The world’s tallest known tropical tree, and possibly the tallest flowering plant, has been discovered in the Danum Valley Conservation Area in the Malaysian part of the island of Borneo, measuring a whopping 328 feet (100.8 m).
The view from the bottom of ‘Menara.’ Image credit: Unding Jami / University of Oxford.
The world’s tallest tropical tree is the yellow meranti (Shorea faguetiana), a species of plant in the Dipterocarpaceae family that can be found in Borneo, Malay Peninsula, and Thailand.
Dubbed ‘Menara’ (Malay for ‘tower’), the giant tree was first spotted by an international team of researchers in 2018, using an airborne Light Detection and Ranging Survey (LiDAR) where lasers pulses are reflected off the canopy and ground surface.
Excluding roots, Menara weighs 81,500 kg, or more than the maximum takeoff weight of a Boeing 737-800. Only 5% of its mass is held in its 131-foot (40 m) wide crown, whereas 95% is in its trunk.
The stem is very straight, with the center of mass at 92 feet (28 m) above the ground and only displaced by 2 feet (0.6 m) from the central vertical axis, suggesting the tree is highly symmetrical and well-balanced despite being situated on sloping ground in a sheltered valley.
A drone’s view of ‘Menara.’ Image credit: Alexander Shenkin / University of Oxford.
“We were able to establish additional dimensional information about the tree, and to examine the mechanics of such giant trees in general,” said team leader Dr. Doreen Boyd, a scientist at the University of Nottingham.
The analysis of the tree’s structure suggests that that Menara is a long way from buckling under its own weight, but may be vulnerable to wind breakage.
Its location in a sheltered valley protects it somewhat and probably aids it to grow to such extreme heights.
“There may also be other factors, such as the challenge of sucking water 328 feet up a tree, that limit the maximum height of broadleaf trees to around 328 feet,” said team member Dr. Alexander Shenkin, a researcher at the University of Oxford.
“There could still be taller trees out there yet to be found, however given the evidence we have found on the mechanical constraints caused by the wind, it is unlikely any new tree would be much taller,” said Professor Yadvinder Malhi, also from the University of Oxford.
“But it is likely that the tallest extant flowering plant still sits undiscovered somewhere in the forests of Borneo.”
“The discovery of this remarkable tree provides additional recognition to, and impetus for, efforts to conserve these magnificent, biodiverse and record-breaking tall rainforests.”
