Sex in the corn field
A row of corn plants bearing tassels at the top and silks below. Corn or maize (Zea mays) is a single stemmed plant that grows to a height of about 2 metres. The plant bears both male and female flowers, … Continued
Passiflora laurifolia
A Golden Bellapple (Passiflora laurifolia) flower spotted at Lornie Park Connector on 27 May 2022. Soh Kam Yung had to lie on the ground to get a shot of the inside of the downward pointing flower. On iNaturalist [ https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/118893715 … Continued
Nepenthes gracilis
Soh Kam Yung expressed his pleasure at seeing a pitcher plant in the wild (as opposed to seeing them planted by garden shops). This is a Slender Pitcher-Plant (Nepenthes gracilis), spotted while walking along the boardwalk at MacRichie Reservoir Park … Continued
Asian glossy starling feeding on salam fruits
Wong Kais observed an Asian glossy starling (Aplonis panayensis) feeding on salam fruits (Syzygium polyanthum) on 22 October 2015. The salam tree has profuse fruits at different stages of ripening around the month of October each year. Different kinds of … Continued
Asian honey bee pollinates pigeon orchid flower
A lone Asian honey bee (Apis cerana) was observed flitting in between fresh blooms of pigeon orchid (Dendrobium crumenatum) flowers on 19 December 2021. A very short video of the bee in action is captured in the video below. … Continued
Blush Mahang: A forest tree often frequented by birds…
I have often seen this tree but not appreciated its value to birds. I have not been able to identify it and appreciate any ideas/support. It is a tree that grows as part of secondary forest and prefers good sun. … Continued
Malayan Teak (Vitex pinnata) – an important bird tree
Gold-whiskered Barbet eating the fruit. The Malayan Teak (Vitex pinnata) or local name ‘Leban’ is a native tree of South-East Asia. It is slow growing, can grow up to 25 metres tall and prefers good sunlight. It is an important bird … Continued
Pollination of Bottle Gourd flowers
The Bottle Gourd (Lagenaria siceraria) belongs to the cucumber family Cucurbitaceae. It is a strong climber with large heart-shaped leaves (above). The plant bears male and female flowers on slender stalks. The female flowers are differentiated from the male by … Continued
Controlling insect pests in cowpea with weaver ants
“The weaver ant (Oecophylla smaragdina) is probably the most common species of arboreal ant in tropical Asia and Australia. In Kerala, India, nests of these ants are found in almost all broad leaved-trees especially during the post monsoon and summer … Continued
Aphids, ladybird beetles and Bottle Gourd plant
The Bottle Gourd (Lagenaria siceraria) leaves attract aphids (Superfamily: Aphidoidea) that gather on the undersurface to feed on the plant sap (video below). As these tiny insects suck up the plant sap, excess sap is excreted from the anus as … Continued
