Myristicaceae

Myristicaceae
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

I am sure these are from the nutmeg family, perhaps a Horsfieldia species. The smell of the rind is characteristic of the nutmeg. MacRitchie, June 2005.

Lyssa zampa spotted at Sengkang HDB estate

Lyssa zampa
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

I have been following Otterman's Lyssa zampa reports with gusto. So as we came back from the pasar malam, there it was infront of the lift, on the seldomed noticed notice board. It was photographed several times and I am glad to add to the sightings. This is fresh report. Anchorvale Road, 10 pm, 30 June 2005. The back of the moth is hairy; overall, this moth is quite an eye catcher.

Dipterocarpus grandiflorus

Dipterocarpus grandiflorus
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Here are the pretty looking flowers of the keruing (taken in Mar 2005) featured in Francis and the Dipteropcarp. They spot the brown leaf litter pleasantly with pink and white petals. Celebrate masting, it happens once in a few years.

Blend in like bugman

Bug on Simpoh ayer
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

If it hadn't been for my sharp eyes, I would have missed this bug on the abaxial surface of the simpoh ayer leaf. It blended in well with its vein-like margins and central axis. What creature is this?

Caterpillars in June

caterpillars
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

After reading Otterman's "Does Lyssa zampa eat?", I wondered if the three different types of caterpillars I saw one afternoon at MacRitchie in June, acting gregarious, were also doing a Lyssa zampa. Note the fig tree on the right stripped of its leaves by munching caterpillars on each branch. The forest has been busy, unbeknownst to many...


Note: I originally posted the sightings in Mar but realised that it was actually in early June that I saw them in MacRitchie.

Rengas

Gluta wallichii
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Gluta wallichii, Anacardiaceae. Cousin of the mangoes, the sap of this plant, which charactersitically turns black when exposed to air, is said irritate some to the point of developing painful blisters. Looks like I am not one of them.

Bend it like the simpoh ayer

Dillenia suffructicosa
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Dillenia suffructicosa, Dilleniaceae. The flowers hang down but the fruits face up thanks to some torsion by the stalk. Also known affectionately as the CB leaf.

Mengkuang Laut

Pandanus odoratissimus
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Pandanus odoratissimus, Pandanaceae, Monocot. The fruiting head is as big as a man's head. A magnificent pandan (yes, its a close cousin of our pandan wangi, Pandanus amaryllifolius), that punctuates a pristine beach forest, along with the Ximenes.

Licuala peltata var. sumawongii

Licuala peltata var. sumawongii
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

The beautiful 1st order inflorescence branches of this palas against the backdrop of its peltate (shield-shaped) fronds.

Kid stands in front of Licuala peltata var. sumawongii

Licuala peltata
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

This palas was in flower (mature) when I was there 2 weeks ago. I wonder if it is also part of the mast flowering that happened a couple of months ago in Feb.

Piaget's moon

Piaget's moon
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

A revision of a previous blog Piaget and the Moon, now complete with picture.
Thanks to Piaget, I got to play a real neat game with Joshua. In “Giant in the Nursery” (Elkind 19772), Piaget describes how children perceive inanimate objects to have their own identity, so in explaining how a moon seems be overhead all the time, he said that one should just explain that the moon was following the child, anyone who explains otherwise, misses the point. So now, Josh thinks he’s special to Brother Moon and that its following him around. He got to play peek-a-boo with the moon under the canopy of a tree one clear moonlit night.


Elkind, D. (1972). Giant in the Nursery – Jean Piaget. In: RF Biehler (Ed), Psychology Applied to Teaching, Selected Readings. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, USA. Pp 147––169.

Matt tunggu kretapi

Matt_kretapi
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Matt is waiting for the train... where is the train papa? Where is mummy? I want mummy...

Josh duduk kretapi

Josh_kretapi
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

This is Josh's signature goofy smile. We decided to take the kretapi KTM to Johor and do a spot of shopping. He loves Thomas the Tank Engine right now.

Otterman

Otterman
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Siva looking relaxed last Saturday on Pedal Ubin.

