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At the Main Bridge near Main Hide, the Little Heron (Butorides striatus) was at its regular spot, fishing from a tangle of mangrove roots, as it usually does at this tide condition. On the mud below the bridge, what a fabulous treat! Two watersnakes (the Dog-faced Watersnake, Cerberus rynchops). One was lying still among roots over the water, not doing much. The other was very active. It slithered quickly up a streamlet under the bridge, to reach a pool. It quickly searched through the pool, then slid up onto the mud and actively searched among the roots, checking out every crevice. First time I've seen such an active snake in daylight! Besides the bridge, we spotted a large spider (Cyrtophora sp.) in a fabulous large three-dimensional web with a dome-shaped base. She was a beautiful mom, dilligently watching over her large bundle of eggs. Most of the shorebirds have left for their summer breeding grounds. The mudflats in front of the Main Hide seemed lonely without them. On the way to Platform 1, we heard an Asian Glossy Starling (Aplonis payanensis) and it turned out to be a juvenile with dusky plumage and not much stripes (on it's way to full adult all-black plumage?). At Platform 1, the Little Heron that is usually there, was hunting as usual along the water's edge near the sluice gate. We heard their happy mad cackles, but didn't quite see Collared Kingfishers (Halcyon chloris) among the trees. Flora events: Alexandrian Laurels (Callophylum inophylum) everywhere were blooming profusely. The beautiful blooms, delicately perfumed, sparkled against the glossy, dark green leaves. We saw a Rhizophora heavy with fruit and flower, but couldn't quite figure out which Rhizophora it was. Will check with the Park staff and update the page later. We also looked closely at the Bruguiera cylindrica flowers to see their tiny tasseled petals...what a wonder! |
 Dog-faced Watersnake foraging on mud  Juvenile Asian Glossy Starling  Alexandran Laurel in bloom |
 by ria tan, 2001 |
