On Sunday 26 August, Nature Society of Singapore led a bird watching walk through Bukit Brown. Thanks to Cuifen, NSS member for compiling this album on highlights from the wal kwith additional photos from her fellow bird watcher, Leng Leng. Enjoy!
They came armed with ‘scopes and binos, cameras and the naked eye (photo Cuifen)
View into a scope. Lesser coucal spreading its wings, and sunbathing in the waterlogged fern area. The bird looks much clearer & closer when viewing directly into the scope (photo Cuifen)
Laced woodpecker sitting on a ‘nest’ of African tulip flowers. Photo taken by fellow bird watcher, Leng Leng.
Can you spot the baby monitor lizard? (photo Cuifen)
A starburst orchid. A rare sight! Photo taken by fellow bird watcher, Leng Leng.
With the Hungry Ghost festival on, maybe some pickings for the birds, after the “ghosts” have feasted of course (photo Cuifen)
Mornings are family strolls with the dog as well (photo Cuifen)
(photo Cuifen)
Collared Kingfisher. Photo taken by fellow bird watcher, Leng Leng
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Don’t miss this video of a nightjar and its nestling! Here’s one of woodpeckers.
Birds, Flowers and More – this shows you not only the real birds and flowers but the tomb decorations depicting birds and flowers
Here’s a look at a pangolin
FOR PREVIOUS NSS WALKS:
A Nature Ramble – this helps identify some plants at Bukit Brown
Beyond Grave Matters – this is a beautifully written commentary and event report by Rosalind Tan, whose ancestors lie at Bukit Brown
Dateline 2 May 2012 at Bukit Brown.
This magnificent creature was “captured” this morning by Georgina Chin the accidental photographer. She writes of the moment:
” He was brave and stood on a perch like forever and didn’t move. I sat and just watched him. He was soaked . I was soaked. I call him white socks.”
About Georgina:
She is the photographer and writer of the book “Birds in my Backyard.” Bukit Brown is literally her backyard as she lives off Lornie Road. Georgina started birdwatching in 2009.
Georgina Chin - The Accidental Photographer (photo Catherine Lim)
From Bukit Brown’s Poet- in- Residence – a poem inspired by a little sparrow “captured” by Bukit Brown’s Photographer- in- Residence. Be inspired and be of good hope.
The Little Sparrow (photo Suki Singh)
LITTLE SPARROW ON THE TREE
by Lim Su Min
What seeeth thou from up there,
Little sparrow on the tree
With thine tiny eyes thy vision cast
Across this cemetery?
Canst thou see the things unseen
Thousands upon thousands of souls in pain
Canst thou hear with thine tiny ears
Their plaintive cry for “peace again?
Little sparrow on the tree
Soar up to heaven to pray
To plead that these anguished souls
Would truely “Requiescite in pace” .
Sunday 18th morning @ Bukit Brown, Nature Society’s Angie Ng conducted a plant walk and shared what she knew about plants which are used as herbs in local dishes and fruit trees. Here are some of the highlights
Red Stem-fig tree ( Ficus variegata)
They look like dried sea urchins, but from them will spring figs (photo Cuifen)
What the fig? (photo: Angie Ng)
Angie picks up a fig of Ficus aurantiacea , a climbing fig.” (photo :Suki Singh)
Ferns grow close to the ground
This one is rare (photo Cuifen)
Set again a white backdrop, it is quite exquisite and delicate in design (photo: Cuifen)
The tiny leaf from a frond deserves closer investigation (photo: Cuifen)
An edible fern found at the foot of hill leading up to Ong Sam Leong’s gravesite
An edible fern, delicious saute with sambal belachan (a Malaysian dish) according to Angie (photo; Angie Ng)
The sori (arrangement of sporangia ) is most interesting (photo Angie Ng)
Ferns also grow on hospitable rain trees
This bird’s nest fern in turn hosts a nest for a family of bats. Cuifen who took this photo spotted four. can you spot any?
The False Curry Leaf Plant (Clausena excavata)
The False Curry Leaf Plant is a small tree which looks like a Curry Leaf plant and whose leaves also smell like it. But its small flowers are in panicles and its green oblong berries ripen pink. (photo Cuifen)
Berries from the False Curry Leave tree turning pink (photo Angie Ng)
Geophila repens
Geophilia repens with tiny white flower and bright red berries creeps among the grasses under shady trees.
Salam Tree ( Syzygium polyanth )
The Salam tree is flowering and dropping bunches of its creamy white stamens. Salam leaves are used to flavour your favourite local breakfast dish, lontong. (Photo: Cuifen)
The Napkin tree
The Napkin tree has soft leaves (photo Cuifen)
And the most spectacular of the flowering plants : Wild Orchids
Bulbophylllum vaginatum (photo Angie Ng)
Hoya Latifolia – The waxed flowers hangs high on an old rain tree, leaves are almost heart shaped (photo by Angie Ng)
Read the NSS Position Paper on Bukit Brown
Introduction
On the second day of the new year, Beng Tang, an avid conservationist together with his companion went on an expedition down the “stream” that runs through Bukit Brown. Concerned that development from the impending highway will encroach on the habitat which is home to both indigenous and as he described it “foreign talent”fresh water species, he set himself a mission to transport what he could “capture” to safer environs. We thank Beng Tang for sharing his expedition report and findings with a.t.bukitbrown and salute him for his effort.
The Set-Up
- Setting up the traps
The Long View - Waiting
Yes, they are biting!
Prologue
The Bukit Brown stream is actually a man-made drain with sloping concrete sides, but it is well weathered such that a substrate of mud and sand and leaf litter has accumulated on it’s bottom and plants are growing in it. The water in it is slow flowing (except when it rains and it is in spate), and these factors make it suitable for freshwater plants and animals. Fish can lay eggs in the gravel substrate, fry can hide in the vegetation and eat invertebrates in it, animals can shelter in the plants when the water is fast flowing, and the decaying leaf litter and plants support a food web. Land animals can access the stream to drink or forage.
The Catch
The"stream" is overgrown in places, with substrate and dead leaves on the bottom, perfect for fish and turtles
Species of Spotted Barb and Danio including Kedah danio
Spotted Barb species, 2 inches long
A Malayan Box Terrapin lurks, the Bukit Brown stream is a good habitat for this native reptile
An easy albeit none too happy captive
Underbelly showing the hinges of the plastron
The banks of stream is for butterfly spotting
A New Home
- Beng Tang making his way to release catch to new and hopefully safer habitat. Location: the drain on the other side of Bukit Brown, near Ghymkhana Ave / Jalan Mashhor
Beng reports the terrapin made a dash for freedom
Part of the stream where the wildlife was released, seen from Woodbridge
How did the eel get to the stream? Who dun'it?
The Banded Woodpecker and The Laced Woodpecker were spotted and filmed at Bukit Brown by sgbeachbum, the moniker of a nature buff who haunts Bukit Brown and natural habitats documenting and sharing Singapore’s natural treasures for generations to come.
banded woodpecker cooling off @ bukit brown 15Jan2012 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.
There’s no polite way of saying it: stinkhorns are gross, and they stink so strongly you usually smell them before you see them.
This one was spotted by Cuifen Pui from the Bukit Brown Face book group the weekend before the Chinese New Year.
The same stinkhorn was spotted and shot by sgbeachbum.
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