Rambai

Baccaurea motleyana
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Baccaurea motleyana, Euphorbiaceae. The rambai certainly epitomises the kampung feel of Pulau ubin. It is related to the duku langsat and tastes like it, except that it is sourish. My mum used to buy this from the market but now there are only apples and pears with the occasional regional fruits like the mangosteen or durian. Conserve our fruit heritage.

Xylocarpus granatum

Xylocarpus granatum
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Thanks to rusty botanical knowledge, I couldn't tell which Xylocarpus species this was. Thankfully, someone in the group had the "Guide to the mangroves of Singapore I".
me:" eh, which xylocarpus is this; I know got two."
hk:" according to the guidebook Xylocarpus granatum has yellowish or greenish, smooth and flaking bark (vs. dark grey, non-flaking fissured bark in X. moluccensis)."
me: "okay, easy peasy."

Being a botanist

mangrove
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

The picture says it all. As I turned back to see how my companions were doing, all my botanical instincts went on high alert and I felt myself leap out of my skin. The mozzies were a welcome menace and the mud was spa-treatment. Yes, I have been deprived. I am an unabashed botanist.

Ximenia americana

Ximenia americana
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

A stand of Ximenes along Semakau. Ladybug mentioned that she remembered eating the sourish fruit, an orange olive-shaped drupe, as a child. She recognised it instantly when she chanced a fruiting individual. The hedge of the beach forest dominated by this species was nostalgic of island surveys I helped carry out several years back. In the hot sun and albedo, the juicy and sourish drupes were refreshing. This was pure and unadulterated beach forest.

The delight of seeing things in their natural habitat

Cerbera odallum
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Cerbera odallum Apocynaceae. This picture of the Pong Pong tree was taken along the coast of Semakau. Along the long stretch of beach forest, there'd be several individuals and their white flowers are just so beautiful to behold. Somehow, they don't look so good planted along the wayside.

Talipariti tiliaceum

Talipariti tiliaceum
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Inspired by Otterman's recent artful entries on the sea hibiscus "Blooming Sea Hibiscus" and "Flowers of the Sea hibiscus", I couldn't resist taking this picture at Semakau. It really is photogenic.

Ketok your head

Parkia speciosa
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Parkia speciosa. Form the Mimosoideae; Leguminosae. speciosa in latin means showy or beautiful. My father said that "in the old kampung days" the inflorescence which looks like a bulb set on a long stalk was used to play a game called ketok ketok and they would use that to hit each other on the head.

The beans are the famous petai which is another favorite delicacy when fried with sambal.

Picutre taken today with my free BenQ camera that came with the SCV (which has been terminated because of too much moving images, music videos and travel and adventure). The pictures are disappointing but I just need an image to blog on. This I blame Otterman. Why all this call-signs? like Maverick and Goose.

Nephelium malaiense

Nephelium malaiense
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Mata kuching. This is related to the longan, lychee and rambutan.

Along Island Club Road to the TreeTop Walk are some old kampungs. This is the first time I have seen it in fruit, honestly, its the first time I have seen this tree (its a lifer). The flesh of the fruit (picked up from the road and tasted much to the disgust of Jen) is really thin but the taste is heavenly and alluring. Sexy. So if you are vegan, have some of this "eye of the cat" instead of oysters and soon it will get you purring...

Corner (1988) described the mata kuching to be one of the handsomest trees in Malaya when grown to perfection.

Oak trees in MacRitchie

Lithocarpus sp.
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

These are the acorns of a Lithocarpus sp. MacRitchie, 11 Mar 2005. "That Oak-trees (Quercus, Lithocarpus) occur in Malaya often comes as a surprise because our ideas on the nature and distribution of plants are sadly distorted through ignorance of tropical botany", Corner (1998) in Wayside trees of Malaya.

Ref:
Corner, E.J.H. (1988). Wayside Trees of Malaya.Vol 1. The Malayan Nature Society, KL, Malaysia

Malayan Chestnut

Castanopsis inermis
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Castanopsis inermis Fagaceae (Oak Family). The local name for chestnuts is Berangan. BTNR, 20 Jun 2005.

