Said a thousand legged worm...

Spotted this centipede(below) moving(scurrying? crawling? what exactly do you call this kind of movement eh?) into the grass while we were out and about, on the hunt for hornbills. Strange that it was out and about during the day, when centipedes are known to be mostly nocturnal. He didn't get the memo?

Not sure what's its species though. If you know of a centipede that has a yellow body and red/orange legs let us know?

Unknown species of centipede (Class: Chilopoda)

Centipedes are rather curious looking animals with their multitude of legs! But wait... what's the difference between a centipede and a millipede? It's all in their legs :) Nah, don't need to actually count their legs, just need to check how many legs they have per segment of their body:

(a) Centipede: One pair of legs per segment

(b) Millipede: Two pairs of legs per segment

Millipedes are also usually fatter, unlike the slim(and sexy?) and flat centipede.

Take note though that the first pair of legs on the centipede has been modified into...FANGS ! (Also unlike millipedes. Not like they need venom to attack plants right?) These little creatures are capable of injecting venom into whatever they bite...and that includes you. Apart from some pain, this is usually harmless. Unless, of course, you're fortunate enough to be allergic to its toxins. They grab and sting their prey with their fangs. While they are known to be carnivorous, some species are known to eat their greens(plants) as well.

Before you write of these creatures as cold, vicious little things, interesting fact: they're caring mothers *awwww...* Female centipedes are known to curl around their eggs to protect them. Some even "lick" their eggs regularly to keep it clean and free of fungi.

Also, the centipedes you normally find in your home(if you haven't exterminated them in panic already...) are actually beneficial! They eat other pests like...the dreaded... ubiquitous... unsquashable... COCKROACH! So think twice before you smash the next centipede you find. They are our allies in our fight against the unkillable one!

References

Australian Museum. (n.d.). Animals: Myriapoda. Retrieved March 19, 2010, from Wildlife of Sydney: http://faunanet.gov.au/wos/group.cfm?Group_ID=14

Ramel, G. (n.d.). Insects: Chilopoda (Centipedes). Retrieved March 19, 2010, from Earthlife: http://www.earthlife.net/insects/chilopod.html

The Shama

Once again we saw the White-rumped Shama. Perhaps there is a healthy and stable population of these delightful birds at Sebana? Unfortunately we did not get a chance to get a good shot of the bird on our previous visit. We've done a little better this time :) Enjoy the video.

Note: The "bird call" in the video is actually that of a primate! It's Grant's bird song :) He was trying to encourage the bird to sing, though it refused to do so while this video was being taken. Stubborn little brat. Oh well... there will be other opportunities.

Male white-rumped Shama taken at Sebana (Copsychus malabaricus)

There was another White-rumped shama seen together with this one, possibly a female. Trying to impress the chicks* with his melodious voice eh?

The white-rumped shama has a very large range: it is found from Northern India all the way down to Indonesia! [Sounds familiar? It should- the range of the Oriental Pied Hornbill(Anthracoceros albirostris) is similar]. When animals and plants have very large ranges, this could be because they are highly adaptable. It is those organisms that are very specialized, in that they can only survive within a very limited set of environmental conditions, that are usually more likely to become endangered and go the way of the dodo*. The slightest itty-bitty change in the environment can drastically affect these organisms. 

Animals we usually consider pests, on the other hand, are able to withstand the changes that we 2-legged, upright walking apes have made to this little planet of blue and green. Whilst the shama is not considered a pest(probably because we find it attractive... shallow individuals that we are), it is also adaptable and this has enabled it to conquer a large land area. 

White-rumped Shama (Copsychus malabaricus)

Unfortunately, their beautiful voices mean that they are often captured for the bird trade causing them to become locally extinct in some areas. (The Star: Illegal bird trafficking) All to feed Man's greed for all things pleasing to the senses. One of those places is Singapore, where this bird is on the red list. However, there is some good news in all of this: globally, they are not endangered. IUCN* states the conservation status of this bird as being of "Least Concern". But with increasing deforestation depriving these birds, as well as many others such as hornbills, of homes, this bird too may one day cease to exist.

