Calophyllum rigidum (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Calophyllum rigidum Miq.

Protologue: Fl. Ind. Bat., Suppl. 1(3): 497 (1861).

• Calophyllum kunstleri King (1890).

Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Bangka, Belitung and south-western Borneo (Kalimantan, Sarawak).

The timber is used as bintangor; it is used in ship building and for general construction.

• A medium-sized tree up to 25 m tall, but occasionally up to 35 m, with bole up to 45 cm in diameter, without buttresses but loop roots sometimes present; twigs at first 4-angled but soon becoming rounded, terminal bud plump to narrowly conical, (3-)5-10(-13) mm long.
• Leaves usually ovate, (4-)7-17.5 cm long, cuneate or attenuate at base, acuminate at apex, with (7-)10-17 veins per 5 mm.
• Inflorescences axillary, usually unbranched, 3-11-flowered; flowers with 4 tepals.
• Fruit spherical, 12-16 mm long, with fairly thick, compact outer layer, whitish.

C. rigidum is not common and occurs scattered. It grows in well-drained dipterocarp forest, but also in swamps (e.g. in Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra) and heath forest-like vegetation (e.g. in Sarawak), up to 600 m altitude. The density of the timber is 470-670 kg/m³ at 15% moisture content. See also the table on wood properties.

100, 102, 190, 648, 779.

• Calophyllum

R.H.M.J. Lemmens (selection of species)