From USR to Chestnut Avenue

I met up with Mr Yano on a cool Saturday morning (3 March) at Upper Seletar Reservoir Park (USR). My first shot of the morning was this Ricaniid planthopper found outside the golf driving range.

A grass patch opposite the golf driving range was a playing ground for quite a few orange skippers. This is a Potanthus species which looks like a P. ganda.

Its underside shot shows the veins are not darken.

Besides skippers, I found a slender and well camouflaged spider enjoying its breakfast underneath a blade of grass.

On the same leaf, I noticed that its partner, perhaps a female was guarding a web.

Shortly after we ventured deep into the forest, we saw a Purple Bush Brown (Mycalesis orseis nautilus) - to me, this is an uncommon species.

The early part of the morning was rather cloudy and there were few photographing opportunities in the forest. However, I stumbled on three Saturns ( Zeuxidia amethystus smethystus) at different locations. When they were in flight, the startling burst of the blue iridescence could be seen clearly. Here is a super long distance shot of one of them.

After more than 2 hours of hiking, we reached the western side of the forest and ended up on a small hill top, overlooking the water treatment plant at Chestnut Avenue - what a magnificent view up on top of the slope. We rested and had some food - thanks Mr Yano for offering me a delicious home-made sushi.

We continued our way out and encountered a colony of Common Caerulean (Jamdies celeno aelianus) flitting along a forest trail - a few females were busy ovipositing on a common forest climber, Combretum sundaicum.

Thanks to our iPhones and an Eurasian family who trekked from the Upper Peirce Reservoir, we made a U-turn and headed towards the Chestnut Avenue direction correctly.

It was early afternoon, more butterflies were out to tease us. As usual this Abisara geza niya kept hopping and turning on a leaf - a rather uncooperative bugger which disappeared after we had a few shots.

I came to a familiar barricade where another Common Caelurean was puddling on some bird droppings, I believe.

Nearby, a Yellow Vein Lancer (Pyroneura latoia latoia) was feeding on some Leea indica flowers.

We were lucky to find this Pointed Ciliate Blue (Anthene laycaenina miya) puddling on the road.

Mr Yano was shooting this Pointed Line Blue.

I had a very long and enjoyable trekking with Mr Yano who was quite familiar with our forest. I was glad that I came to a few "corners" in the forest that I have never been to. I am looking forward to exploring these locations again in the future.