Appearance
It grows to around 50 metres tall with a highly buttressed trunk. It inhabits mangrove forests. ''Intsia bijuga'' differ from ''Intsia palembanica'' in the number of leaflets that make up their compound leaves.Naming
The tree has a variety of common names including ipil and kwila. In the Philippines, it also known in some areas as taal.Uses
The bark and leaves of the ipil are used in traditional medicines. The tree's timber, called ''kwila'', is a very durable and termite-resistant wood, making it a highly valued material for flooring and other uses. The wood can also be used to extract a dye. The tree can contain a "gold" fleck that runs through the grain, considered to be attractive by some.Due to extensive logging of the tree, it is endangered in many places in Southeast Asia, and almost extinct in some. Extensive amounts were purchased for the venue of the 2008 Summer Olympics in China, which is the largest importer of the wood. The wood is used for flooring in U.S. and European markets where it is commonly sold under different names. Both licensed and unlicensed mills harvest the wood.
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