Tualang

One of the tallest trees in the tropics – wild bees can build as many as a hundred nests on its branches at once.

The tualang is a giant tree of the legume family, reaching 80–85 m tall, with a straight, silvery-grey trunk bare of branches right up to the crown and massive buttress roots. It towers high above the rainforest canopy. Its smooth, slippery bark makes it hard for bears to climb, so giant honey bees, Apis dorsata, readily build their nests on its high limbs. The wood is hard but difficult to work, so the trees were often spared during logging.

Significance in the country

In Malaysia the tualang is famous for tualang honey, gathered at night by climbers from Indigenous peoples, and for the belief that spirits dwell in the tree. It is one of the symbols of Taman Negara National Park.

Where it grows

In the lowland rainforests of the Malay Peninsula (the best-known specimens are in Taman Negara in Pahang and in Kedah) and in Sabah and Sarawak on Borneo.

More: Wikipedia (en)