River Safari Dec 21 2013

Squirrel monkey

They are very  playful and active jumping from branches to branches

Toco Tucan face-on look

Golden-headed Lion Tamarin 

Up in the branch

Red panda closer view

Golden Pheasant with a coat of gold-like feather.  

Yangtze Alligator with short snout.

So you know where the term 'sitting duck' came from. Notice the fan-out  triangular pattern on the front portions

It actually rolls the eyelid like a shutter. So i waited for the shutter to move away... who wanted a closed eye look

Notice the short segment of the tracks are being lowered inside the tunnel... to raised the next boat one level up. Gravity-assist gave the boat the momentum to move forward.

Netted look of the flamingos shot in the boat ride. As this zip by you probably will miss 50% of the animals and even higher % if you want to capture their pics.

The Bill Board says it all 

Crowded  Saturday Morning

Red  panda - more agile than the jia jia , kai kai

Panda  FLAT out! and the other fellow was no where to be seen.

Lungfish

'7 candles' a common wasteland flowers

All facing the same direction in single file

Fort Canning revisited and a short stay

I waited for the fellow to walk further to lend a scale to the traveler's palm and staircase. 

The light house and the autumn looking foliage.

Nice figs.

This is terap Artocarpus elasticus. This time i can reach the fruit using my x50 optical zoom and hugged the lamp post as a giant monopod.   I recalled in past years i brought back a fruit and sectioned only to find it was sterilized and could not form any seeds inside.

Have to look up what this is being called. My version is Dr WHo disappearing / teleporting  chamber....

Now i  saw a tree house up there. My guess is the Horn-bill Project. Didn't see any occupant though....

Coming to the Fort Canning Park from Funan side I notice this pretty wild fowl perching on a tree branch. 

This little fellow - Asian brown flyeater was making a loud two syllable note.  

The fort - wide enough for a car to drive through. A side door on the inner left allow you to to the top

A police car was seen patrolling the trails  - my first time encounter in this park. Immigrant workers were seen  enjoying themselves picnicking gathering singing etc. There was even a dance fighting going on.  Little Indian rioting last week was still fresh in everyone's mind.  There are still places for photo shoot i didn't cover in this short trip.One day i will return.

Armenian church - from across the street i noticed something was sitting there. But the profile was  just too thin..  I walked up and saw a angel statue instead.

This is not from Fort Canning but from Yishun. Was heavy downpour on the saturday and this lone Collared KF taking a break.

Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve Nov 3 2013

Egrets took off - trying to catch them

Egrets above.

Birds on the sandbars - they just dazzled the eyes

Nov 3, 2013 Sunday -  Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve via bus SMRT 925. On Sunday this bus will bring  you to the bus stop outside the reserve whereas on other days you will have to walk in from Kranji Reservoir.

Whimbrel notice one of them with widely open beak. ( mid left)

Egrets - there are swamps of them flunking the pure white feathers . 

Archer fish -  uses jets of water to dislodge insects on branches and they became meals.

Cicada - just one of this can deliver a loud singing. Imagine  thousands of them singing at the same time.

Oriental pied hornbill - this is our 2nd time seeing hornbill. The last one were in Pulau Ubin. A kind chap eagerly pointed out the pair to us while we just stepped into S Buloh Wetland Reserve. Soon a gathering of the skyward lens resulted. The feathery friends seem to be least bothered.

Horn-bill

Biggie - guess what are they focusing on ? [ collar KF ]

Here is the pair.  According to the survey there are about 100 hornbills in Singapore. They were doing the morning grooming i suppose.

Collared KF.  Several 'biggie' - large telescopic lens were seen training on them behind observation deck. I have to feel contented with the x50 optical zoom instead.

Tides coming in.

Mangrove Arboretum This is the boardwalk worth visiting. I remembered there was a visit before where the sea water were mere inches away from flooding the walk way.

E. versicolor or Tree climbing crab or Vinegar crab.  A delicacy -mum told me grandfather used to prepare them with vinegar and lime juices and preserved them in glass jar. She mentioned about the squarish look. Indeed they are ( see image below)

Boardwalk with shelter.

Tower Hide 2C. My watch tells me about 10m in elevation so about the same height of the larger Aerie ( see below)