Kigelia africana, commonly called sausage tree, is native to riverbanks, floodplains, open woodlands and savannas from sub-Saharan central Africa to South Africa. It typically grows to 50 to 60 tall with a stout trunk and rounded to spreading crown. Smooth, gray-brown bark may flake with age.

Rough, pinnate-compound, yellowish-green leaves (to 8 long), with each leaf having 3 to 8 leaflets.