Alpinia zerumbet, commonly known as shell ginger, is a perennial species of ginger native to East Asia. They can grow up to 8 to 10 ft (2.4 to 3.0 m) tall and bear colorful funnel-shaped flowers. They are grown as ornamentals and their leaves are used in cuisine and traditional medicine. They are also sometimes known as the pink porcelain lily, variegated ginger or butterfly ginger.
This Blog contains Wildlife and Bird Photos from Walks, Safaris, Birding Trips and Vacations. Most of the pictures have been taken with my Nikon P900 and P950X cameras. If you click on the label underneath the picture it will link to all of the photos taken for that species. Just click on any image for a large picture.
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Saturday, 17 June 2023
14-5-2023 PULAU UBIN, SINGAPORE - CHOCOLATE PANSY BUTTERFLY (Junonia hedonia ssp. ida)
Junonia hedonia, the brown pansy, chocolate pansy, brown soldier or chocolate argus, is a butterfly found in Southeast Asia, Indonesia, and Australia.
14-5-2023 PULAU UBIN, SINGAPORE - FRAGRANT THUNBERGIA (Thunbergia fragrans)
Caesalpinia pulcherrima is a species of flowering plant in the pea family Thunbergia fragrans, the whitelady is a perennial climbing twiner in the genus Thunbergia, native to India and Southern Asia.
Distribution
It is native to India and Southern Asia where it is known as indrapushapa, it is also widespread in the tropics including Florida, Hawaii, Australia, New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Caribbean and Indian Ocean islands, southern Africa and Central America.
In many places it is considered as an invasive species.
Usage
In Indian Siddha medicine, the paste made out of tender twigs of the indrapushapa is used to combat fever and sometimes applied on cuts and wounds. The Leaves are used as poultice in skin diseases, their juice can be applied on head to cure headache.
14-5-2023 PULAU UBIN, SINGAPORE - PEACOCK FLOWER (Caesalpinia pulcherrima)
Fabaceae, native to the tropics and subtropics of the Americas. It could be native to the West Indies, but its exact origin is unknown due to widespread cultivation.
It is a shrub growing to 3 m tall. In climates with few to no frosts, this plant will grow larger and is semievergreen. In Hawaii this plant is evergreen and grows over 5 m tall. Grown in climates with light to moderate freezing, plant will die back to the ground depending on cold, but will rebound in mid- to late spring. This species is more sensitive to cold than others. The leaves are bipinnate, 20–40 cm long, bearing three to 10 pairs of pinnae, each with six to 10 pairs of leaflets 15–25 mm long and 10–15 mm broad. The flowers are borne in racemes up to 20 cm long, each flower with five yellow, orange, or red petals. The fruit is a pod 6–12 cm long.
14-5-2023 PULAU UBIN, SINGAPORE - BLUE GLASSY TIGER BUTTERFLY (Ideopsis vulgaris)
Ideopsis vulgaris, the blue glassy tiger, is a butterfly that belongs to the crows and tigers, that is, the danaid group of the brush-footed butterflies family.
This species can be found in India, Singapore, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Hainan, South Burma - Sundaland, Sumatra, Java, Lesser Sunda Islands - Alor, Borneo – Palawan.
These butterflies inhabits a range of habitats, but especially occur at the edge of rainforest or plantations and in the coastal mangrove areas.
Friday, 16 June 2023
14-5-2023 PULAU UBIN, SINGAPORE - PEACOCK PANSY BUTTERFLY (Junonia almana)
Junonia almana, the peacock pansy, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in Cambodia and South Asia. It exists in two distinct adult forms, which differ chiefly in the patterns on the underside of the wings; the dry-season form has few markings, while the wet-season form has additional eyespots and lines. It is listed as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List.
14-5-2023 PULAU UBIN, SINGAPORE - SPOTTED BLACK CROW BUTTERFLY (Euploea crameri)
Euploea crameri, the spotted black crow, is a butterfly found in Asia that belongs to the crows and tigers, that is, the Danaid group of the brush-footed butterflies family.
The spotted black crow is found in the Indomalayan realm. It is known to undertake seasonal migrations.
