Wildlife Images II

For anyone who didn’t see the original Wildlife Images blog, you can see it here

Have a look now, right now, and we’ll say no more about it. We’ll move on. I won’t take it personally and there’s no point in carrying grudges and it’s best to put these things behind us, start afresh.

Anyway, that blog seemed to be pretty well received, both on the blog itself and through my Facebook page,

Oh, if you haven’t seen the Facebook page, please do, it’s brilliant. You can see it here, Travelling Fatman Photography. While you’re looking, give it a like - cheers. :-)

You know, while I’m at it, you could always check out my YouTube page and subscribe if you want to move on with your day in the sure knowledge that you’ve made someone else Very Happy Indeed. I’m the first to admit I’ve a lot to learn on video making. Such as keeping my face out of them.

Also, I did recently put a book up on the iTunes store, a wee iBook covering a trip I made around Scotland with my brother. You can see that here —> Scotland and the North Coast 500

Anyway, I’m. digressing, please forgive me.

I received some very nice comments on my wildlife posts - so, seriously, thank you! That feedback really does mean a lot to me. It does take a bit of time and effort to put these things together - collecting and editing photos, as well as trying to think of something to say. I know it might just read as though I type randomly and just babble, but serious consideration goes into each and every word. It’s really not easy for me, trying to give the impression that, even in a small way, I know what I’m doing.

So, wildlife - these birds and animals are the real stars of the show, so I’m going to shut up, post some images and maybe one or two lines about each one.

Please enjoy!

Let’s start with this one. This was hot in the wild right here in Singapore. “Wild crocs in Singapore?" No Way”, I hear you cry. Well, Way. Way indeed.

It’s not a commonly known fact that Singapore has a small population of wild crocs mainly around the Sungei Buloh Nature Reserve, which is near the causeway to Malaysia. In non-Covid times I would pop up to the wetland area fairly regularly - there are crocs, migratory birds, lizards, snakes - all sorts of weird and wonderful animals. Now, these crocs are wild and although they are mainly found in this area, they are salties and have been known to venture around the coast to other, more populated parts of this island. There are videos on YouTube of them swimming in the waters between Singapore and Malaysia.

Now you may need to check this - but my understanding is that the croc was leaping out of the water as this helps him position and swallow his prey. Swallowing is preferably done above water for these reptiles, although reportedly they can swallow underwater if necessary.

This Happy Chappie is a mandrill. This image was shot in Singapore Zoo a few years ago. I stated my views on zoos in my earlier blog. You’ll have all read that by now, so I won’t repeat them here.

This shot took one of the attributes mentioned in my previous blog, The Kingfisher Project.

That attribute was “patience”. I was after a very specific shot of this wonderful primate for quite some time - one of him looking towards me so I could capture that beautiful face. It took multiple visits and hours of hanging around to get this shot. Thankfully I had a season ticket for the zoo, otherwise it would have cost me a fortune in entry tickets.

Using info from the Nat Geo website, I can share with you that Mandrills live to around 20 years old and they are the largest of all monkeys. Their native habitat is equatorial Africa. If any of those questions come up in a trivia quiz and you get the answer right, you know who to thank.

Here we have a fruit bat in all his glory. I was lucky the sun was behind him, giving that lovely detail in his wings. Now, some of you may be wondering how I know that this is the male of the species. Let’s just say you pick these things up with experience.

On fruit bats, I’d often wondered - I’m sure we all have - about how they, well, sorry to be indelicate - but how they pee. Wonder no more, I can enlighten you because I recently saw a video on this (it was sent to me, I didn’t google it). To pee, they turn them selves the other way up - right way up for us, upside down for them, I guess. Then they do what they have to do and subsequently go back to this position. They also sleep in this position, very unfortunate for any bats that may have bedwetting issues, I guess. Doesn’t bear thinking about, so I’ll move on.

This is an olive-backed sunbird, snapped here in Singapore in a local park It is perched above his nest. I say his, but it could be here - my gender knowledge of birds isn’t as strong as with fruit bats.

Now, it’s nest is interesting here - it is built suspended from a branch and is shaped a little like an upside down pear. There is a small entrance just over half way up and it has a small perch for the adult to use when going in and out.

Pretty sure my nest description was rubbish, so hopefully this pic clarifies!

Let’s stay in the wilds of Singapore and throw in a monitor lizard. Here I had one of the other elements mentioned in the kingfisher blog(which you’ve all read) - that of luck.

I do believe, for me at least, luck come into play in wildlife photography. Catching this lizard and his reflection like this was luck. Sure, you can make your own to a degree by shooting a lot, using burst mode etc but you still need a touch of luck.

A slightly less exotic location and bird, perhaps - but I love this image, brings back memories of home. This was taken in Cramond, Edinburgh on a typically dreich Scottish day. I think this image also reminds me that you don’t need to wander far and wide to get interesting photos - sometimes I forget that, maybe we all do…

FYI If anyone doesn’t know what dreich means, you’ve not read all my blogs, have you? Sigh, ok - you’ll find it on this blog, NC500, Day 4 - Durness to Scourie. It’s a wonderful word - if I had a “Top 10” list of words, “dreich” would be in there, no question.

OK, this fella seems to be a bit of a favourite - he’s a Shoebill Stork.

Let’s throw in a bit more info about old ‘Bill. He is also known as a whalehead or whale-headed stork, but I don’t like that at all. Sounds insulting to me, like something I’d call my brother. “Oi, Whalehead - put that pie down”. So I’ll stick with Shoebill.

Very similar to the image in the previous wildlife blog, but I thought worth sharing…

OK, I’m gonna finish with this shot. This one dates from 2011 and I’d either forgotten about it or overlooked it at the time, came across it in my archives this morning and it brought a smile to my wee fat face. I shall leave it up to your own imaginations as to what’s going on here…

OK, that’s all for today, folks - hope something of interest in this blog. I hope everyone is keeping safe and well during these challenging times. Here in Singapore the lockdown (known as a circuit breaker) is due for review on 1 June - but some restrictions being eased in a couple of weeks.

It will take us all quite a bit of time to get back to what we once knew as normality, though, I’d guess. I hope we emerge from this period as better, kinder people more aware of the environment around us and more conscious of the fact we can all make this world better for each other and the amazing wildlife that shares this planet.

In the meantime, stay strong, stay safe, be kind!

Fatman xxx