Wilpattu National Park Palu trees (Manilkara hexandra): heartwood density and bear foraging?
Why are mature Palu trees in Wilpattu considered a keystone species for supporting sloth bears and resident dry-zone wildlife during drought?
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4 Answers from travellers
The Palu Tree (Manilkara hexandra) is an essential keystone dry-zone canopy tree thriving across Wilpattu and Yala national parks. Producing extremely dense, heavy heartwood (historically used for railway sleepers and bridge pilings), Palu trees fruit synchronously between May and July. The sweet, yellow berries provide critical caloric nutrition for Sri Lankan Sloth Bears, which climb branches to gorge on fruit, alongside civet cats, hornbills, and frugivorous bats. Trunks bearing deep vertical claw gouges indicate frequent bear climbing activity.
Palu timber is protected under strict conservation laws; illegal felling inside national parks is prosecuted heavily to safeguard wildlife food sources.
Safari naturalists spot sloth bears foraging beneath massive Palu trees during morning and evening game drives in Wilpattu.
The small sweet berries possess a sticky latex sap and a single hard seed kernel preferred by forest birds.
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