Young Naturalist Prog Sep 09

We were back at Sungei Buloh for the third Young Naturalist Camp in 2009. A school pulled out at the last minute for fear of the H1N1 monster, and we had a much smaller audience this time round. Not that I mind though, the group size was much more manageable. My initial group was made defunct as a result, and I relinquished my duty as a group lead, a blessing in disguise because I can spare some attention to taking photos of what we saw!

We started off the day with an ice-breaker, Human Bingo, to wake all the sleepy heads (including myself).

A trip to Sungei Buloh is never completed without spotting the Giant Mudskipper (The Giant Mudskipper (Periophthalmodon schlosseri), though a fish, it has an amphibious behavior. It retains water in its enlarged gill chambers to keep their gills moist while on land. It can also 'breathe' through its skin but to do so, it needs to keep its skin wet by jumping into their personal swimming pool (puddles in the mudflats) occasionally. The 2 big bulging eyes works like periscopes of submarines, allowing it a 360 degree view above water. The mudskipper moves on land with the help of 'clutches' - their pectoral fins. Amazingly, these mudskippers can also climb using their pelvic fins (which act like suckers) to hold them against the surface. They then, use their pectoral fins to pull themselves up.

 

Along the mangrove boardwalk, the Bruguiera gymnoria were blooming nicely.

Our group leader's keen eyes spotted the noctoral Dogged-face Water Snake (Cerberus Nymchops)- under the boards of a shelter! We were kneeling on the broadwalk to peep through the cracks and attracted bewildered looks from many other visitors! This snake can breathe through its skin like other aquatic snakes, is usually found in brackish habitat and can actually secrete salt!

Of course, how can we miss out the PR of Sungei Buloh? The Malayan Water Monitor Lizard (Varanus salvator), one of the largest lizards in the world, was sunbathing as usual. It is often seen basking in the sunshine because it is cold blooded and requires the heat of the sun to increase its body temp. The Malayan Water Monitor Lizard eats basically anything - live/ dead crabs, fishes and even carcasses. Its forked tongue allows it to have an excellent sense of smell.

First time I'm seeing this at Sungei Buloh! A huge school of catfishes were swimming against the current, just below the main bridge. And they are pretty big in size too! Probably at least 50cm long each. I pointed them out to a few groups of visitors, and of them stunned me with their reply: 'Wah, they make great Fuzhou fishballs!'.

A Plantain Squirrel (Callosciurus notatus) taking a nap on a tree. While it is not a front view, at least I have a clear shot. I've never been able to get a good photo because they are so agile, scampering around so quickly. They can be reocginsed by its red underside and white & black stripes on the sides of the torso.

Thanks to Sam who told me the location of the Oriental Whipped Snake (Ahaetulla prasine). Our group ran out of time and was not able to venture past the main hide. Strangely, all the Oriental Whipped Snakes I've seen so far are always in this position - I guess it adds on to the camouflaging because they look just like a stalk of the tree!

My first sighting at Sungei Buloh, so I can't help running all the way from the Theatre to its location during the short lunch time when fellow GVs told me about its presence. The red eyes of the Shore Pit-Viper (Cryptelytrops) made it look scary, and indeed it can be - this venomous is known for a bad temper and its swift attack, but only when disturbed. Thus, I was extremely worried and quickly shared this with a couple whom wanted to poke the snake with a stick to get a better photo angle of it.

Part of the camp programme includes a mangrove planting session, which is vital for the children to understand the importance of our mangroves. Apart from being the habitat and home to many marine life, it is also the coastal guard of many towns and prevents erosion. In the Dec 04's Tsunami, coastal towns without mangroves were wiped out totally, while those with mangroves, although damanged, but were not totally destroyed. Unfornately, over the last century, almost 40k sq km of mangroves have been destroyed, to make way for city development.

And of course, we end the day with a presentation for the children to tell us what they have learnt that day!

I stayed back after the camp to walk around a little more, and saw this triumph jumping spider pulling a prey that it has caught.

And, a beautiful dragonfly by the pond near the visitors' centre - not sure of its ID though.