The highly territorial nature of these birds has helped trappers catch this bird by setting up a "decoy shama" in a chosen area and spreading a glue-like substance around this bird. When it calls, other white-rumped shamas in the vicinity come to chase the intruder away but end up being caught in the process. These beautiful birds are then doomed to a life of cage-dom*   

Interestingly, Singapore's former $50 note features the White-rumped Shama! This note was from the bird series of notes that is no longer in circulation today, though some still hold on to it hoping to make a small fortune from it in the future.

Singapore currency with White-rumped Shama

[Image adapted from this website on 14 March 2010]

Zebutionary

Cage-dom: Cage + "dom" as in "freedom" or any other "dom"s you can think of 

Chicks: Here it refers to other female birds rather than juvenile birds

Dodo: A now extinct bird

IUCN: International Union for Conservation of Nature

References
BirdLife International (2009) Species factsheet: Copsychus malabaricus. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 17/3/2010


Chris R. Shepherd, Jeet Sukumaran, Serge A. Wich (2004) Open Season:An analysis of the pet trade in Medan, Sumatra 1997 - 2001 TRAFFIC Southeast Asia

Chasing the Oriental Pied

We managed to see a great deal of the Oriental Pied hornbill on our visit to Sebana from the 6th to 7th of March, due to our luck superior hornbill locating skills :) 


Whether it was the same couple of birds we kept seeing or different birds, we're not sure of though. We saw up to 3 Oriental Pieds at one point, perched on a dead tree before they all took off(Below). It was a good day :)

Oriental Pied Hornbill perched on tree 

(Anthracoceros albirostris)

This particular Oriental Pied(Below) was seen with just one other. We even saw one feeding the other, i.e. allofeeding*! Apparently, in Oriental Pied pairs allofeeding occurs throughout the year. Both the male and the female feed each other. Also, where one flew, it's other half followed. They're in love/lust :) *awww...* These birds lay their eggs sometime from January to March so, maybe this is going to lead to some baby-Oriental-Pied-making soon?

Oriental Pied Hornbill (Anthracoceros albirostris)

Oriental Pied Hornbill (Anthracoceros albirostris)

Got eyeballed by this one while we were under the tree with our unnatural appendages(i.e. our binoculars) glued to our faces. Curious fella. Felt special :)

After hanging around the tree for a bit, the 2 of them flew off to a palm tree a distance away(Below). Unlike some larger species of hornbills, Oriental Pieds are not particularly noisy in flight, though still audible.

Spot the 2 Oriental Pied Hornbills 

(Anthracoceros albirostris)

We didn't see any Black hornbills(Anthracoceros malayanus) this time though. Oh the disappointment! It is only to be expected, since Black hornbills don't usuallyly come out to the fringes of forests, unlike Oriental Pieds. Perhaps they're just more shy? We were somewhat lucky the previous time. But, we did get to see much more of the Oriental Pied...so it works out?

Zebutionary

Allofeeding: When one bird feeds another. Reasons can vary (Google: Allofeeding)

Reference 

Kemp, A. (1995). The Hornbills. United States: Oxford University Press Inc., New York.

Postcard worthy...almost

Sebana Cove

Mangroves at Sebana

Immigration Customs jetty at Sebana

Slurping it up

Sunbird drinking nectar from Heliconia sp.

Here we have an adorable sunbird drinking nectar from flowers of a Heliconia sp. plant. It was spotted at the herb garden, though many sunbirds can be seen at Sebana as well. They are small, noisy little Old World* Birds.  These tiny birds drink nectar, and take the ocassional insect. They are fairly common so keep a look out :) 


Zebutionary
Old World*: Refers to Europe, Asia and Africa. In this case, members of the sunbird family have representatives in Africa, Asia and parts of Australia even.