14-5-2023 PULAU UBIN, SINGAPORE - DARK GLASSY TIGER BUTTERFLY (Parantica agleoides)
Parantica agleoides, the dark glassy tiger, is a butterfly found in India that belongs to the crows and tigers, that is, the danaid group of the brush-footed butterflies family.
North-eastern India, Burma and Indomalaya until Java.
14-5-2023 PULAU UBIN, SINGAPORE - PLAIN TIGER BUTTERFLY (Danaus chrysippus)
Danaus chrysippus, also known as the plain tiger, African queen, or African monarch, is a medium-sized butterfly widespread in Asia, Australia and Africa. It belongs to the Danainae subfamily of the brush-footed butterfly family Nymphalidae. Danainae primarily consume plants in the genus Asclepias, more commonly called milkweed. Milkweed contains toxic compounds, cardenolides, which are often consumed and stored by many butterflies. Because of their emetic properties, the plain tiger is unpalatable to most predators. As a result, its coloration is widely mimicked by other species of butterflies. The plain tiger inhabits a wide variety of habitats, although it is less likely to thrive in jungle-like conditions and is most often found in drier, wide-open areas.
14-5-2023 PULAU UBIN, SINGAPORE - ORCHID (Genus Dendrobium)
14-5-2023 PULAU UBIN, SINGAPORE - ASIAN GLOSSY STARLING (Aplonis panayensis)
The Asian glossy starling (Aplonis panayensis) is a species of starling in the family Sturnidae. It is found in Bangladesh, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan (introduced) and Thailand. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical mangrove forest. There is also a huge number of this species inhabiting towns and cities, where they take refuge in abandoned buildings and trees. They often move in large groups and are considered one of the noisiest species of birds. In the Philippines, it is known as kulansiyang, galansiyang, or kuling-dagat
1-6-2023 GITGIT WATERFALLS, BALI - YELLOW VENTED BULBUL (Pycnonotus goiavier)
The yellow-vented bulbul (Pycnonotus goiavier), or eastern yellow-vented bulbul, is a member of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is a resident breeder in southeastern Asia from Indochina to the Philippines. It is found in a wide variety of open habitats but not the deep forest. It is one of the most common birds in cultivated areas. They appear to be nomadic and roam from place to place regularly.
1-6-2023 GITGIT WATERFALLS, BALI - YELLOW LINED FOREST SKINK (Sphenomorphus sanctus)
The Java forest skink (Sphenomorphus sanctus) is a species of skink found in Indonesia and Malaysia.
1-6-2023 GITGIT WATERFALLS, BALI - RED PERCHER DRAGONFLY (Neurothemis ramburii)
Neurothemis ramburii is a bright red dragonfly found throughout SE Asia.
A deep red dragonfly with clear wingtips. Typically there is only one cross vein in the cubital space of the hind wing (behind the median space) and females are as deeply colored as males.
Wing span = 56mm
Body length = 36mm
Abdomen = 24mm
Hind wing = 26mm
9-6-2023 MANDAI BIRD PARADISE, SINGAPORE - FIRE TUFTED BARBET (Psilopogon pyrolophus)
1-6-2023 GITGIT WATERFALLS, BALI - MEXICAN MARIGOLD (Tagetes erecta)
Tagetes erecta, the Aztec marigold, Mexican marigold, big marigold, cempazúchitl or cempasúchil, is a species of flowering plant in the genus Tagetes native to Mexico. Despite being native to the Americas, it is often called the African marigold. In Mexico, this plant is found in the wild in the states of México, Michoacán, Puebla, and Veracruz.
This plant reaches heights of between 20 and 90 cm (7.9 and 35.4 in). The Aztecs gathered the wild plant as well as cultivating it for medicinal, ceremonial and decorative purposes. It is widely cultivated commercially with many cultivars in use as ornamental plants, and for the cut-flower trade.
1-6-2023 GITGIT WATERFALLS, BALI - LONG TAILED MACAQUE (Macaca fascicularis)
The crab-eating macaque (Macaca fascicularis), also known as the long-tailed macaque and referred to as the cynomolgus monkey in laboratories, is a cercopithecine primate native to Southeast Asia. A species of macaque, the crab-eating macaque has a long history alongside humans. The species has been alternately seen as an agricultural pest, a sacred animal, and, more recently, the subject of medical experiments.