Presenting the 'Secondary Forest':

Storytelling with Gabriel and Janell

I agreed to a storytelling session after a bribe over lunch (darn! should have asked for a more expensive one!), primarily because it was a new and interesting concept. While I've told a couple of stories at Read-with-me, those sessions were never accompanied by music, much less music by the Youth Excellence Award Winners! While excited, I was also apprehensive because I've always had a SCS coordinator and 20 other volunteers to help with crowd control. This time round, I have a much smaller (but later, I realised, very much powerful) army.

The first session was with Gabriel Ng on 15 Aug at Little Arts Academy. We told 2 stories - Prince Bear & Pauper Bear (PB&PB), and The Runaway Pancake.

While I had props (with some tinge of creativity, my childhood toys finally came into good use!) for PB&PB, we had so much more fun with TRP. Refusing to embarrass myself (although Aida, together with Gabriel's family were sweet enough to offer their companionship), I made the children sing instead! As it is more participative, its more engaging too.

Some interesting anecdoctes during the sessions, showcasing how children really say and do the darnest things:

1)Gabriel was introduced as a 14 yr old, thus not too much older than the children. One boy pointed to me and asked, when the room was in total silence, what my age was. Kua kua kua... to that I replied (since everyone was staring at me for an answer).. I'm not too much older than you too!

2)Midway through the story when I was really engrossed in the story, a cute little boy came up to me and tapped my arms gently. Innocently, he asked ' can I go to the toilet?' ..... ?!?!

3) I quickly said yes, and continued with the story. But, to my amusement, the boy went back to his seat! He must be waiting for me to BRING him to the toilet!

Presenting.... The runaway pancake.....

I had a fun time, gives me the best excuse to be a child again, to be dramatic and yet not be laughed at! (ok fine, that Gabriel kept laughing at me during our rehearsal).

The second session with Janell Yeo was on 22 Aug with the stories, Gilbert the Great, and Splat the Cat!

It was heartening to know that the kids still remembered Gabriel and my name. And the moment they sat down, they went 'No no no no No..."...... And this, really made my day.

This session was a little more nerve-wreaking for me though. Apart from the lack of sleep due to the 4am Semakau trip, I had to cope with my read-with-me child who decided to be uncooperative of all days! Really a test of my patience I must say. Immediately after read-with-me, I had to rush to LAA. In addition, the presence of media and videocams made the atmosphere a lot more tensed.

Nonetheless, I certainly hope the children enjoyed it as much as I do.

I was particularly pleased to be approached by a member of the public to storytell part-time at her private school after the session. Soon enough, I'll make this my second career. Ha! So Aida, if you are reading this, lets work hard ok!

All in a day's work!

The theme for CR Challenge 2009 was somewhat similar to 2008's, but this time round, our aim was to create/ enhance the environment of the less priviledged children, instead of the elderly's. Preparation commenced in early May for the big day - 11 Jun 09. Hazel and I signed up as coordinators, and had the opportunity to be Mr Phua Chu Kang during our visits to 3 different families. Or rather she had the honour of taking on the measuring work (as she was mandarin-challenged =P ), while I chat with the family. Our role was to obtain the measurements of the non-existing study area, as well as obtain more information on the needs of the family.

With all our notes, the information is then collated by GPA for the makeover on 11 Jun 09.

It was a bright Thursday morning, and the weather set the perfect mood for 'All in a day's work'! The HR team was all ready at 9am. Upon reaching our destination, we wasted no time in packing and cleaning the children's bedroom, and a 'study corner' in the living room.

The team's camaraderie was highly commendable, as we split up the workload and took on various tasks.

While some were packing away, others were painting with all their might.

Eventually, the room was transformed (original state on the left, and the final artwork on the right) all in a day's work!

All thanks to a dedicated team of 9! :

The children were also given an electronic dictionary to aid them in their studies.

When I returned to visit the family 2 weeks later. I was relieved to see that the room was still in its' tidy state. Happy that the children kept their promise to keep their room clean and tidy for a more conducive studying environment.