Mount Pock Forest Reserve is a protected forest reserve in Semporna District of Tawau Division, Sabah, Malaysia. It was designated as a Class 1 Protection Forest by the Sabah Forestry Department in 1984. Its area is . The reserve consists of steeply sloping terrain. The forest on lower slopes has been impacted by logging and conversion of land for agriculture. Oil palm plantations surround the reserve. The size of the reserve has decreased since its initial gazetting. In 2012, of the Mount Pock Reserve was reclassified as state land as this area, along with parts of other reserves, have been home to indigenous communities.

Flora

Mount Pock Forest Reserve hosts threatened plant species such as '' Neolamarckia cadamba'', ''

Canarium odontophyllum ''Canarium odontophyllum'' is a fruit-bearing tree of the genus Canarium in the family Burseraceae. It is a native of Borneo, where it is locally known as dabai in Sarawak and kembayau in Sabah and Brunei. Its fruit is a prized seasonal delicacy ...

'', '' Knema elmeri'', '' Durio acutifolius'', '' Shorea parvifolia'', ''

Garcinia parvifolia ''Garcinia parvifolia'', the Kundong, Brunei cherry or Asam aur aur, is a tropical evergreen tree native to Borneo, Peninsular Malaysia, Sulawesi and Sumatra. The tree is found at elevations of in humid environments, and grows to a height of ...

'', '' Koordersiodendron pinnatum'', ''

Shorea smithiana ''Shorea smithiana'' (called, along with some other species in the genus ''Shorea'', light red meranti) is a large Rainforest#Emergent layer, emergent rainforest tree species in the Dipterocarpaceae. ''Shorea smithiana'' is endemism, endemic to B ...

'', ''

Shorea superba ''Shorea superba'' is a species of plant in the family Dipterocarpaceae. The species name is derived from Latin (''superbus'' = magnificent) and refers to the stature and elegance of the tree. Description It is a vast emergent tree, growing to ...

'', '' Shorea laevis'', ''

Parashorea malaanonan ''Parashorea malaanonan'' is a species of plant in the family Dipterocarpaceae. it is found in the Philippines and the northeast coast of Sabah in Borneo. The name ''malaanonan'' is derived from Tagalog (''mala'' = false and ''anonang'' = custar ...

'', '' Dryobalanops lanceolata'' and ''

Parashorea tomentella ''Parashorea tomentella'' is a species of plant in the family Dipterocarpaceae. It is endemic to eastern Borneo (Sabah and east Kalimantan). It is a large emergent tree, up to 65 m tall, found in lowland dipterocarp forests on fertile clay soils ...

''. It also hosts '' Diospyros'', '' Dipterocarpus'', ''

Lithocarpus ''Lithocarpus'' is a genus in the beech family, Fagaceae. Trees in this genus are commonly known as the stone oaks and differ from ''Quercus'' primarily because they produce insect-pollinated flowers on erect spikes and the female flowers have ...

'' and '' Syzygium'' species.

Fauna

Mount Pock Forest Reserve is home to threatened mammals including pig-tailed macaque,

gibbon Gibbons () are apes in the family Hylobatidae (). The family historically contained one genus, but now is split into four extant genera and 20 species. Gibbons live in subtropical and tropical rainforest from eastern Bangladesh to Northeast India ...

tufted ground squirrel The tufted ground squirrel or groove-toothed squirrel (''Rheithrosciurus macrotis'') is a species of rodent in the family Sciuridae. It is the sole species in the genus ''Rheithrosciurus''. It is found only on the island of Borneo. Confirmed ele ...

and

Bornean bearded pig The Bornean bearded pig (''Sus barbatus''), also known as the Sunda bearded pig or simply bearded pig, is a species in the pig genus, '' Sus''. It can be recognized by its prominent beard. It also sometimes has tassels on its tail. It is found ...

References

Forest reserves of Sabah Semporna District Borneo lowland rain forests {{Sabah-geo-stub