Ficus lawesii fruiting: First good photos, Kinabatangan, Sabah

Ficus lawesii growing on the banks of the Kinabatangan river near Kampung Sukau, Sabah, Malaysian Borneo.

Ficus lawesii is closely related to Ficus glaberrima which does not occur in Borneo but which is widespread in Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula and Thailand.

These are the first good photos of Ficus lawesii fig fruits ever taken in Borneo. According to Helson Hassan the ripe figs attracted Helmeted and Pied Hornbills as well as gibbons and an orangutan with a baby. Normally figs that ripen green are eaten by fruit bats and other mammals and only rarely by birds.

All photos by Helson Hassan of Hornbill conservation NGO, GAIA