Hopea dryobalanoides (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Hopea dryobalanoides Miq.

Protologue: Fl. Ind. Bat., Suppl. 1 (Prodr. Fl. Sum.): 492 (1861).

Synonyms

• Hopea borneensis Heim (1891),
• Hopea sarawakensis Heim (1891),
• Hopea micrantha King (1893) non Hook.f.

Vernacular names

• Brunei: mata kucing hitam
• Indonesia: merawan seluai (Sumatra, Kalimantan), bayang gunong (western Sumatra), (emang) berjangkar (South Kalimantan)
• Malaysia: mata kucing hitam (Peninsular), luis hitam (Sarawak), selangan daun kapur (Sabah).

Distribution

Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo.

Uses

The timber is used as merawan. The tree was formerly a valuable source of dammar ("damar mata kucing").

Observations

• A medium-sized to large tree of up to 55 m tall, bole straight, cylindrical, with a diameter of up to 110 cm, buttresses sharp and stilted, adventitious roots often present, dammar in tear-like stalactitic exudations, colourless or pale yellow, bark surface dark brown, inner bark dull pale brown tinged pink, slightly layered, sapwood pale yellow, heartwood pale brown; young parts shortly densely greyish-brown fugacious pubescent.
• Leaves ovate-lanceolate, 5-12 cm × 1.5-4.5 cm, thin leathery, base cuneate, equal or subequal, acumen narrow, up to 2 cm long, venation dryobalanoid, midrib raised above, secondary veins 8-12 pairs, slender but distinct beneath, curved.
• Stamens 15, in 3 whorls, ovary ovoid, glabrous, without distinct stylopodium, style as long as ovary, setose in the basal half.
• 2 longer fruit calyx lobes up to 6.5 cm × 1.5 cm, subacute, pronouncedly twisted, 3 shorter ones up to 8 mm × 6 mm, broadly ovate, shorter than the nut, obtuse or subacute.

H. dryobalanoides occurs widespread and is locally frequent on clay-rich fertile soils on undulating or well-drained flat land, or ridges below 600 m altitude; also common on basalt and neutral igneous and volcanic rocks on slopes and ridges. The density of the wood is 480-980 kg/m³ at 15% moisture content.

Selected sources

30, 75, 89, 100, 253, 258, 324, 344, 461, 476, 677, 748.

Main genus page

• Hopea (merawan)

Authors

• K.M. Kochummen (selection of species),
• F.T. Frietema (selection of species)