d.b.h., with large buttresses. Bark gray, longitudinally ridged. Branchlets with conspicuous, spirally ascending leaf scars. Leaves spiraled, crowded into pseudowhorls at apices of branchlets; petiole 3-9 cm, glabrous but ferruginous tomentose when young, especially at base, with 2 glands above middle; leaf blade glossy, obovate, 18-26 × 6-12 cm, both surfaces glabrous except ferruginous tomentose when young, base obtuse-rounded or attenuate, apex obtuse or mucronate; lateral veins in 5-8 pairs. Inflorescences axillary, simple spikes, 5-18 cm, often grouped at branchlet apex and forming a panicle; axis densely ferruginous tomentose. Calyx tube distally shallowly cupular, 4-5 mm, abaxially tomentose, adaxially long villous; lobes 5. Stamens 10, exserted, 4-5 mm. Fruit shortly stipitate, subglobose to broadly ellipsoid or ovoid, weakly to strongly 5-ridged, 2-3 × 1.8-2.5 cm, densely and finely velutinous or sericeous; stipe ca. 2 mm. Fl. Mar-Apr, fr. May-Jul. 2n = 48.

Scattered forests, sunny mountain slopes, one of the upper layer trees of stream valleys and lower seasonal rain forests; 500-1400 m. S Yunnan [Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam; N Australia; introduced in E Africa].