8am, 7 March 2010 - Weather: Fine
Pobby's back is aching now from all the forward bending. Kept having to dig out Mistress (Jiamione)'s lousy booties from the ground as it was stuck in mud every other step.
Pobby followed mistress and her friends (maiden trip for most of them) to the magical grounds of Mandai this morning. At platform ten and one quarter, we met Prof Luanbledore and her nature-loving friends.
Before our eyes stood some tall and mighty mangrove trees - many many times taller than Mistress. Pobby learnt that the mangrove habitat is a very harsh environment to live in. There is high salt content in the environment; the soil is soft and is low in oxygen content. Pobby definitely won't be able to survive in such an environment, unlike the mangrove plants who have special adaptations.
The mangroves are important because it is the home for many many marine animals, such as mud crabs, tiger prawns etc which Pobby loves to eat. Pobby is sad to hear that we have lost much of this habitat to urban development. Without their home, the marine animals will die, and Pobby will have not have crabs to eat. =(
Pobby has never experienced a tsunami, but was told that the mangroves act as a protective shield for coastal areas as they help to reduce the impact of the huge waves.
note: thats not Mistress - thats Mistress's friend, Rowdy from Nature school
Pobby learnt about three main groups of mangrove trees - Rhizophora spp., Bruguiera spp. and Avicennia spp. today. Incidentally, the names of the species sounded like the magic spells that Mistress practises everyday.
1) One species of Rhizophora spp. (a.k.a Bakau) is Rhizophora apiculata. This is one of the most common species found in the local ecosystem. They are easily identified by their prop roots that helps anchor the tree in the unstable mangrove mud. The roots not only helps the tree to breathe, but also has a filter that can exclude salt from the water it takes in.
Pobby likes Bakau because its timber makes excellent firewood and charcoal! (Pobby loves BBQ!). It is also an excellent source of wood as it is naturally straight, strong and is resistent to insects and salt water.
2a) Presenting *raises wand* Bruguiera Gymnorhiza of Bruguiera spp. - another main group of mangrove tress locally. These mangrove trees cope with the low oxygen content by having lateral roots that grow just below the surface of the mud. Some parts of the roots stick out of the mud and looks just like Pobby's knees! These exposed roots help to absorb oxygen better.
2b) Another species of the Bruguiera spp. is the *raise wand again* Bruguiera Cylindrica which has small white flowers which are pollinated by insects such as butterflies. Pobby thinks that the sepals of the fruit that curves backwards towards the fruit stalk looks just like an Octopus.
3) Avicennia spp. is another group of mangrove trees that Pobby saw today. Also known as Api-api, this group has an extensive root system that spans many metres below the mud surface, and sticks out of the mud vertically. These breathing roots looks like the pencils that Mistress uses in school. The leaves of the Api-api has salt glands to secrete salt. The salt crystals are then left behind on the leaves after evaporation. Pobby now knows where to look for free salt when it runs out in the kitchen!
Here is Avicennia Alba with leaves that are white and waxy on the underside to reduce water loss. Pobby really likes the small yellow pretty flowers of Avicennia Alba.
Prof Luanbledore and friends were very excited to find the Mangrove Lime (Merope angulata)! This is because the Mangrove Lime is a rather rare mangrove associate locally. Pobby is really lucky to be able to see it personally. The plant was fruiting too! Pobby was too scared to try the fruits which are said to be sour.
Appearing in the middle of the path, this Mangrove St Andrew's Spider (Argiope mangal) gave Pobby a scare. The female spider spins an orb web which contains 2 zig zag bands. The male spider,usually much smaller in size, can be found on the web but Pobby's eyes are not sharp enough to spot them.
Pobby also saw 2 Mangrove Horseshoe Crabs (Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda), who seem to be pairing up. Pobby is impressed with Horseshoe crabs because they have lived over 400 million years! Although called 'crabs', they are actually more related to scorpions and spiders. Pobby was told that one reason why they can survived for so long is due to their special blood which is blue in colour when oxygenated and has the ability to detect bacteria! The blood clots immediately when in contact with bacteria.
This horseshoe crab has lots of barnacles growing on its back - which reminds Pobby of the times when she has to carry sacks of rice on her back - must be heavy for the horseshoe crab?
Pobby was just complaining that everything on the ground looks dull with all that brown, and was most happy to see the Face-banded Crab (Perisesarma eumolpe). These crabs wears a bright band across its face, looking just like some tribal people.
Although it was a tiring trip for Pobby, Pobby still hopes to have a chance to return to Magical Mangroves of Mandai again (next time round, Pobby will remind Mistress to wear better booties). More importantly, may the magic powers help the mangroves overcome the development plans of he-who-must-not-be-named.
2 comments:
you're pobby? haha
of cos, not!
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