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Martina Chia






Monday, September 28, 2009
Semakau - 26Jul

Horseshoe Crab not a crab or even crustaceans, it is actually related to spiders and scropions
Has 5 pairs of walking legs tipped with pincer. Flags contain gills and is also use a paddle.
Uses it's tail to right-side itself up, so DO NOT LIFT IT UP BY IT'S TAIL.
Blood is used to test for baterial contamination in medical industrial.


Gong-GongA scavengers that feed on decaying plant and animal.
Instead of creeping around like other snails, it actually hop!
It jabs its operculum into sand and pushes against it like a pole-vaulter. Mother nature gives it a heavy shell  with a flared to stabilise it during hopping.




Moon Snail - Got it name due to its round and white shells.
Don't be decevied by its pearl-like appearance, in fact, it is a voracious predator.
It wrap it's foot around prey, secretes a liquid thru tip of the proboscis that help dissolve prey's shell. Then it uses its radula to rasp a neat drill hole in the softened shell.



Unidentify Anemones


Knobbly Sea Star
This super star never fail to astound visitor to Semakau. It may look innocent, but it is a voracious predators. Look at the underside, it has many tude feets emerging from the grooves. Other than using is tude feet to move around. It also uses them to move food towards it's mouth. Guess where is it ?



Thursday, September 3, 2009
Pulau Ubin - 29Aug2009

Was at Ubin with a group friends on 29Aug2009.

This attap house remained me of my childhood at Hougang - climbing up coconut trees, catching guppies in pond, catching spiders to keep at pet in match boxes....What a carefree childhood that last only 6 short years.


Photos taken with my Olympus :

Grey Heron - A large bird with a long white neck and black head plumes, standing at over 1m.
It retracted it's neck and straighten legs against body while at flight.
Nest are made up of loosely laid sticks on top of trees.












Pacific Swallow are aerial feeders and tend to spend times catching insects in flight. Usually seen near water area.
This shy bird prefer to build mud nest on unoccupied building.

Adult: Upperparts metallic blue; forehead, throat, upper breast chestnut; lowerparts grey, never white.

Juvenile: Upperparts browner; less chestnut on throat and forehead.












Changeable Tree Lizard (Calotes versicolor).












Cotton stainer bug feeding on dehiscing fruit of Simpoh

Interesting fact : bugs that feed on cotton grow larger and faster.

The bugs tend to form groups, which help them find mates. The small, pale eggs are laid singly on the food plant or dropped on the ground near the food plant. They hatch in 5-8 days into wingless nymphs which lack the cross-markings on their backs (they do not have a larval stage). Hatchlings gather near their egg shells, then continue to feed in groups. They moult 5 times (instars) before reaching the mature stage whereupon they get their wings and characteristic cross-markings.









Bracket mushroom












Cocao {Theobroma cacao}Flower / Leave / Fruit

Seeds are used to make chocolate and cocoa..
Leaves are large and simple, dark green and drooping.
Flowers are small and borne on branches.
Fruits contain 20-30 flat seeds embedded in a white or pinkish, sweetish pulp.
 









Starfruit {Averrhoa carambola}
Chinese uses fruits to quench thirst and to increase urine flow. Also used to arrest bleeding wounds.

Starfruit flower







Fig {Ficus roxburghii}
Probably of Western Asian Origin. Can grow to about 7m with a short trunk and spreading branches and produce milky juice.
Fruits are edible.
Alternate simple leave. Stipules are small and intrapetiolar, forming a cap over the bud.