June 2016

June 2016 chalked up a few milestones; our 27^th wedding anniversary and the notorious Brexit that will reverberate around the world for many years to come.

England could not resist leaving EU for the second time when their football team ingloriously lost 1-2 to Iceland. Most jokes revolved around the discount frozen food company operating in the UK (even with bad grammar).

On the family front Helen maintained a full book of students while the weather ranged from very wet to dry and hot. Nikki was relaxing in the USA  tickling young alligators and Dani was busy organizing mega sporting events for Usain Bolt  (or Adolf).

I time my morning walks to catch the sunrise and you never know what visual display is going to result. The sun rises across the sea and sometime the more spectacular scene is in the opposite direction when large cloud heads, or glass windows, are lit up by the rising sun. 

One morning walk had an extra flavour when I had to almost stepped on a python emerging from under a fence (it was dark at the time).

Penang port was host during June to the 4^th largest ship that had been commissioned only a week or so before. The ‘Ovation of the Seas’ is a state-of-the art monster cruise boat that will be based in China and will be in New Zealand waters soon. Ovation will be the biggest, newest and most technologically advanced cruise ship based Down Under. It measures 346m long and 41m wide and weighs in at 167,800 gross tons.

 Ovation was build in a large indoor facility in Germany and launched into a moderate but obviously deep river. Here is a video of the exit from the 'shed'

Although Ovation will easily be the largest cruise ship to have ever sailed New Zealand waters, it's onboard toys and experiences are quite novel; iFLY brings skydiving to life at sea while the Northern Star aerial observatory offers 360-degree views more than 90m above the water. A robotic arm lifts guests high into the sky in their viewing capsule, taking in the sights wherever the ship happens to be.

Ovation features 18 restaurants and a recipe-book of the world's cuisines in fun and formal settings, including partnerships with celebrity chefs - Jamie Oliver's "Jamie's Italian" will be moored off Rangitoto before the landlubber's version opens in Queen St.

Here is a video of some of the features on the 'boat'.

Not every cabin on board a cruise liner has a view. Ovation has even lifted that curse of cruising - the stateroom that doesn't have a view. Passengers in internal cabins will wake to a "virtual balcony" of the ship's surroundings, a 3D view projected on to their walls.

As usual my time has largely been spent on nature photography. The weather again played a major role and I was caught several times by sudden showers. The Blue-throated Bee-eaters are nearing the end of their breeding cycle and I have tried to fill in action shots I don't already have.

In the images immediately above a chick views it's new world. It was due to fledge but why not stay in the hole and be fed.

Not all photo occasions have a a happy ending. Blue-throated Bee-eaters, unlike other varieties, drill holes straight into the flat ground as nest holes as well as into banks. When it rains heavily the flat-ground holes may have a problem. This was the case when it poured during one recent visit. I found a shivering chick that had appeared to have been driven from his nest hole. Hopefully its parents would soon arrive and feed him and usher him back into the hole.

At Air Hitam it is also quiet and I find myself shooting lizards, pre-dawn jumping monkeys and fishermen

Nick Baker my friend from Singapore came to stay for several days. He wanted to explore a few places and set some camera traps. One day we went to Byram....a once-favourite location of mine that had been degraded somewhat by mindless 'development'. Nick set his cameras and we hooked up with a large male otter that was hunting for fish in the nearby canal. We spent the best part of an hour following him on the adjacent road. He did not seem to mind our presence but when we came on the rest of the group later that included youngsters they were very wary.

The otter looked so laid back in one of the above shots I could not resist some Photoshop manipulation and some gross anthropomorphizing.

Nick and I also spent one night at Sungei Sedim, a forest reserve with a boisterous river running through it. Sedim is about an hours drive from Penang in Kedah State. The accommodation was basic but it was quiet.....being in the middle of ramadan. Nick is keen on lizards and snakes and this place was lizard heaven. Numerous species if gliding lizards soared from tree to tree and advertised their intentions.

The three images above are; a Frilly Gecko...that mimics tree texture very well, Black-bearded Gliding Lizard....that has a membrane between fore and hind legs that is used to glide from tree to tree (see below)....the retractable black flag under the throat signals to potential mates, Kuhl's Gliding Gecko....this chunky lizard has every part flattened so it can also glide over limited distances.

There were also some lantern bugs...which are bizarrely pretty, although I have not done them justice.

Lantern Bugs come in a number of flavours and have their own following (not my images)

I have mentioned before the sweat bees that inhabit the forest. They can be a nuisance hanging around a sweaty brow to have a sip. Their hives and its associated infrastructure are  inside trees. They make a wax tube which is essentially their runway. Stephen Hogg from Fraser's Hill asks sawmills to give him the chunk of wood containing the nest and he has a number such active hives. The honey is not like normal honey but has a refreshing and unique taste. 

Here is a couple of the entrance runways going into a healthy-looking tree

A small troop of Banded Leaf Monkeys came by in the morning. One was intent on eating Petai beans while mum and baby made a brief appearance. Nick passed some of these images to a young researcher in Singapore and she was very excited because this was a fairly rare sub-species.

 close-up

The place was not busting with birdlife but I did manage to capture a cute Grey-headed Canary Flycatcher that preferred particular perches while it chased insects in brief but erratic sorties. Above the river a pair of Black-naped Monarchs were building a nest. They were using moss and like other birds purloined spiders webs that they used for reinforcement.

One of the main missions of the visit was to check on the fruits on a particular tree. When the fruits ripen there would be a feeding frenzy  involving the local squirrels, monkeys and hornbill fraternity. We are looking at mid to late August for the feast.

We have attended the weekly pub quiz each week. The record for the last 5 weeks are; 1st, 3rd, 4th, 3rd, 1st. The team is on the right (below) and later with Mike collecting some prizes. The intelligent quizmaster is in the white shirt.

The sports entertainment was highlighted by 3 major test series consisting of northern hemisphere teams playing Southern hemisphere 15s. While the Wallabies were white-washed by England NZ did the same to Wales. The Boks beat Ireland narrowly 2 games to 1.

Back to the kitchen. There are two things that cannot be reliably purchased in Penang; one is bread and the other is good meat pies. I have sought to remedy the home supply of both

The brewing industry is also going well with regular supplies of Kefir being produced and I am currently putting the finishing touches to a good ginger beer brew. Both the capper and the bottle caps had to be brought in from Singapore.

Finally I have compiled a seamless slide show on the White-throated Kingfishers I have followed for the last 5 years. It can be seen here. Please have a look if you have 9 minutes to spare.