"King of fruits" lures beasts

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP): Three brothers harvesting durian fruit at a Malaysian orchard never guessed who else was coming to dinner -- a tiger, her cub and an elephant.

Mansor Ismail, owner of the orchard in the northeastern state of Terengganu, claimed that he and his relatives stumbled upon the big cats feasting on the thorny fruits over the weekend, the national news agency, Bernama, reported.

As they left the orchard, one of Mansor's brothers saw an elephant stomping on a durian, trying to get at the fruit's succulent flesh. The pachyderm fled into a nearby jungle when it spotted the humans, while the brothers scrambled in the opposite direction.

The seasonal fruit -- which is tasty but stinks -- is hugely popular among Malaysians, who refer to it as the "king of fruit."