Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Some Critters and Flowers @ Gardens by the Bay

Continue from the last post.

Besides butterflies, beautiful flowers and other critters were my subjects for photographing in this outing. This dragonfly which looks like a female Diaplacodes trivialis was shot on the ground behind the dragonfly lake.
There were quite a number of  red dragonflies - the male Crocothemis servilia.
There were too many variety of flowers in the garden. When there were no butterflies or critters around, I would take some shots of those colourful and unique-looking ones such as these Jetropha integerrima flowers. 
These small star-shaped red flowers are attractive.
This is a kind of shield bug I believe - there were many of them found at different Ixora flowers. Thanks Pat for identifying it as a kind of Sting bug (Catacanthus incarnatus).
Another specimen - the "human-face" markings seemed to be smiling at me .
The cluster of small and beautiful flowers stimulated my curiosity - but what is this ?
The light purple star-shaped petals of the Crown flowers (Calotropics gigantea) look unique due to the "crown-like" structure at the centre of the flowers.
Another type of flowers.
A wide variation of colours and shapes of the flowers in the garden would help create a positive and lasting impression in the minds of the visitors.   
I didn't see many blue flowers - this prominent and showy flower with a white pattern resembling a miniature flower at the centre was interesting. 
A changeable lizard (Calotes versicolor) crawled along a tree trunk and paused there a while for me to snap a few shots. (Correction: this is the American brown anole a newly introduced species. More info about this "foreign talent" can be found at  http://rmbr.nus.edu.sg/nis/bulletin2012/2012nis359-362.pdf. Thanks Marcus). 
On my way back towards the Bayfront Station, I saw this red dragonfly - Neurothemis fluctuansm perching on a slender blade of grass.
Lastly, let me showed two record shots of two common birds - a pair of woodpeckers high up on a tree.
Is this a Yellow-vented Bulbul (Pycnonotus  goiavier) ?
here were some relatively "wild" areas I had not explored at GB - this would provide me with sufficient motivation to visit GB again in the near future.  

9 comments:

  1. The plant with red flowers is Lumnitzera littorea, a mangrove species. :)

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  2. 1) From post: "These small star-shaped red flowers are attractive." [Photo]

    That's Ipomoea quamoclit (Cypress Vine, Star Glory), family: Convolvulaceae. A climber-creeper native to Mexico, Central Americas & Caribbean.

    There's also a white-flowered cultivar known as Ipomoea quamoclit 'White Feather'. The term "feather" alludes to the delicate-looking, frilly foliage of the species & its cultivars.


    2) From post: "The cluster of small and beautiful flowers stimulated my curiosity - but what is this ?" [Photo]

    Those are the inflorescences of Lumnitzera littorea (Teruntum Merah), family: Combretaceae. It is an endangered native species that grows as a shrub or tree in the back-mangrove.

    A similar-looking relative with white flowers: Lumnitzera racemosa (Teruntum Bunga Puteh) -- also an endangered native mangrove species.


    3) From post: "Another type of flowers." [Photo]

    Those are the inflorescences of Combretum constrictum (Powderpuff Combretum, Thailand Powderpuff), family Combretaceae.

    Despite the mention of Thailand in one of its common names, this large, woody, scandent shrub or climber is actually native to tropical Africa. Note its floral structure: White inflorescence (ie. clusters of small white flowers) with numerous prominent red stamens.


    4) From post: "A wide variation of colours and shapes of the flowers in the garden [...]" [Photo]

    The pink-yellow flowers belong to a trademarked orchid hybrid, specifically Spathoglottis Citrus Cooler (Sorbet™ Series). Photos of plant & flowers.

    It's a terrestrial orchid resulting from a cross between Spathoglottis kimballiana & S. plicata. (Note: Under nomenclature convention, orchid hybrid names -- unlike cultivar names -- are not enclosed within single quotation marks.)


    5) From post: "I didn't see many blue flowers - this prominent and showy flower with a white pattern" [Photo]

    The white-eyed blue flower belongs to Evolvulus glomeratus (Brazilian Dwarf Morning Glory), family: Convolvulaceae -- or depending on the flower size, possibly one of its cultivars (eg. 'Hawaiian Blue Eyes', 'Blue Daze').

    This sprawling or trailing herbaceous sub-shrub is used in planter beds or hanging pots. The species itself is native to Brazil & Paraguay.


    6) From post: "colourful and unique-looking ones such as these Jetropha integerrima flowers".
    => Typo in the genus epithet, should be Jatropha.


    7) From post: "The light purple star-shaped petals of the Crown flowers (Calotropics gigantea) look unique".
    => Typo in the genus epithet, should be Calotropis.

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  3. Thanks Siyang for the name of the mangrove plant.

    Hi Pat, you are very knowledgeable about plants and flowers. I will update the post. Thanks a lot.

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  4. 1) From post: "This is a kind of shield bug I believe - there were many of them found at different ixora flowers. [...] the "human-face" markings seemed to be smiling at me." [Photo]

    That's an adult Catacanthus incarnatus (Man-Faced Stinkbug), family Pentatomidae. It is native to India & much of SE Asia (including S'pore). These phytophagous insects feed on plant sap, flower/ fruit buds & nectar.

    This stinkbug species is quite common in S'pore -- photo of 2 preserved specimens at the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity, collected from Kent Ridge Park in May 1992.


    2) From post: "Is this a Yellow-vented Bulbul (Pycnonotus goiavier) ? [Photo]

    A subspecies perhaps ? This page shows a juvenile Pycnonotus goiavier gourdini that has a white sub-auricular stripe similar to that shown in your photo.

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  5. the lizard is the American brown anole, introduced to the gardens http://rmbr.nus.edu.sg/nis/bulletin2012/2012nis359-362.pdf

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  6. Amazing photography !!! you have capture suburb photos . I like all these pictures . Beautiful work.


    Microstock photographs

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  7. Amazing ur shots are...loved the pics and ur candid narration...am a nature lover too. Have also just begun my journey in taking manual shots...own a basic Nikon DSLR 5100... Am afraid my pics are not as good as urs and also that I have a lot of thoughts...I mean when I shoot they take me inward too...memories...songs and all the Jazz that is life. Would love it if u can visit me too. :)

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  8. don't touch the Crown flowers and then rub your eyes, it can cause corneal damage. also the leaves contain a poison in the sap.

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