Diospyros thus avoided by most herbivores; when ripe they are eagerly eaten by many animals however, such as the rare Aders' duiker ("Cephalophus adersi"). The foliage is used as food by the larvae of numerous Lepidoptera species: Arctiidae: Geometridae: Limacodidae: Lycaenidae: Nymphalidae: Saturniidae: Tortricidae: An economically significant plant pathogen infecting many "Diospyros" species – "D. hispida", kaki persimmon ("D. kaki"), date-plum ("D. lotus"), Texas persimmon ("D. texana"), Coromandel ebony ("D. melanoxylon") and probably others – is the sac fungus "Pseudocercospora kaki", which causes a leaf spot disease. The genus includes several plants of commercial importance, either for their edible fruit (persimmons)
Ebenaceae 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. Ebony is a dense black wood taken from several species in the genus "Diospyros", including "Diospyros ebenum" (Ceylon ebony, Indian ebony), "Diospyros crassiflora" (West African