A beautiful Papillionidae species - Arisbe antiphates

 I am somewhat flattered with the arrival of the Arisbe antiphates butterfly here.  It was a memorable occasion for me as I watched this slow flying butterfly resting and then flying off over many places in the garden, especially the Butterfly garden area where I first sighted it.  This is the first time on record that this butterfly is seen by me after staying for about 11 years at the park.  It's a beautiful specimen that crossed my path on the 7th of June'17.

Papillionidae - Arisbe antiphates
4 June '17

Pagoda flower at Butterfly garden

Butterfly Garden Zone, C

The Banded Swallowtail is attracted to the nectar-bearing flowers of the Pagoda Flower (Clerodendrum paniculatum)

Let the butterflies roam freely.

 As an eco -defender, the park continues to become home of an endless list of butterflies.  Butterflying waching is indeed a pleasant pastime here.  One thing I noticed is the importance of planting various flowering shrubs,  trees and treelets.  There again these lovely creatures need fly path or flight way..  In the design and planning of the park there must be plenty of landscape spaces allotted to flyways to enable these butterflies flight spaces and visitors to move around safely and fast in order to chase these beauties. Below are more pictures I took of them during the last two - three days.  It's a pleasure to share these flying beauties of nature for the world to see.

Banded Swallowtail

The Banded Swallowtail butterfly is seen sipping the nectar from the flowers of the Yellow Ixora.

Location : Zone C

Butterflies and more butterflies in December

A day in the park ( 28 Aug'16)

Great Mormon butterfly at the Yellow Ixora bush, Zone C.

Wild red ginger flower
Licuala Hill, Zone I

 A day in the park could be a many splendoured thing.  I started the morning walk early and was greeted by the Great Mormon butterfly which was busy siphoning the nectar from the flowers of the Yellow Ixora.  I walked further into Zone I to check out the jungle trails there.  At the western slope of the Licuala Hill I stumbled upon a rare find that kind of made my day.  This is the first time ever that I come across a really wild red ginger flower.  It rose from beneath the ground (inset) and there were traces around the area that the stems were bitten or eaten by some kind of animals.   My wild guess is the Sambar deer's doing. The flowers produced some nice fragrance.  I spent a good half an hour around the site and cleared the trail properly.  Should I call it the wild red ginger trail?  Next to the wild ginger plant was a flushing treelet showing really attractive red young leaves.  I had on an earlier occasion trimmed this treelet to enable it to produce new branches which today I saw it did produce new branches and new flushes.  After the morning walk, I decided to pluck some fresh ferns (miding) at the Keruak wetlands of which I obtained sufficient quantity for lunch.  Yes, lunch was served with miding mixed with bamboo shoots cooked in coconut milk.  The cooking was done perfectly by my wife.  All of the vegetables were harvested freely and freshly from the park, the kind of healthy food I like.  Well, after lunch it was business as usual with harvesting of the oil palm fresh fruit bunches.  What kept me excited about working today was the abnormally high price of the ffb currently i.e. at RM 430/ton. Compared with last year the price of ffb was a meagre RM 330 on average (ramp price or at middleman's collection centre). For much of the period since January this year, the average price has been hovering around RM430/ton for many reasons which I will write in future postings.  Therefore, this year is a lot happier year in terms of the oil palm small holder.  I have read in some reports that the price of ffb will probably rise further throughout 2017.  Well, all this would be excellent news for the park as more money means more funds available for better amenities and care of the park.    After harvesting and before night falls I climbed the Licuala Hill again to catch a glimpse of the Tiong birds and witness the sunset from the hill.  I was rewarded by a good sunset but I thought I direct my camera lens instead  on the the wild grass flowers and view the sunset through them which produced a beautiful photographic capture.

Jungle treelet with red flushes, a potential for landscaping plant.

Fresh and free 'miding' young fronds for lunch

A lunch plate of mixed vegetables - miding combine with bamboo shoots cooked in 'santan' or coconut milk.

