SZ Tale 09 - Fragile Forest Animals

While studying for the test and re-test, I fell in love with some animals/insects....

Tree kangaroo

Source: www.greenexpander.com

"They are solitary (except during breeding) and tend to ignore one another even when sharing the same tree."

• Found exclusively in the Huon Peninsula of Papua New Guinea and the nearby island of Umboi
• Endangered

Sidenote: A friend asked me for the difference between a kangaroo and a wallaby... Other than the fact that wallabies are smaller than kangaroos, there should be no other differences.

Tree Nymph or Rice Paper

Source: iodid.com

• Have only 4 legs as their forelegs are poorly developed some species forelegs have been reduced to a hairy cushion
• Caterpillar advertises their distasteful nature but using black and white stripes.
• Chrysalis of the butterfly is golden in colour, which represents sunlit dew drops hanging on the leaves in the morning.
• They are called Rice Paper butterflies as they float like a piece of paper in the wind.

Lucas's short-nosed fruit bat

Source: britannica.com

Unlike some bats, they do not echolocate. They rely on vision and olfaction to navigate and locate food.

Sidenote: Always am fascinated by bats since I wrote an article on them in my first homepage... sadly I lost the homepage already...

Love the habitats too...
The multi-storeyed rainforest of emergents, canopy, epiphytes, climbers, understory and forest floor
The strange looking mangrove which I came to love after understanding it better. I guess their first impression which includes their pungent smell puts people off. Human are so quick to judge hmm...
And I miss the coral reef... was taken out from the zoo.. wonder when they will bring it back.  No notes on it except that its survival is closely linked with the mangrove

Corals, which are combi-plant animal, depend on crystal clear water to photosynthesis and grow. Mangroves also neutralize nitrates and phosphates which would poison coral reefs. In return, the coral growth prevents huge waves from attacking the mangroves.

Sidenote: On 1st Oct, watched a documentary on coral reef in Kusu Island, talking about mutualism, communalism, and parasitism by Ms Glenda Chong. Very informative.. and makes me tempted to go to the Kusu Isle now... Hmm..

Anyway a lot of people had been asking me about my voluntary in the zoo.. well you can read more about it here @ www.szdocent.org
and my station is Fragile Forest! =D