Beauty of a Sunrise

"Each golden sunrise ushers in new opportunities for those who retain faith in themselves, and keep their chins up.... Meet the sunrise with confidence. Fill every golden minute with right thinking and worthwhile endeavor. Do this and there will be joy for you in each golden sunset."

~ Alonzo Newton Benn
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Shot this the next morning from the edge of Jurong Lake. It was a beautiufl sight, hence I took a few shots. Next I'm planning to shoot a beautiful sunset.

Unknown Frogs and Tadpoles Identified

Went over to Jurong Central Park in the evening for a brisk walk after the rain. After which I looked around the mini-wetland and found a few tadpoles with glowing heads. I wasn't sure if they were fish or tadpoles but after a noticing their glowing heads and tail, I identified them as the tadpoles of Dark-Sided Chorus Frogs.

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It was difficult to shoot these tadpoles since they swim away quickly when we approach too fast. However, I came up with a trick so as to shoot them. When I see one, I'll slowly have to move my camera along with it, getting close by a centimetre every second. In this way, the tadpoles feel less threatened.

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I left the tadpoles soon. If there were tadpoles, I knew there would be adult frogs as well. I moved to the sides and ends of the marsh as that was were the frogs usually lie. I did spot one tiny one but it swam into the water beneath the shrubs before I could catch it. Meanwhile, there were several Field Frogs around and I managed to photograph one just before it jumped off.

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And then, I spotted another Dark-Sided Chorus Frog. I didn't allow this one to escape. Caught it with a cup that I found nearby and took a few shots. It was extremely tiny.

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This tiny, terrestrial frog species lives near small puddles and ponds in rural areas and secondary forest. It can be hard to find, on account of its small size and its habit of lying concealed in the grass or under leaf litter. Its call is a series of rapidly repeated clicking sounds.

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And finally, one last 'wild' shot of it before letting it go. I left then too.

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Common Snakeheads and Dragonflies

I spotted a few Snakeheads in the ponds while walking past. Most of them swim away slowly but there was this particular one that stayed where it was.

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I wasn't sure if it was alive but soon it turned and moved a little.

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Before I left, I also managed to grab some shots of the common dragonflies. Here's a male and a female found flying near each other.

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A Grenadier Dragonfly at Rest

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Was on my way to Japanese Garden with two other friends for jogging. On the way, I found this pretty dragonfly resting on a leaf bud beside the path. I'd seen a similar one in MacRitchie. I've identified that one as a Red Swampdragon whereas this one's a Grenadier.

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Spent some time shooting this Dragonfly before both the dragonfly and we went off. A beautiful dragonfly, nevertheless.

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This Bridge Belongs to Snakes...

The rat snake had left. But that was not all. On the other side of the mini-bridge were, like I said, another two pair of big eyes.

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Bingo! A Malayan or Big-Eye Green Whip Snake again. We had just spotted one in our previous trip! This snake was considered an uncommon species, and now we were seeing it for the third time.

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The snake, obviously aware of us, tried to escape into the further bushes but my friend decided not to and held the tip of its tail so that we could take a few more shots. This is pretty dangerous as the snake could strike. And it almost did! The moment it felt its tail caught, it flattened its neck, revealing black and white colours. I tried my best to shoot some of those poses.

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This was probably one of the best poses of the snake, but unfortunately, I lost focus on the head. However, the flattened neck can be seen clearly.

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I suggested that it was about time to let it go. It would have striked any moment, and the bite can be pretty bad although the venom does not harm us humans much. But, its always better to be safe than sorry. Here's a shot as the snake body elegantly moves along the leaves.

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And the snake slowly moves up into the taller bushes. Left the reserve then as it was almost 7. But this hunt was a success as it was the first time we spotted three snakes in a day.

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The Shy Snake

Got into the Taban Loop Trail once we were back from the summit. At the small bridge after the steps downwards, I was sure I saw some movement between the undergrowth. I looked but didn't really see anything. My friend went a little to the side and slowly said to me, 'Snake'. I was right. there was something lurking in the leaf litter. I managed to spot the snake but couldn't photograph it. I only managed to get two fair shots of its tail.

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The snake immediately slithered off. I was sure that it was a rat snake because of three main reasons: 1) The snake was really long, reaching almost two metres. 2) It was really fast in the undergrowth. Generally only racers are fast in leaf litter. 3) There were tiny spots on the tip of its tail, just like the ones on rat snakes I've seen in India. And indeed it was. This snake is a White-Bellied Rat Snake. Many thanks to Nick for helping me in identifying the snake. Well, this was not all. As this snake went off, on the other side were another pair of snake eyes. to be continued in the next post...

Caught On Camera

Caught this Slender Squirrel feasting on a nut or seed while on the way back to the visitor centre. Apparently this is the first time I've shot a Slender Squirrel, and, even that a clear one. These mammals are generally very difficult to shoot given that you don't own a zoom lens. Luckily this individual didn't notice me for a few seconds and I took my chance to photograph it. SNAP!

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Light Rays Entering the Forest

I was on the way back from the summit when these light rays from the sun attracted me. I decided to take the shortcut to the main road and found myslef ina very good position to snap away some nice shots of these rays.

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I moved to the other side to shoot the rays. It was clearly much better. Here's the best shot.

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Around the area, there were many spider webs. And I mean a lot, but it was difficult to capture them since they were pretty high up. I managed to shoot one abandoned spider web that was close to the ground.

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A Surprising Invitation

Went to Bukit Timah one early morning along with my usual friend. After stuffing our bags into the lockers, we headed straight for the reserve. My instincts told me to look behind the giant book since that was where we last spotted the Malayan Whip Snake. I moved in and I was suddenly forced to jump back at lightning speed. If it wasn't for a fraction of a second, I would have been bitten by a Wagler's Pit-Viper.

This juvenile Wagler's Pit-Viper was resting on a plant very close to the book. It was the second time spotting this snake here in Bukit Timah, and both happened to be juveniles. I immediately snapped a few shots as it slowly moved its head to the other side.

I love this shot, especially when the background is a dark green.

As we knew that the snake was nocturnal and rarely moves about during the day, we decided to climb up the hill and come back to take more shots. Within an hour we were back, shooting the viper. This time, I tried to focus on shotting different parts of the snake. Here's the underside of its head.

The tail of the viper firmly holding on to the plant.

A side shot of the head, surprisingly with an ant on its neck.

This was the best shot I had of the viper, with its tongue out. I tried this for several times but it appeared that the viper sticks its tongue out only when I move away from it.

Anyway to end of, here are a few more shots of the snake... The last one in here is probably the best I have. I have used one of my face-to-face shots as the blog picture on the top.