Roadkills in UPMKB

To access the city of Bintulu from UPMKB, one has to travel a single stretch of 4km of asphalt road to the guard house at Li Hua Garden. Lined by secondary forests, wild animals often wander off the roadsides and if unlucky, would sometimes end up squashed into flat carcasses. As a frequent user of this particular road, both as a pedestrian and a cyclist, I regularly see dead animals being ran over by cars or motorbikes. Although the population of the wild animals drops due to this event, but this is an interesting way of recording what wildlife does UPMKB forest actually has. Let me share with you some images from my record.

A young Sunbeam Snake (Xenopeltis unicolor), one of the common victim.

Found just seconds after being hit by a vehicle, the Spotted Keelback Snake(Xenochrophis maculatus) is still alive and slithering but soon will meet its sad demise.

Very colorful species.

And a young Short-tailed Python (Python breitensteinii) is found squashed flat too.

Asian forest scorpion (Heterometrus spinifer) 

A common species, the Painted Bronzeback Tree Snake (Dendralaphis pictus) were also found regularly.

A small arachnid tarantulu on hand.

Luckily I found this guy before any car ran it over, Black-spotted Sticky Frog (Kalophrynus pleurostigma).

And here we have a full sized adult male Tarantula sp., with a 20 cent coin in comparison of size. Huge guy indeed.

And as I continue to stay in UPMKB, I will definitely keep finding more and more and hopefully new species of roadkills. I also pla to collect their carcasses to do taxidermy too, otherwise it would be such a waste.

Birdwatching in UPMKB

Birdwatching is an activity where we simply watch birds we can find with the aid of binoculars, spotting scopes, and a reliable and portable field guide. Being a birdwatcher for almost seven years, I kept birding since primary 6 until semester 3 in Diploma in Animal Health Sciences. It's an excellent way to spend my free time and escape from my exhausting schedules.

Oriental White-eye (Zosterops palpebrosus), these tiny fast and furious nectar feeders are usually found in flocks of up to 20 birds.

A Male Brown-throated Sunbird (Anthreptes malacensis) dominating the Bottlebrush flower.

One of my Bird Photographer friend (who I shall remain confidential) with his 500mm telephoto lens to capture the birds' actions at its best.

A very common yet mesmerizing Male Olive-backed Sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis) posing before taking off. 

A Male Orange-backed Flowerpecker (Dicaeum trigonostigma) trying to get to the sweet nectars.

This handsome fella here is an uncommon but regular migrant from the Northern Hemisphere like China, Korea and Russia, a male Blue-and-White Flycatcher (Cyanoptila cyanomelana), quite surprise to find him in UPMKB, a very good record nontheless.

Great in camouflage, a very confiding species, the Snipe (Gallinago sp.) hunts for fat and protein rich earthworms in the vast grassfields but always wary of potential danger with its strategically-placed eyes.

These birds were observed in the last semester around the vicinity of UPMKB, especially the bottlebrush plants at foodcourt. Although common, but they put up an interesting show. Other notable birds recorded are Osprey, Oriental Honey Buzzard, Brown Barbet, Emerald Dove, Yellow Wagtails, Oriental Darter and Long-tailed Parakeets.

Greetings and Welcome

             

All great journeys and adventures are initiated by the very first single step foward.

          Man cannot explore the ocean without the courage to lose sight of the shore.

                   

                    I may not be a global trotter, but I'm getting there. I may not be a world class scientist, but I'm on my way. Name given is Jia Jie, following a family name of Ng, thanks to my mom and dad respectively. Been exploring Earth as it is for 19 years ever since my exit from the womb. Nature is a deep interest of mine for as long as I can remember, mainly focused on fauna, from the primitive dinosaurs all the way to their modern descendants, avians. A veteran birder, based mainly in Kuching, Sarawak, Borneo Island, Malaysia, but does occasion birding trip to the mainland for some exclusive species. 

                    Unfortunately, that's not all for my introduction, I haven't wish greetings and welcome yet! To all those who are new to blogger like I am, welcome to my beginner level blog which will revolve around the marvelous wonders of nature I encounter upon my path to my never ending destination. Enough blabbering, wish you have a good day and enrich yourself with my pleasant experiences I share with you all.

Taken on my cycling adventure in Bau, Sarawak. Love the paired lines of shade trees.

A gravid adult female Orchid Mantis (Hymenopus coronatus) I captured from UPMKB, Bintulu. Really magnificent specimen.

Taking a brief halt from our cycling training to enjoy the breezy and scenic view of Tanjung Batu Beach, Bintulu, Sarawak.