Flora and Fauna of Tampines Eco Green Park

It has been more than 3 years since my last visit to this nice and wild place in the northern part of Tampines town. Yes, I am referring to the Tampines Eco Green. After coming back to home for good last July, I had visited the park twice. 

I noticed that the shrubs at the south entrance have grown a lot taller and the number of butterflies have dwindled quite a bit - perhaps due to the construction work currently going on along Sungei Tampines.

As usual, many Plain Tiger butterflies (Danaus chrysippus chrysippus) were there to welcome me on both occasions. Yes, with the host plant, the Crown Flower (Calatropis gigantea) doing well, we are bound to see this elegant butterfly fluttering around. 

A female was ovipositing her eggs

After taking a shot of the flower buds, I noticed that a critter was lurking nearby, waiting to strike any Plain Tiger going there to lay eggs?

A close-up shot of the spider - I wonder what this is?

Besides the Plain Tiger, I encountered a few other butterflies. One of them was this very alert and skittish male Common Tiger (Danaus genutia genutia).

To fully appreciate nature and be able to see some small but interesting critters, we need to slow down and look around without any other interfering thoughts in our mind. 

These small creatures can be spotted quite easily if we pay a bit attention to our surroundings. This is the Bush Hopper (Ampittia dioscorides camertes), a small skipper resting on a blade of grass.  

Same pose - but I moved a few steps away from it. 

Another specimen showed its upperside wings.

A very small nymph of a katydid was feeding on the Coat Buttons flower (Tridax procumbens). 

This tiny and beautiful Ricaniid planthopper (Ricanula stigmatica) is quite common in grasslands. But you will miss it, if you don't stop and look around. 

A few male Potanthus species were "chasing and fighting" before they settled down on a leaf surface with wings open - so I had no chance of taking an underside shot to identify them.

A different male specimen displayed the same behavior of opening its wings immediately when it perched.

A poor skipper, a Telicota species I believed was trapped in a spider web. While it was struggling to flee itself, I was thinking should I offer a helping hand. At the end, I didn't.  

The Long Banded Silverline (Spindasis lohita senama) is one of the star butterfly species that many of us would love to shoot. 

Another more pristine specimen.

Unlike many other urban parks in SG, the Tampines Eco Green integrates much of the original natural and wild grassland and woodland habitats as the main concept of this huge natural park in Tampines town. Apart from many interesting critters that have established their home there, numerous attractive wild flowers were abundant too.

A pair of Moring Glory (Ipomoea cairica) flowers captured my attention for photographing. 

This small yellow flower is nice and attractive. 

Before the south entrance, a few bushy shrub with many attractive flowers stood out and aught my attention - I believe these are the flowers of the Kopsia fruticose.

I watched with a great worry for the waterhen as it didn't seem to know that the Malayan water monitor (Varanus salvator) was quite close to him.

Two Rare Butterflies Near Jurong Eco Green

The Jurong Eco Green (JEG) garden and a small patch of forested area nearby were my favourite wild places for my weekend outing-cum-photographing session. So I was there alone on a fine Saturday morning (25 July).

The forested area is next to the NTU's Community Herbs garden which is now overgrown with lots of wild grasses and thick shrubs and becomes quite inaccessible. As I tried to locate a trail that I used to walk on, I  bumped into a few skippers zipping around me.

This rather skittish but rare skipper, the Spotted Flitter (Zographetus doxus) gave me a hard time tracking it before I could snap a record shot. 

A Potanthus species which does not look like the P. omaha also came to entice me.

I think this is the Lesser Dart (P. omaha omaha).

A cluster of flowers caught my attention next to the herbs garden.

I felt a little in-secured looking for butterflies in this shady  and mosquitoes-infested forested area so I decided to walked towards the JEG garden.

At the edge of the forested area, I spotted a small colony of Harlequins (Taxila haquinus haquinus) -my first time spotting this vulnerable species at this location.

A male Harlequin was perching quite tamely on the edge of a leaf - he gave me ample time to compose a few shots.

I spent some time looking for other butterflies at the vicinity of the Harlequin but in vain.

Strolling Along the Rail Corridor

With the relocation of the historic Tanjong Pagar train station to Woodlands in 2011, the 24 km railway tracks running from Tanjong Pagar to Woodlands has now become a popular hiking and cycling trail.

Pondering where I should start my morning walk on a fine and breezy Saturday morning (1 June), I decided to take a look at the Bukit Timah Railway Station as it was gazetted as a building for conservation. So this train station marked my starting point of my first visit to the rail corridor.

My first encounter of a butterfly was a Tawny Coster (Acraea violae) which was found flitting around the building and feeding on some wild Asystasia flowers.

