Cotylelobium melanoxylon
Encyclopedia
Cotylelobium melanoxylon is a tropical rainforest
tree found in Maritime Southeast Asia
. The name melanoxylon is derived from Greek
(melanos = black and xylon = wood) and describes the dark heartwood. It is a very good quality timber
, as it has very hard and heavy as well as durable wood. C. melanoxylon is a tall emergent tree, up to 60 m, found in mixed dipterocarp forest on yellow sandy soils (Ashton 2004). It also occurs as a smaller canopy tree in kerangas forest on podsols. The tree occurs in at least three protected areas (Lambir National Park, Gunung Mulu National Park
and Kabilli-Sepilok Forest Reserve). Local names of the tree include Resak tembaga in Malay
and Khiam (เคี่ยม) in Thai
.
The tree is the provincial symbol tree of Surat Thani Province
, Thailand
.
Tropical rainforest
A tropical rainforest is an ecosystem type that occurs roughly within the latitudes 28 degrees north or south of the equator . This ecosystem experiences high average temperatures and a significant amount of rainfall...
tree found in Maritime Southeast Asia
Maritime Southeast Asia
Maritime Southeast Asia refers to the maritime region of Southeast Asia as opposed to mainland Southeast Asia and includes the modern countries of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei, East Timor and Singapore....
. The name melanoxylon is derived from Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
(melanos = black and xylon = wood) and describes the dark heartwood. It is a very good quality timber
Timber
Timber may refer to:* Timber, a term common in the United Kingdom and Australia for wood materials * Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S...
, as it has very hard and heavy as well as durable wood. C. melanoxylon is a tall emergent tree, up to 60 m, found in mixed dipterocarp forest on yellow sandy soils (Ashton 2004). It also occurs as a smaller canopy tree in kerangas forest on podsols. The tree occurs in at least three protected areas (Lambir National Park, Gunung Mulu National Park
Gunung Mulu National Park
Gunung Mulu National Park near Miri, Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that encompasses incredible caves and karst formations in a mountainous equatorial rainforest setting...
and Kabilli-Sepilok Forest Reserve). Local names of the tree include Resak tembaga in Malay
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
and Khiam (เคี่ยม) in Thai
Thai language
Thai , also known as Central Thai and Siamese, is the national and official language of Thailand and the native language of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group. Thai is a member of the Tai group of the Tai–Kadai language family. Historical linguists have been unable to definitively...
.
The tree is the provincial symbol tree of Surat Thani Province
Surat Thani Province
Surat Thani is the largest of the southern provinces of Thailand, on the eastern shore of the Gulf of Thailand. Surat Thani means City of Good People, the title given to the city by King Vajiravudh ....
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
.