In the mood... for luuurve ;)

All living things seem to exist for one purpose and one purpose only- to achieve immortality! It would probably explain Man's preoccupation with sex, since it gives us a chance to make miniature "copies" of ourselves... thereby ensuring that the species doesn't die out and, that a part of us lives on...FOREVER(assuming our progeny go on to make miniature copies of themselves as well).

Of course there are plenty who have sex purely for recreational purposes. For them, pleasure and not baby-making is the purpose. This does not just include us "top-of-the-food-chain-ers". Currently, it is believed that Bonobo monkeys and dolphins are every bit as horny* as us, if not more. (Google: Bonobos). Along with our preoccupation comes our eternal search for the elixir of... sexual desire.

You hear Tongkat Ali, a plant native to Malaysia and Indonesia and one of the first thing that springs to mind to all who are familiar with the plant is, "aphrodisiac".

Mr Rahib a plant expert examining the Eurycoma longifolia a.k.a. Tongkat Ali

With regards to the above claim: Studies on rats showed that those fed tongkat ali exhibited increased sexual performance. This does not automatically translate into the plant being able to increase the sexual performance of human males also since rats and humans are not one and the same. Studies on humans are, unfortunately, lacking...but clearly, that hasn't stopped desperate individuals.

Less known are the other medicinal uses of this plant. It is widely used in traditional medicine to cure indigestion, treat malaria and even as a tonic after childbirth. And the list goes on! Scientific studies have shown that the plant does have antibacterial, anticancer, antitumour, antimalarial and antiulcer properties, so there is some truth to its medicinal properties.

Unfortunately, it's H1N1-like reputation as a cure for erectile dysfunction(Are there really so many men out there who can't...get it up?) means that it is in great danger of being over-harvested.

And next, a fruit some ayurvedic practitioners claim "promotes energies of love". *rolling our collective eyes* Every other fruit, these days, seems to be guilty of getting us in the mood-avocados, bananas, strawberries, figs, rasberries... We can't help but be skeptical of such claims. (where are the citations eh?)

Pineapple fruit (Ananas comosus)

Pineapples are native to South America but are today cultivated throughout the tropics. As such, people around the world have found uses for this yummylicious* fruit(as well as the rest of the plant). Traditional medicinal uses include usage for abortion, to aid in digestion, to prevent conception, to treat arthritis, and as an anti-inflammatory.

In fact, in the Cook Islands, a concoction consisting of an unripe pineapple is used to treat men believed to be impotent.

" A suitable-sized stone is heated until it is red-hot and dropped carefully into the mixture in the coconut. A man considered to suffer from... impotence, sits with the steaming coconut pointed at his genitals, with a cloth wrapped around him. The healer massages him from the flanks to the genitals with coconut oil. Should the genitals retract in the steam, they will return to normal with massage"

-Adapted from Medicinal Plants of the World II, Ivan A. Ross, 2001

We don't think this sounds like a particularly pleasant experience but, then again, it's not like we've had the good fortune to actually experience this. Don't diss* it till you've tried it, perhaps?

References

AyurvedicCure.com. (n.d.). Aprodisiacs. Retrieved March 12, 2010, from AyurvedicCure.com: http://www.ayurvediccure.com

Chua, T. K., Koh, H. L., & Tan, C. H. (2009). A Guide to Medicinal Plants, An Illustrated, Scientific and Medicinal Approach. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.

Low, W.-Y., & Tan, H.-M. (2007). Asian traditional medicine for erectile dysfunction. The Hournal of Men's Health & Gender , 245-250.

Ross, I. A. (2001). Medicinal Plants of the World Volume 2. New Jersey: Humana Press Inc.

The Vegetarian Society of the United Kingdom. (n.d.). The Food of Love. Retrieved March 12, 2010, from Vegetarian Society: http://www.vegsoc.org/cordonvert/forget.html

Zebutionary

Diss*: To insult or criticize

Horny* : Slang term for being sexually aroused, or lustful

Yummylicious*:Yummy + Delicious

Little critters

Where there are plants, there will be little not-so-creepy crawlies. Such is the beauty of nature where everything is connected to something else.