The crab-eating macaque lives in matrilineal social groups of up to eight individuals dominated by females. Male members leave the group when they reach puberty. It is an opportunistic omnivore and has been documented using tools to obtain food in Thailand and Myanmar. The crab-eating macaque is a known invasive species and a threat to biodiversity in several locations, including Hong Kong and western New Guinea. The significant overlap in macaque and human living space has resulted in greater habitat loss, synanthropic living, and inter- and intraspecies conflicts over resources.
1-6-2023 GITGIT WATERFALLS, BALI - AMARYLLIS (Hippeastrum hybridum)
Hippeastrum hybridum is a species of plants with 1384 observations.
Amaryllis (Scientific name: Hippeastrum hybridum) is native to Latin America and is a semi-cold resistant bulbous plant (perennial plant) of the family Amaryllidaceae.
1-6-2023 GITGIT WATERFALLS, BALI - HIMALAYAN JESTER BUTTERFLY (Symbrenthia hypselis)
Symbrenthia hypselis, the Himalayan jester, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in South Asia, and some islands in South East Asia (Sumatra, Java)
18-5-2023 SEPILOK, BORNEO - BLUE HEADED PITTA (Hydrornis baudii)
The blue-headed pitta (Hydrornis baudii) is a species of bird in the pitta family Pittidae. It is endemic to Borneo.
The species is endemic to the island of Borneo, where it occurs in Brunei, Kalimantan (Indonesia), Sarawak and Sabah (Malaysia). Its natural habitat is tropical lowland evergreen forests. While it does occur in disturbed of secondary forests, it is most common in primary forest. It usually occurs below 600 m (2,000 ft), it has been recorded up to 1,200 m (3,900 ft), but this record has not been verified.
1-6-2023 GITGIT WATERFALLS, BALI - GOLDEN SHRIMP PLANT (Pachystachys lutea)
Pachystachys lutea, known as the golden shrimp plant or lollipop plant, is a tropical, soft-stemmed evergreen shrub between 0.5 and 2.5 meters tall, native to Peru. The zygomorphic, long-throated, short-lived white flowers emerge sequentially from overlapping bright yellow bracts on racemes that are produced throughout the warm months.
The Latin specific epithet lutea means “yellow”.
It is cultivated as an ornamental, but in cold temperate regions it requires protection from temperatures below 10 °C (50 °F).[4] It has won the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit.
1-6-2023 GITGIT WATERFALLS, BALI - DULL OAK BLUE (Arhopala centaurus)
Arhopala centaurus, the centaur oakblue or dull oakblue, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in India and southeast Asia to the Philippines.
Thursday, 15 June 2023
1-6-2023 GITGIT WATERFALLS, BALI - CRIMSON TAILED MARSH HAWK DRAGONFLY (Orthetrum pruinosum)
Orthetrum pruinosum, the crimson-tailed marsh hawk, is a species of dragonfly in the family Libellulidae. It is a widespread species occurring from west India to Japan and south to Java and the Sunda Islands. A molecular phylogenetics study of Orthetrum dragonflies revealed that Orthetrum pruinosum is a cryptic species.
It breeds in ponds, lakes and sluggish streams.
1-6-2023 GITGIT WATERFALLS, BALI - COMMON SUN SKINK (Eutropis multifasciata)
Eutropis multifasciata, commonly known as the East Indian brown mabuya, many-lined sun skink, many-striped skink, common sun skink or (ambiguously) as golden skink, is a species of skink.
You can often find the Common Sun Skink (Eutropis multifasciata) basking in the sun on the forest edge or along footpaths, or slithering among leaf litter in Singapore’s wooded areas, mangroves and parks. Measuring about 130mm from snout to vent, this shy little reptile moves very quickly.
1-6-2023 GITGIT WATERFALLS, BALI - BLUE MARSH HAWK DRAGONFLY (Orthetrum glaucum)
Orthetrum glaucum is an Asian dragonfly species, common across much of tropical and subtropical Asia. The common name for this species is blue marsh hawk.
It is a medium sized dragonfly with dark face and greenish blue eyes. The thorax of old males are dark blue due to pruinescence. Its wings are transparent with dark amber-yellow tint in the extreme base. Its abdomen is pruinosed with blue color up to segment 8; last two segments are black. It breeds in marshes associated with forest streams, plantations and canals.