Seraya

Shorea ?curtisii
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

This is probably Shorea curtisii, Dipterocarpaceae, as it has three wings and the size of the mature fruit (centre) seems right. It fruits every 5-10 years after severe drought. The last masting event for Singapore was thought to be 6 years ago. The fruits littered the forest floor. BTNR, 20 June 2005.

Cat's claws

Caesalpinia sumatrana
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Caesalpinia sumatrana, Caesalpinioideae/Leguminosae. 20 Jun 2005, BTNR. A climber with prickles set on top of woody knobs along its length.

Hopea odorata in the Botanic Gardens

Hopea odorata
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

15 June 2005. Singapore Botanic Gardens. The Chengal pasir trees in the Gardens in the evening. The fruits are shown one blog away.

"Thottea" see you there

Thottea grandiflora
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Thottea grandiflora Aristolochiaceae. MacRtichie, 11 June 2005.

A nature watch article by Goh Si Guim (1999) mentions it as "caterpillar foodplant for two locally rare butterflies."

Ref:
Goh SG (1999) Naturewatch. Vol 7 No 3 Sep-Dec 1999. URL: http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/pub/naturewatch/text/a073d.htm

Hopea odorata in the Botanic Gardens

Hopea odorata in the Botanic Gardens
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

The chengal pasir fruits in Botanic Gardens, 15 Jun 2005.

Bat-lily begins... and ends

Tacca intergrifolia
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Tacca intergrifolia inflorescence in Macritchie (18 Mar 2005) and fruits in BTNR (20 June 2005). Almost all the individuals encountered in BTNR had fruits.

Ten men in my hand

Ixonanthes reticulata
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

20 June 2005. BTNR Ixonanthes reticulata Erythroxylaceae. Ten men is the english vernacular given to the tree which gives this fruit (a capsule). Malay name is Inggi burong, Nyiran burong or Pagar anak. Using Corner's Wayside trees, I keyed it down to I. reticulata. The other species is I. icosandra. Parts of the capsule still green, have been dropping from the treetops; perhaps the birds are getting at the seeds hence the malay vernacular. The persistent sepals and petals are resinous sticky as described by Corner (1998).

Ref:
Corner, E.J.H. (1988). Wayside Trees of Malaya.Vol 1. The Malayan Nature Society, KL, Malaysia. p 255-256.

Wild mangosteen

Originally uploaded by lekowala.

20 June BTNR. Garcinia sp. Guttiferae. Felt and smelt like mangosteen.

Palm Valley, evening

Palm Valley, evening
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

A walk with the family on a very humid evening in the Botanic Gardens. I passed by the trunks of the tall Coryphoid palms and gazed into the beautiful palm valley and ached. The pain was beautiful.

Talipot in fruit

Corypha umbraculifera
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Corypha umbraculifera has the biggest inflorescence of any flowering plant. Jen and Joshua provide scale. Just in case Matt wonders why he is not there; he was sound asleep in my arm, head on my shoulders. A couple of months ago it was flowering; see photo by Ladybug and another shot of it by blog newbie ChengPuay in Inertia is a sin.

Baccaurea parviflora flowers and fruits

Baccaurea parviflora flowers and fruits
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

The setambun is the close relative of the rambai (B. motleyana) which tastes much like the langsat or duku. The genus belongs to the family Euphorbiaceae which has important members like the Rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) and the important ingredients of yummy nonya kuah thickener, the buah keras (Aleurites moluccana). In Mid-March quite a number of the individuals were in flower in MacRitchie and its not easy to miss the flowering tree as the flowers, set on longish slender stalks are bunched around the trunk like a skirt (cauliflory is a term describing the position of flowers on the trunk of a tree) and give off a pleasant lemon-scent. The long stalks were laden with fruits by early June when we visited the spot again. It is noted to flower gregariously after a dry spell.


Ref:
Corner, E.J.H. (1988). Wayside Trees of Malaya.Vol 1. The Malayan Nature Society, KL, Malaysia. p 274-278.