This bug in the picture below, please let us know if you know what it is, because we sure don't!

Some unknown bug

There were many butterfly plants grown in the herb garden(since these are believed to have medicinal properties as well), so it's not surprising that we saw a number of butterflies. But they do tend to be such fidgety little creatures so it took quite a bit of patience and determination to take pictures of the following butterflies JUST FOR YOU :)

Possibly a Striped Albatross butterfly (Appias libythea)

Pretty little butterfly(Family: Hesperiidae), possibly a Palm Dart(Telicota augias)

Beautiful as they are, butterflies are not necessarily well liked by farmers. More butterflies means more butterfly-sex, which means more fat, little caterpillars munching away on the precious leaves of plants, painstakingly grown. But whilst these creatures take as caterpillars, they give as butterflies. After they have morphed from their former flightless selves into their now fluttering selves, they help plants out by pollinating them. They transfer pollen from plant to plant as they fly around drinking sweet nectar from different flowers. (Take a look at this website for more details) If flowers are not pollinated you don't get the seeds and fruits we love so much. The plants need the butterflies and the butterflies need the plants.

Short horned grasshopper aka Locust

Locusts are actually grasshoppers. It is the common name given to short-horned grasshoppers. Grasshoppers usually have very long antennae. But, as can be seen from the picture above, these guys don't. This little guy was hiding away in the plant. Had he been seen, this little guy would probably have been killed :( They do feed on the plants after all, and hence, can cause much damage to the farming industry. Does it always have to be a war? Man vs. nature? Or at least parts of nature...

Poisons and remedies

It's conspicuously yellow-orange. It's big. And it looks somewhat strange and obscene. You're looking at... the Nipple fruit plant(otherwise known as the Cow's Udder plant, or the Titty fruit plant), named so for obvious reasons. This is one plant you're unlikely to EVER forget if you've seen it but once.

Nipple Fruit (Solanum mammosum)

This memorable plant is native to South America and is believed to have medicinal properties. Some use the juice of this fruit as a detergent to wash clothes even! But take note, though, that this plant with suggestive fruits is poisonous, so you munching on any part of it is definitely not advisable.

And from the incredibly weird, now we move on to the incredibly beautiful- A plant that is  native to tropical and temperate Asia, Eastern Europe and Australia even(though some believe it was taken there by Homo sapiens bent on disrupting ecosystems, as always).

The Sacred Lotus.

Fruit of the Sacred Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera)

The seeds can be removed and eaten raw. Makes a pretty good snack actually, and it just happens that it promotes virility too(or at least it is believed to...). Don't all go rushing at once to get yourself some lotus seeds now! As far as we know, there doesn't seem to be conclusive evidence that this is indeed true.

Sacred Lotus flower (Nelumbo nucifera)

Interestingly, the lotus is supposedly able to regulate the temperature of its flowers just as we are able to regulate our own body temperatures! It is believed that it keeps its flowers warm to attract heat-loving insect pollinators(one of many possibilities).

Research has found that beetles that venture into the flower get trapped within it at night when the petals close up. Shielded from the cold night air, they are kept warm within the flower, enabling them to stay active. This possibly encourages a mating and feeding frenzy all night long :) In the process, pollen gets rubbed all over the little guys(and gals). And in the morning, when the flower opens up once more, they fly off to some other flower to repeat the entire process once more, unintentionally helping the plant as well.

They're not completely sure yet, so it's still pretty much anyone's guess for now.

They're not just important to the ecosystem, they're important to us humans as well. Buddhists and Hindus consider this flower to be sacred, for instance. Also, all parts of this plant are believed to have some sort of medicinal value. It is commonly used in traditional medicine to treat intermittent fever, diarrhoea, premature ejaculation, and to prevent excessive bleeding from the uterus and abdominal cramps. These are just a few of the ailments it is used for. Scientific studies also seem to show that this plant truly is a very useful plant. It has been shown to posses a whole list of 'anti-something' properties! : antianxiety, antibacterial, antidiarrhoeal, anti inflmatory, antioxidant and antiviral.

