MacRitchie Reservoir

A friend asked me to help her out with some field data collection in MacRitchie Reservoir for a Professor's research project. We entered the reservoir early dawn, just as the sun was rising.

Eh Uncle, fishing in the reservoir is illegal you know!

Scenic view of the reservoir

The Melastoma flowers that we're collecting data from, and their unriped fruits in the foreground.

Can you spot two Nomia bees hovering over the flower? This species has bluish stripes around the abdomen unlike the usual yellow ones.

Umbrellas to shelter our bags from the rain, and white bags over some flowers to prevent bees from collecting pollen from them when the flowers open.

Pretty view from our collection site. Spotted a Malayan Water Lizard (Varanus salvator) swimming across the river nearby but I didn't manage to take a shot of it.

Well, MacRitchie Reservoir is indeed a nice escape from the urban city.

Hort Park + Forest Walk

Flowers and more flowers @ Hort Park ->

Hort Park has a variety of showcases of outdoor garden concepts in little plots of land.

Upslope to the Forest Walk.

They grow pineapples along the trail!

A really spiny caterpillar.

Stairs leading up to the Forest Walk.

The elliptic, blunt leaves of the Tiup Tiup (Adinandra dumosa) and its white bell-shaped flower.

View from the top!

Pink-necked green pigeon (Trenon vernans) resting on a tree branch

A Plantain Squirrel (Callosciurus notatus) out foraging. Cute!

Hello Southern Ridges! [21/12/09]

On my maiden journey to the Southern Ridges, starting from Alexandra Arch.The snaking boardwalk of the Forest Walk that stretches for miles is the first thing that a visitor would see. This Elevated Walkway stands at 50m high through the secondary forest, the Adinandra Beluka, of Telok Blangah Hill and connects Alexandra Arch to the Hilltop Walk. Adinandra Beluka refers to a secondary forest on degraded soil.
The Elevated Walkway offers the visitor an eye-level view of the forest canopy layer, whereas the Earth Trail, an alternative to the Elevated Walkway, allows the more adventurous to trek through the undergrowth. I'm gonna try that another day! =D
The deep blue sky with wisps of clouds after a rainy day
I spotted this birdhouse on a tree, wonders what bird does it accomodate?
One of the many signboards along the Elevated Walkway. I dont think i can remember all those! >.< A pretty-looking cricket; its legs are rather fat haha
another signboard and an accompanying picture of its leaves below..
can you spot a ring on a twig on the near right side?
the mysterious ring... how did it appear on the plant anyway?
a spider, iridescent green in colour
and some ants in the midst of building an ant nest i think.




the snaky walkway only goes higher and higher and higher!


look how far i've come..
and the highlight of the trip was this amusing little Plantain Squirrel (Callosciurus notatus) that seemed oblivious to the attention it was getting, and busied itself eating the fruits of the tree. This is common squirrel that also feeds on insects and bird eggs.
An up-close shot of the White-crested Laughingthrush (Garrulax leucotophus). What amazed me was that the animals there weren't that shy of humans and even allowed a up-close distance of about one metres.
Henderson Waves! A perfect hangout for family, friends and couples.
The vegetation of Mount Faber Park as seen from the bridge.
There goes the sun... goodbye day hello night!

Other birds I spotted were:
1. White-vented Bulbul (Acridotheres cinereus)
2. Pink-necked pigeon (Treron vernans) [a flock of them at Forest Walk]
3. Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker (Dicaeum cruentatum)

And other animals which i weren't able to identify or take photos of. We ended our hike with Marang Trail and took a bus back home. It was a fun late afternoon and i'd want to go back there again! =D