Dipterocarpaceae

Dipterocarpaceae, family of largely South Asian and African timber trees, in the hibiscus, or mallow, order (Malvales), comprising 17 genera and 680 species. Few species grow east of Wallace’s Line, the boundary between the Oriental and Australian faunal regions proposed by the 19th-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace. The lowland forests of West Malesia may be dominated by members of the family, which also may be common in the drier forests of Southeast Asia. Pakaraimaea and Pseudomonotes are genera restricted to portions of the Amazon in South America. Most of the species in the family are lofty trees with leathery, evergreen leaves and aromatic resins. Their clustered, fragrant flowers have five twisted, leathery petals. Dipterocarpus species provide a variety of products in addition to useful timber. Dipterocarpus glandulosa yields gurjun balsam, used in medicines. Many species in the genus Shorea, such as sal (S. robusta), also are valuable timber trees and produce useful resins. Dryobalanops aromatica produces Borneo camphor, used in East Asia for medicines, varnishes, and embalming. From Vateria indica comes a gum resin known as Indian copal; a similar resin comes from the larger V. acuminata. Other genera with useful timbers are Vatica, Hopea, and two African genera, Marquesa and Monotes. See also Shorea.