The common gliding lizard

 From a distance it looked like any ordinary house lizard.  I thought I just get a shot of it since it was found crawling up a tree at the Botanic Island Two.  After transferring the picture into the computer I saw something interesting.  Zooming in at the image I was taken aback.  It was in fact a gliding lizard (Draco sumatranus) which I have seen in many occasions  gliding from one branch to another tree or branch at the park.  On closer viewing I found another interesting feature.  The camera caught the lizard's 'gular fold' which is a triangular flap or skin under the chin.  This special feature is used to communicate with other lizards, mostly for mating purposes.

Common gliding lizard showing its yellow  'gular fold' and the sides of the body with  the skin flaps (partly seen) .  The flaps when open will allow it to glide between tree trunks.

The squirrels are coming..

Plantain squirrel at the oleina tree
Location : Provinsi Borneo, Zone D

 The squirrels are coming to town.  Early in the morning they jump from branch to branch, trees to trees and sometimes run fast on the ground below.  They are attracted to the oil palm fruits especially those ripe ones, biting more than they could chew.  Other fruits that are target to their sharp teeth are the Jackfruit, Cempedak fruit and Lumok fruits that are in abundance and starting to ripen at the park.  Everyday is a fruity fiesta.  At the moment they are not considered as serious pests but merely part of the occupational hazards of operating an eco-farm.  By the way, squirrels fetch a good price in Bintulu town.  They are sold for more than RM 15 per living specimen at current market price.  They are considered a delicacy among many native people of Bintulu.

Squirrels are expert tree or branch jumpers...

A healthy looking specimen.  This one can fetch RM 15 at the Bintulu 'Tamu' or jungle produce market.

Singing the eco-diversity mantra

View of oil palm trees planted amidst introduced tree species - Eugenia oleina

 In the park the business model is radical when compared to the vast plantation-style oil palm mono cultivation in Sarawak.  I feel very much at peace with my conscience doing business using the Kambatik model because here profits go hand in hand with preservation.  This is primarily possible because the prime criteria in the development of the park is ecological diversity placed in the context of an agro-forestry management.  It takes me a good 6 years to achieve some resemblance of success in this new oil palm based business model.  The pictures indicating the return of wildlife to park park are concrete examples of the model's performance index.  Enjoy the park through the lenses of diversity....butterflies, insects, small animals, all wild and free......

 Among the existing native or exotic fruit trees and timber trees are planted flowering trees, shrubs and vines that provide food, shelter and breeding grounds to the extensive web of wildlife but with little or no maintenance.  When singing the ecological diversity mantra we sing out loud that "doing good is doing well ".....la la la la..

Recreational activity like wildlife and nature photography helps promote the idea of the park's sustainability mantra.

Doing good is doing well...