sgbeachbum

Sunday, January 22, 2012

golden orb web spider @ bukit brown - Jan2012

I had come across golden orb spider webs at many locations around Singapore before and I had always wondered why these spiders had been called so. I had never noticed anything 'golden' about the previously sighted webs.

I had just visited what was supposed to be the largest graves at the Bukit Brown Cemetary (distinctly visible on Google maps) and was on my way out when someone else in the group spotted a large orb web close to the path.

Click on the map pic above for a larger view. The grave is below the 'X'. Compare the size of the grave to the houses lining Lornie Road. It's gianourmous!

The orb web had 3 layers parallel to each other with one large female orb web spider on the central layer with a smaller red male towards the top of the same layer which the female was on.

The clip was shot at about 11 am and the sunlight hit it from almost directly overhead. The golden appearance of the web was clearly visible. It was then the name of this group of spiders made sense. An 'A-Ha' moment for sure.

A while later, i came across another golden orb spider. This one seemed to be bothered by tiny flies which were harassing it. This one also had a noticeable golden tinge to the web.

Find out more about Golden-Orb web spiders here :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_silk_orb-weaver
http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/inverts/nephila.htm
http://lazy-lizard-tales.blogspot.com/2010/07/raffles-museum-treasures-golden-orb-web.html
http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/spiders/text/Nephila_maculata.htm
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/tag/golden-orb-spider/
http://jeb.biologists.org/content/207/15/2631.full

Saturday, January 21, 2012

stinkhorn fungus @ bukit brown Jan2012

Came across this unusual fungus first at about 10.30 am and then later at about 2.30pm when i went back to the same fungus specimen to see how it had wilted.

Would not have paid it much attention to it and would have passed by without paying more attention to it but was lucky to have Angie Ng around to explain what it was and that piqued my interest enough to get my nose down close to it to smell it. There were numerous tiny flies and a rather large housefly settled on the fungus. One had to get really close to the fungus to be able to get a whiff of the mild stale scent which was attracting the flies.

The fungus is actually below ground and the umbrella-net surrounding a central stalk which is seen is actually the 'flower'. The stale scent attracts the flies and they help to carry the fungal spores away.

When i went back at about 2.30 pm, the central stalk and umbrella net had wilted considerably.

Read more about this amazing fungus here :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phallaceae
http://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fungi/july99.html

banded woodpecker cooling off @ bukit brown 15Jan2012

I spotted the first Woodpecker just outside of a large hole in a tree. This was just before the tomb with the red-turbaned guards. It flew to an adjacent palm tree whilst another woodpecker (the subject of the video clip) flew in to use the hole in the tree.

After a first woodpecker had abandoned the tree hole, the second one flew up to the tree and inspected the large hole before reversing itself into the hole and disappearing into it. Judging from the splashes, it was having a bath in the water collected in the tree hole. The water could not have been very clean as the bird's feathers looked grimy when it finally came out at about the 3.45 mark.

At the 1.54 mark, you can hear the first woodpecker chasing a third intruding woodpecker away. The 'rapid-fire cackling' was really loud and the chaser bird did not seem bothered with passing close within a few feet of me. It must have been really focused on the intruding woodpecker to have ignored me at such close proximity. It continued chasing the third bird some distance into the surrounding trees.

From a conversation with a friend who is a more experienced birdwatcher, it seems that the cackling had come from a Common Flameback Woodpecker (a.k.a Common Goldenback).

The bathing woodpecker (Banded Woodpecker) saw fit to momentarily stop its bath and looked around to see what the fuss was about. Then, rather nonchalantly, it resumed its bath. The entire bath took about 4 minutes.

Time : 11.15am, 15 Jan 2012
Place : Bukit Brown Cemetary, the tree at the red-turbaned guarded tomb.

find out more about the banded woodpecker :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banded_Woodpecker
http://www.besgroup.org/?s=banded+woodpecker&x=0&y=0

and read about Bukit Brown :
http://bukitbrown.org/
http://wildsingaporenews.blogspot.com/2011/10/bukit-brown-hope-springs-eternal.html
http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_736000.html

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

fireworm fished @ labrador 17Jan2012

This bristleworm was 'fished' out by a night fisherman. He had skewered a live bait fish and plonked it down into the water for about 15 minutes afterwhich he decided to check on his lure. What he pulled up did not resemble the bait fish. On closer look, there was a strange worm-like creature enveloping the entire bait fish. The bait fish was about 8 or 9 cm long and the worm was just a little longer than it.

The worm had many many tufts of gold and yellow coloured bristles.
Slowly, the bristleworm or rather 'fireworm' regurgitated the fish which had long stopped moving.

It was later realised that the worm had, during the regurgitation, hooked itself on the hook that was originally on the fish.

Over about 10 minutes, it managed to wriggle the tip of the hook towards its mouth but still had a very obvious problem with the business end of the hook.

Before long, the line was cut and the fireworm was thrown back where it came from. The idea of hook removal was abandoned as the worm would have been impossible to handle and more harm may actually be inflicted on it if a plier was used to remove the hook.

I hope it manages to extricate the hook out under water. ... if not then the hunter becomes the hunted and something else will probably devour it.

Read more about this amazing worm here :

http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/worm/polychaeta/chloeia.htm

Monday, January 16, 2012

Labrador No-Fishing Fishing Check - Jan2012

Are the no fishing signs at Labrador Park and Nature Reserve being followed?

uh, it's a family affair ... mum & 2 sons right beside the formerly 'no' fishing sign ...

(mum was grumbly after she was politely reminded that it was a 'no-fishing' zone. They were slow to pack up but did so after they were politely reminded of the two signs.

There are two prohibitory signs at the lookout point.

One on the railing and the other high up the lampost above the circular float.

The more accessible one on the guardrail had some modification done to it by an anonymous hand ... wonder if the prohibition is obvious to all who may be capable of making the right sense

of it through all the fishing lines. Some reading between the lines required (pun intended).

No matter ...

... if you can't fish on one side, you can always try the other side...

it all depends on how far you can throw your line.

but why bother with moving away when you can stay put

assured that no one will ever give you a ticket

This guy was at the main promenade (no apparent fishing prohibition) and had what seemed to be the longest and biggest rod and he had an unusual technique which required a lot of space ...wonder if he hit any ships? He did not seem to catch anything though.

The vid clip shows another fisherman in the background with a green sun hat who narrowly misses another park visitor when he carelessly swings his fishing rod's line in the direction of the passing visitor. Good thing the visitor was keeping a proper lookout and avoided the recoiling line, hook and weight in the nick of time.