Is it any surprise then that such a plant is considered sacred? We don't think so :)

References
Boo, C. M., & Kartini Omar-Hor, C. L.-Y. (2003). 1001 Garden Plants in Singapore. Singapore: National Parks.

Chua, T. K., Koh, H. L., & Tan, C. H. (2009). A Guide to Medicinal Plants, An Illustrated, Scientific and Medicinal Approach. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.

Trade Winds Fruit. (n.d.). Nipple Fruit. Retrieved March 11, 2010, from Trade Winds Fruit:
http://www.tradewindsfruit.com/nipple_fruit.htm

Yoon, c.k. (1996, October 1). Science: Heat of Lotus Attracts Insects and Scientists. Retrieved March 11, 2010, from The New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com

Up close and personal with the plantae

Herbs- plants prized for 'special' qualities they supposedly possess. This can involve anything from making food scrumptious and curing us of our ills, to even *gasp* getting rid of bad juju*!!

In the quaint, little herb farm we visited, we saw a many, many, MANY plants so the few covered in this post in no way provides an exhaustive list of the herbs grown there. First up....

Cat's Whiskers (Orthosiphon aristatus)

The beautiful flower above belongs to a plant known as Cat's Whiskers. Usually common names reflect the appearance of the plant or animal. This is, of course, purely subjective. Some person in history decided that the flower of this particular plant looked like a cat's whiskers so there you have it! Frankly, we think it takes a little imagination(or maybe more than just a little...).

The plant is native to Southeast Asia and can even be found all the way in Australia's North Queensland.  Tea made from this plant has been used to treat kidney diseases, wasting disease, dysuria(painful or difficult peeing), and kidney/urinary stones or discharge.

And if you're not suffering from any such ailment, grow this plant anyway! It's great at attracting butterflies :)

Japanese Pagoda Plant (Clerodendrum paniculatum)

 Okay... so this "pagoda" is a little 'senget-ed'; still looks beautiful though. It is native to South, as well as much of Southeast Asia. Do not be deceived by its name. The 'Japanese' here refers to the flowers looking like a Japanese pagoda rather than its origin. This plant grows to be rather large, but do not confuse it with the Japanese pagoda tree. Two completely different trees that are in no way closely related to one another, despite their similar names.

This plant attracts many butterflies too, and over on the other side of the planet, they attract hummingbirds as well. Hummingbirds can't be found in asia of course, since we have sunbirds pretty much taking up their niche over here. Wonder if sunbirds have this same magnetic attraction to this plant as well?

A pretty daisy (Family: Compositae)

This plant wasn't actually being grown, but its flower was just so beautiful we feared karmic retribution had we not taken a photo of it. The group of flowers this daisy falls under encompasses both daisies as well as sunflowers. What's special about these plants? Their 'flowers' have small tiny little flowers(called florets) within them. Flowers within flowers!  Only the tiny little florets are truly considered flowers though.  

Even these plants are used as traditional medicine. Some believe this plant to have anti-inflammatory and astringent properties. As far as we know, no clinical studies have been conducted to test if this is indeed true as yet though.

Note: These are not the only plants which have such "double" flowers.

References

Ayurvedic-medicines.org. (n.d.). Herbal Medicines: Daisy. Retrieved March 10, 2010, from Ayurvedic Medicines: http://www.ayurvedic-medicines.org/

Boo, C. M., & Kartini Omar-Hor, C. L.-Y. (2003). 1001 Garden Plants in Singapore. Singapore: National Parks.

Shipard, I. (n.d.). Free Herb Information: Cat's Whisker's. Retrieved March 10, 2010, from Herbs Are Special: http://www.herbsarespecial.com.au

Zebutionary
Bad juju: To be haunted by a bad vibe or aura.