Of course, there were many wild flowers on both sides of the trail - this white flower of a climber attracted by attention.

An assassin bug was swaying in the breeze on a leaf. After a quick snap, I moved towards the black iron bridge - one of the prominent landmarks of this railway track.

On this bridge, I was rather fortunate to notice a mating pair of Small Branded Swift (Pelopidas mathias mathias) scooting off from a leaf and landed on the track. A few quick shots were what I could get as there were a few hikers were behind me.

After walking past a short and rather open trail  parallel to the Riffle Range Road and the underneath of the Anak Bukit Flyover, I was greeted with a straight path ahead of me with shade and a lot of wild greenery on both sides of the trail. 

Here, I encountered  quite a number of skippers. A rather shy Contiguous Swift (Polytremis lubricans lubricans) refused to come closer to me despite a few attempts to "reset" is resting position.

However, when it did came closer after sometime, it always opened its wings -  this was my best attempt of taking an upperside shot.













This small orange skipper looks more like a Lesser Dart (Potanthus omaha omaha).

It had a tendency to open its wings fully a few seconds later on  a new perch.

Apart from hikers, there were many cyclists on the trail - usually in a group.

Perhaps it was next to the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, there were more butterflies at one particular spot near the Visitor Centre. I noticed from far, a Sunbeam flitting at the ground level. It was skittish but with patience, I was finally able to snap a few shots - a  Malayan Sunbeam (Curetis santana malayica).

I was waiting for it to open its wings fully but this was the best I could get. 

At a waterlogged spot, there were a lot of dragonflies and other bugs. A Common Parasol (Neurothemis fluctuans) displayed an elegant perch on a twig.

The way and the position they perched made it difficult for me to take a good shot of  this small mating pair of damselflies - I am not sure if these are the Shortail (Onychargia atrocyana).

Is this a kind of shield bug? 

An interesting fly (?) with colourful legs - is this rare?

I was excited when this large Great Helen (Papilio iswara iswara) or perhaps Blue Helen (Papilio prexaspes prexaspes) came down at around noon. It was fluttering with high speed on the grass but I just could not take a underside shot to determine its identity with certainty. 

I wandered around at the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve Visitor Centre (still under renovation) and bumped into a Fivebar Swordtail (Pythysa antiphates itamputi) feeding on some flowers of the Leea indica.

I was very lucky to notice a motionless Malayan Colugo (Cynocephalus variegatus) sleeping high on a big tree trunk 

I finally reached the Railway Mall and had my lunch there. It was a slow and fruitful walk  - indeed, when we slow down our pace and take a closer look at nature, we get to see more things  nature offers us. Let's hope that this railway corridor becomes a permanent green corridor for our hardworking people, young and old and families to come here to exercise, relax and enjoy the wilderness of our nature.

Lotus Flowers @ Pulau Ubin

A last minute decision on a fine Saturday morning (24 Aug) brought me to Pulau Ubin. The jetty was crowded with different groups of people. Over the years, I have noticed that more people visited the island on weekends to cycle, hike and enjoy the peaceful "kampong" life style.  

I found a few Lesser Darkwings (Allotinus unicolor unicolor) at the same shady spot on my way to the Butterfly Hill.

At the Butterfly Hill, there were a few Euploea butterflies visiting flowers for their food supply. This was a female Spotted Black Crow (Euploea crameri bremeri).

A solitary Striped Black Crow (Euploea eyndhovii gardineri) loved to enjoy its food high on some flowers of the String Bush. A long-distance shot was my only reward for being patiently waiting for it to come down.

A small lycaenid flitting with a rather erratic flight pattern, the Apefly (Spalgis epius epius) is an interesting butterfly as its larvae are carnivorous. 

I usually would not chase a Line Butterfly (Papilio demoleus malayanus) as it is too fast and alert for me to snap a shot. I was lucky to encounter a lethargic one, resting on a leaf long enough for me to take a few shots.

A Common Mime (Chilasa clytia clytia) was attracted by some wild Lanta flowers. Getting a shot was a bonus for me as it was energetic and kept changing its perch and flapping its wings.

Taking a slow walk through the Sensory Trail was my usual route whenever I visited Ubin. I passed by a pond where the lotus flowers were in blooms. Cyclists and hikers alike were attracted by many of these magnificent and showy aquatic flowers. I was no exception.

The Sensory Trail was rather quiet and there were very few photographic opportunities. This skittish Parak Lascar (Pantoporia paraka paraka) was my only butterfly shot along the trail. 

Perhaps searching for food, this rather large wasp was found on damp soil. I have no idea what this wasp is.

What a beautiful Ginger flower at the foot of the butterfly hill - how could I not capture it !