Effect of Logging on the Ficus Community at Batu Timbang Research Station, Imbak Canyon Conservation Area, Sabah

We investigated the effect of logging on Ficus species at a community level in theImbak Canyon Conservation Area (ICCA) in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. We madecomparisons of species composition, density, fig size, and host-tree size (DBH)between heavily logged and relatively old forests, and assessed factors affecting thesize of hemi-epiphytic species. There were no significant differences in speciescomposition, density, and fig size between the two habitats. There were significantdifferences between the DBH of host and non-host trees in both young and old forestsas well as between those of host trees in young and old forests. The DBH of hemiepiphyticspecies was negatively affected by the DBH of host trees. The resultsobtained in this study indicate that Ficus species, particularly hemi-epiphytes, cansurvive in degraded habitats that have recently been logged as well as in undegradedforests, and that their growth is not greatly affected by prior logging activities. Thus,Ficus exhibits both flexibility and adaptability to habitat change. This indicates thatFicus species make ideal plants for the restoration of logged forests considering thatfigs are an important food resource for numerous animal species, and can promote seed dispersal of other plants by attracting these animals into degraded habitats.