Oil palm fruit bunches in close up.  This month of August the price of oil palm ffb (fresh fruit bunches) has hit an average of RM 430/ton at collection centre or ramp price. 

It's harvesting time.

Before the day ends the Tiong birds (Hill Myna) perched on a tall dead tree at Licuala Hill

An artistic view of the sunset

A butterfly mimicking a dry jungle leaf

A Leaf Butterfly

 I am observing for the first time today a leaf butterfly that has the underside patterned like dead jungle leaves. It has even a remarkable short and dark leaf stalk structure at the end of the wings.  The leaf-life underside has deeply ingrained veins.  It was attracted to the rotting Jackfruit from which it was enjoying the liquid nutrition for nourishment.  It was very engrossed in sucking up the liquid that it was not difficult for me to sneak up a close look.  When eating, butterflies throw out their coiled tubular proboscis into the sweet and fleshy pulp of the Jackfruit (see inset).  However it is to be noted that the condition of the Jackfruit is over-ripe and in some parts rotting.  With its wings closed in a vertical position, the butterfly assumes a perfect camouflage of a dry jungle leaf.

Dried and dead jungle leaves with patterns and colours that are mimicked by the leaf butterfly. 

A leaf butterfly with dry leaf-like pattern and colour
Zone C

Grass Yellow at Butterfly Garden

Chocolate Grass Yellow ( Eurema sari sodalis) attracted to wild flowers on the garden floor
Location : Butterfly Garden

Common Grass Yellow
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 The smaller types of butterflies that are often seen at the park belongs to the Grass Yellow variety.  Two distinct species are the Common Grass Yellow and the Chocolate Grass Yellow.  Both have bright yellow wings and are seen abundantly at the park especially at the Butterfly Garden.  The Chocolate Grass Yellow has the characteristic brown apex  on the underside of its forewing. They are attracted to many small flowers on the garden floor and  also to the fragrant Sui-mui flowers (Religiosa wrightia).  The Butterfly Garden is slowly shaping up as more plants are added to its planting list.  Of recent interest is the Letup-Letup plant or the Lesser Bladder Cherry (Physalis minima) which has produced an abundance of edible fruits and tiny pale yellow flowers.

Common Grass Yellow ( Eurema hecabe contubernalis) at the Sui-mui flowers ( Wrightia religiosa)

Letup Letup  plant growing well at the Butterfly Garden (looking south)

Another view of Letup-Letup at the Butterfly Garden (looking east)

Tiny flowers of the Letup-Letup (Physalis minima)

Black-tipped Archduke

Black-tipped Archduke (Lexias dirtea merguia)
Zone C

Underside wings

 While many butterflies are attracted presently to the nectaring plants that flower profusely at the park especially the Eugenia oleina, the very attractive Black-tipped Archduke is seen favouring the rotting fruits like banana skins,on the forest ground.  I find great pleasure observing the bright and luminous blue colours of the Archduke.  This is in contrast to the dull brown underside wings.  This butterfly can be seen scavenging on the forest floor and move about slowly without being unnecessarily alarmed by human presence, thus my ability to get closer pictures of it.

The Blue Tiger drops by

Blue Tiger - a name I give to this butterfly species

White flowers of the Eugenia oleina

 The Blue Tiger drops by at the park this morning.  A rare moment because it has been for more than a year that I have not seen it around.  It is a species of butterfly that I hardly come across in many areas in Sarawak ( or the island of Borneo) whether it be in pictures or in the google stock of images.   Nevertheless, it does appear in the park when the Eugenia oleina tree flowers.  Its sighting today makes my day.  I hope it will visit the park again tomorrow and give me more close-up and personal encounters for photography purpose,  Cheers to the Blue Tiger.

Blue Tiger - front wings tipped with blue-black stripes and hind wings in yellow-black stripes.
Location : Zone C

Its flowering time for the Eugenia oleina trees here.