Keruing Flowering at Bukit Timah!

When I went to Bukit Timah Nature Reserve earlier this week, I had a pleasant surprise.


One particular Keruing (Dipterocarpus caudatus) was flowering! This certainly came as a surprise, as there was just a mass-flowering last year! I couldn't really remember if this particular tree flowered during the last mass-flowering though. Still, I guess we could expect to see the fruits in a few months time.

The huge Benjamin's Fig (Ficus benjamina) at Bukit Timah's summit was figging, and I was there on Tuesday and last Saturday with a few friends to check out the birds attracted by the figs. Here are some of the birds that I managed to photograph.


There were several Thick-billed Green-pigeons (Treron curvirostra) on the tree. I have seen this bird before, but never managed to get a decent photo until today!


There was a huge flock of Pink-necked Green-pigeons (Treron vernans), and when they flew off, one of them accidentally slammed into the nearby fence. It appeared to be alright though, and flew away with the rest.


There were many different species of bulbuls, and here's a Red-eyed Bulbul (Pycnonotus brunneus).


This is the rather seldom seen Black-crested Bulbul (Pycnonotus melanicterus).


I think this is a flycatcher, but not sure what species is this.

Apart from the birds, there were other animals too!


I was glad to find a mother Malayan Colugo (Cynocephalus variegatus) with a baby! Try spotting the baby in the photo above - it's on the right.


And here's a clearer view of the baby.


We saw several Clouded Monitor Lizards (Varanus bengalensis) foraging on the forest floor. They were digging through the leaf litter using their sharp claws.


Bukit Timah is also a great place to spot the Black-bearded Flying Dragon (Draco melanopogon), and infact, we managed to witness it gliding from one tree to another!


This is probably some kind of Imperial Butterfly, but part of the wing was damaged, and hence I am not really sure what it is.


There was also an Archduke (Lexias pardalis dirteana) along the trail.

There were also a few interesting flora along the way.


The Belinjau (Gnetum gnemon) near the visitor centre was fruiting. The fruits turn red in colour as they ripen.


I have been walking along this trail so many times, but this was the first time I noticed a very mature Tongkat Ali (Eurycoma longifolia) not too far away from the trail!


One of the fallen trees near the trail was covered with mushrooms!


Here's a closer look.

Anyway, I guess I probably need to make another trip to Bukit Timah and possibly MacRitchie too within these few days to check if any of the other dipterocarps are also flowering :)