Mt Imbiah

Mt Imbiah
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

After a dismal afternoon at Sentosa - they took away the swings at the Orchid nursery just in front of the nice chapel and I felt a pang seeing that the monorail tracks leading out of the visitor centre was gone, we drove round the island disgruntled (very) about the many ongoing, never ending cosmetic changes to the island (faster than you could say "Not guilty" ten times). Finally saw a roadsign at the base of a hill with the words Mt Imbiah. The nice narrow road led us to the command buildings and to the gun emplacement of Mt Imbiah. Built by the British in the 1880's to "protect the western approaches of the Singapore Harbour". It was abandoned in the 1930's when Fort Connaught was updated with three 9.2 inch guns. Read more at this excellent Fort Siloso website. The entire outfit is still much intact except for the 9.2 inch Coastal Artillery Gun . A sense of history pervaded and I was glad that we were there and it was warming to see the kids run around the historical landmark. It would have cost us a dear $21 to go into Fort Siloso and it is such a pity we have to pay to feel a sense of our own history.

cutie

cutie
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

I met this little cutie at the Ranger Station at the Treetop Walk. it really reminds me of Ben... someone tell me its name please.

Licuala ferruginea

Licuala ferruginea
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Even the licuala is joining in the mast fruiting. This fan palm has no above-ground stem and almost every individual was fruiting, the fruits getting dark red as they mature. It was quite a sight to see these normally reticent palms doing their thing. It might be a good time to study the frugivores that disperse the fruits.

Samaras in Macritchie

samara
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Here are the samaras of the Kempas tree, Koompassia malaccensis strewn along a part of the HSBC Nature Trail at Macritichie. I guess its part of the mast fruiting that's going on right now. Picture taken yesterday on the 11 June 2005.

The timber was once rated as Malaya's 3rd most abindant timber tree. On a herbarium specimen that I chanced across once, I read that the Macaques eat the seed of the fruit and access it by bending the samara. The samara is twisted at the base, which enables the fruit to spin in the wind. The flowers are tiny, just 0.5 cm in diameter.

Matthew sees Hopea

Matthew sees Hopea
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Matt contemplates a Chengal Pasir fruit in Sentosa.

Dipterocarp in Sentosa

Dipterocarp in Sentosa
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

Unbeknownst to the throngs of tourist that may have passed by Burger King's,on their way towards the giant Merlion, its mast fruiting for this dipterocarp in Sentosa. The two-winged fruits were on the ground and Joshua and Matthew had a good time throwing them up in the air and watching them spin down. This is probably Hopea odorata. There were about 6 tall mature trees there planted just before the walkway that leads to the musical fountain.

Francis and the dipterocarp

Francis and the dipterocarp
Originally uploaded by lekowala.

The forest was busy this year. When I visited the TreeTop Walk in Macritchie, there were flowers everywhere. I guessed it was mast flowering (synchronised mass flowering) in our forest. the local botanist mentioned that the last time this happend was several years ago (6 yrs I think) . The Baccaurea parviflora trees were doing their thing and they looked beautiful with skirts of inflorescences around the base of their trunks (pictures forthcoming), flowers were strewn along some parts of the trails - all very productive of the forest. Here's a picture of little Francis holding a keruing fruit that we saw yesterday.

Piaget and the Moon

Thanks to Piaget, I got to play a real neat game with Joshua.  In “Giant in the Nursery” (Elkind 19772), Piaget describes how children perceive inanimate objects to have their own identity, so in explaining how a moon seems be overhead all the time, he said that one should just explain that the moon was following the child, anyone who explains otherwise, misses the point.  So now, Josh thinks he’s special to Brother Moon and that its following him around.  He got to play peek-a-boo with the moon under the canopy of a tree one clear moonlit night.


Elkind, D.  (1972).  Giant in the Nursery – Jean Piaget.  In:  RF Biehler (Ed), Psychology Applied to Teaching, Selected Readings. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, USA. Pp 147––169.

First movie

Yesterday was Joshua’s and Matt's first movie (Matt’s too young to know anything although he liked the ringtailed lemur king)
We watched Madagascar and Jen and I watched him as he giggled and laughed, sometimes just out of sheer excitement.
So, there we were in the cinema and Joshua’s hand deep in the box of popcorns (sometimes feeding me), Matt in my arms asleep and Jen’s laughing at the damn funny lemur king with the Indian accent.  Nice...