Euclea undulata, a mini-forest?

Multiple stems in a cluster below a dense mass of branches and foliage as seen here sometimes characterise a clump of Euclea undulata trees, thought from a distance to be one shrub or tree. Only some digging will determine how many separate trees are really represented here, as branching below ground level may have occurred. Multi-stemmed may suggest above-ground branching, but both forms occur.

The free “housing” offered by such a convenient temple of columns under a densely leafy roof as seen here is likely to be well used by resident as well as itinerant mammals (Grant, et al, 2003; Coates Palgrave, 2002; Pooley, 1993).