Terminalia sericea very pale in the sunlight

The silvery sheen of this blue-grey Terminalia sericea crown contrasts against the hide of the elephant under it. The specific name, sericea, refers to the soft and dense silky hairs covering the leaves of the tree. Occasionally a tree may be seen with markedly green leaves, also pale in colour. When in leaf T. sericea trees are easy to spot in the veld.

The flowers grow in axillary spikes of 7 cm in length. They are small and cream to pale yellow, unpleasantly scented. Flowering comes in spring to midsummer (Carr, 1974; Coates Palgrave, 2002).