019. Wagler: Made in China? (Part 3)

Bumi tanpa lautan
Akan kehausan
Pasti lambat laun hilang
Duniaku yang malang

(Hijau, Zainal Abidin, 1998)

Translation:
An Earth that's without seas
Is as good as being thirsty
She will gradually fade away
O’ this poor Earth of mine.

(11th – 18th May 2009)

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The tree that was situated a few metres in front of our lodgings – Chalet 4, was a hotspot indeed for locals and foreigners alike. It was like, every other minute, there will be groups after groups of tourists who will stay still, look high and low before their cameras went off and flashed like sparklers. Groups usually comprised of at least 2 persons would stop by, whether rain or shine to catch a glimpse of what lies in the cosy verdant niche of stems and plants. So, what caught their attention exactly? 

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Presenting the star: the Wagler’s Pit Viper (Tropidolaemus wagleri). According to Wiki, this reptile is a night creature and can be usually found on trees. They might appear quite sluggish as they remain motionless for long periods of time while waiting for dinner to pass by. Hence, Pit vipers are called as such because they have heat-sensing "pits" which occur on each cheek for prey location [1].

And when it does pass by, they can strike doubly quick. In fact, they would strike too if disturbed [2]. But in this case, I beg to differ. It didn’t even blink an eyelid when my camera went as close as 2-3 inches from the snake’s (left) view. Disturbing as it might be, it was rather curious too. Its lethargic movement could certainly give the sloth a run for its money, that’s for certain. Not once did it budge from its comfort zone during the 4 days and 3 nights we were there. This also goes for the juvenile (right) which was placed serpentine high up in the foliage. >_> If not for the tiny flicker of its tongue, the Pit-Viper could have easily passed of as a rubber snake. Seriously.

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Placed against a sunshine-y backdrop, the fine venation of a Calophyllum sp. leaf is really quite evident. From the Greek kalos “beautiful” and phullon '”leaf”, the plant of the genus literally means “beautiful leaf”. Also known as the Bintangor plant locally, in Borneo, related species of this plant has been found to contain anti-AIDS properties. Of course, further research is being conducted to ascertain the fact.

(left & right): One of the Calophyllum sp. which we bumped into during our walk towards Teluk Pandan Besar – Calophyllum nodosum.

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(left): Another Beauty Leaf which we saw (at the beach area of Teluk Pandan Kecil) is the Calophyllum inophyllum. Because of its decorative leaves, fragrant flowers and spreading crown, it is best known as an ornamental plant [3]. Again, the fragrance is subjective. For me, there wasn’t any distinctive, sweet scent whatsoever (though it can be testified by Alex and Kai-Xin). It’s either my nose was faulty or… my nose was faulty. >_>

(right): A large trunk of the Calophyllum ferrugineum, which we bumped into on our way to the top of Mount Santubong along the 45 degree slope. Its girth was the biggest I have ever laid my eyes on, and I could barely make out the leaves against the glaring skies. The other time I saw one was in Bukit Timah Nature Reserve (Singapore), and the plant was a little, wee thing compared to this giant.

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(Left): From Telok Pandan Besar, the view of headlands and a sea-swept beach towards my left.

(Right): On towards Telok Pandan Kecil, we continued along the sandy path before coming to the cliff top that overlooks a bay below. 

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(Left): The sandstone formation on top of the plateau is unique indeed. Here’s Alvin trying to find a good spot to capture a picture of 5.
Note: Just sent an email to my Prof. James Terry on questions pertaining to Bako’s terrestrial geomorphology, such as the one above. Hopefully I will get to hear from him soon. :) Will update if he does *fingers crossed*.

(Right): After a 10-minute descent through cliff vegetation and gnarled roots, we soon reached the beach at the bottom. Caution must be practised here as a slip could caused wounds from gnashes to a swollen ankle. 

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(Left): The beach, seawards. On the sand, we could see the tiny balls of sand left by Sand Bubblers. Besides that, there were also footprints of the (possibly) Bearded Pig (Sus barbatus). Apparently, the macaques also make the occasional trip down to the area to feed. Macaque motto: Humans = food. 

(Right): The beach that comes up seaward slopes down gently before heading far inland, towards the mangroves and then the forests. A secondary beach maybe?

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Amongst the balls of Sand Bubbler leftovers were hermit crabs (left) and other species from the Order Decapoda (right). This one took a short break before scuttling into one of the larger holes made by the Sand Bubbler.

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(Left): A close-up of the famous sea stack just offshore of Telok Pandan Kecil Beach. A sea stack is caused by the natural erosion of headlands along the coastline. Typically, the ocean wears a hole through the headlands first, creating an arch which slowly expands over time as it erodes. Ultimately, the arch collapses, leaving a sea stack on one side and the headland on the other. Separated from the shoreline, the sea stack will slowly start to erode, either eroded away into the water or collapsing [4].

(Right): A picture of the wave-cut notch,which is mainly the result of wave erosion and other processes. The undercutting is usually caused between the high and low water marks [5].

 
Dark, ominous clouds sweeping across Santubong, with the sunlight barely shining through.

 
On our way back, rain could be seen falling in sheets on the front half of Santubong. Though it looked like the rain might be advancing towards Bako, it was a clear night on our last day at the National Park.

Looks like Part 4 (end) will be coming up soon enough. :)

Reference:
1. http://www.ecologyasia.com/verts/snakes/waglers_pit_viper.htm

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropidolaemus_wagleri

3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calophyllum_inophyllum

4. http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-sea-stack.htm

5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wave-cut_platform