FRIM nature walk with Malaysian Nature Society 28 May 2011

Saturday 9am

It's our first MNS outing as MNS members at FRIM for a nature walk, identifying 16 plants. We enjoyed it tremendously. EnHui love nature and usually will pick up lots of things as they wander about. 

Jelutong tree, the very first plant where we started at B8. The baby and grandfather Jelutong trees are just next to the car park.

Information sheets are provided. Cool!

Briefing by our MNS guide, Ming.

Ming letting Hui touched the sap from the Jelutong leaves, which is used to make chewing gum!

Pagoda-shape branching of a Jelutong tree.

This is Tembusu where its bark has deep grooves. 

Tembusu 's fruit.

small cup formed at the leaf axil.

Often, Tembusu is home to a type of stingless bees colony.

 Found a bee hive that fell off the Tembusu tree bark due to its own weight.

Damar minyak tree. Try touching the minyak at the tree bark.

Damar Minyak' s fruits. These are males. Female is like a round golf ball and hard to locate.

Fruit of a Kulim tree which smell really bad, like onion.

Leaf of Tongkat Ali, when folded and reopen, it's creased but not easily torn. When you tear it, torn edges are not smooth but with fine thread-like fibres.

Ming asked us to guess if this is a wood or stone? En replied "It's a wood and stone!".

Ming said "She is right, it is both wood and stone"

I guess perhaps we have been to this exact location twice with a guide from FRIM but she wasn't paying attention at all at both occasion.

Check the massive root network.

As usual En went about collecting her treasures (she said) and found this curled up hairy stuff. Ming said it is a part of a plant when En asked her about it. En called it 'hamster'

The other members checking on En's treasures and the so-called 'hamster'.

Penaga Lilin's leaves pops when burnt. This is because a layer of waterproof wax-like film coats the underside of the leave and this film traps air

We ended the tour at B8, also where we started, at Plant no 16 which is called 'paku' and you know what, the whole plant is poisonous! En Hui were picking wildflowers near the 'paku'. I am holding a bunch of Penaga lilin's leaves to 'play' at home.  

I don't know why, somehow I remember some facts after this trip where I usually don't as I never pay attention and I never bother to. One more fact, our forest is a dipterocarp forest. Di means two. Ptero means wings. Carp means fruit. Check meranti seed on this link and you know what I mean by Dipterocarp.

Not a MNS member yet?  Come and join us.