Wild Animals Cross this Road!

We went back to where the wild things live. What's up with the deer! We don't have deer, do we?

This robo-lightman explained that, indeed, Singapore does have a population of Lesser Mousedeer on the island, although this oddly-specific sign makes them insecure, since they do not have antlers and are smaller than monkeys. (The Greater Mousedeer have mostly moved to a separate off-island island.)

I've always been a fan of the robo-lightpeople, although I was concerned by this one's hygiene up close. Robo-lightlady seems to be keeping tidier.

However, she's oh so very sad!So, where are these wild animals we heard about? Well, Barry spotted a house shrew near our house.

And our balcony wall gecko stopped by.

But that was lame, so we braved the obvious risks and headed back to the jungle.

Here's a rare pine cone in Singapore! What, coniferous trees? Why yes, this is from the Casuarina Equisetifolia, or Common Rhu. (For those who live here, fun fact: Tanjong Rhu was named after these trees, which grow along the river and the beach.)

Once you start tree learning, or dendrology, it's hard to stop. Many trees are non-native species, like this African oil palm deep in the jungle.

The Canonball tree (Couroupita Guianensis) is native to Central and South America, and is super fun because it's covered in balls that can be up to 25cm in diameter.

But we came to see the animals!

Here are some relaxing during spa day!

This baby monkey with a perky hairdo was brushing its teeth with a stick! (I took many pictures to be sure this was actual dental hygiene ).

While we didn't see any mousedeer, we did find another plain of jars. Why is this common in our jungles?

I'd think someone would take this home...

It wasn't a strong animal week, so how about some Bleeding Heart Glory-bowers, or bagflowers, about which I can find no fun facts.

The Thunbergia Fragrans, or Whitelady, is not named after the cocktail of the same name, which is really just a gin sour with orange liqueur. You may as well add the vermouth and make it a Corpse Reviver #2, because that's more delicious. In summary, cocktails are more interesting than flowers.

Let's end with the Lantana Camara, which looks all sweet and nice, but is actually an invasive species reducing biodiversity! I'm going to tell the Robo-lightlady to combat this!

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Bovine and Lion Huat Ah!

It's time we talked about lions. Lotsa them, here in Asia. But, actually, lions never lived in East Asia. So what the cat?

Well, after 13.5 years living in, and 1 year without leaving Singapura, Lion City, my favourite city, I actually did some learning.

Like many things in life, this was disappointing, since no one knows! But in Chinese culture, the Lion symbolizes strength, stability and superiority. Not bad, but I'm aiming for health and happiness these days. Perhaps Imperial Harbour products can help (smooth transition due to lion logo).While Imperial Harbour medicated oil treats fungal, bacterial, and musculature troubles, it seems similar to tiger balm. Much like Singapore being named the Lion City after a probable Tiger sighting. #catconfusion

So, perhaps I'll focus on more Western medicine, like at the Brass Lion distillery, above.

Here at Shoes and Booze, we've been festive for Chinese New Year!

As you can tell from the Bak kwa Zhu Kiog and our Hong Hong Huo Huo, it's the Ox/Cow/Bovine Chinese New Year times! Huat Ah!With appropriate social distancing, here is a distanced view of the Top Ox of Chinatown! I've included a bovine butt shot, in case that's good luck.

However, I super extra prefer the full Chinese Zodiac creatures one block over. The round yellow blob is my year of the snake!

Here are the 12 Chinese Zodiac animal butts.

There are traditions new and old. Old: wrestle to get a pair of over-fertilized mandarin bushes to decorate your lobby.

Newer tradition: auto-dispensing hand sanitizer? Certainly this is what we were looking for last year.

Newest tradition: matching your Inspired by Purple Earrings to your Chinese New Year mask.

Finally, here is our neighbourhood China Silkie chicken who doesn't feel as weird as she looks (check out her toe feathers), and wishes you a healthy and happy year of the Ox!

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A Binomial Nomenclaturely Correct Review of Singaporean Fungi and more

We've been jungling again.

If you look closer, there is creepy.

Aaah, the twisteraty life-crushing vine has encased someone's human hand! The horror! There continue to be many dangers. I'm afraid that reading today's blog may pose the danger of boredom, however...

Your feedback is important to us. Laura in Singapore responds in fleeting ways to feedback. You wanted betters speciesidentification. Let's start with a picture of a Senna alata, above, commonly called the Christmas-candle flower, where some formicidae are feeding. Below is a Mimosa pudica, or sensitive plant which will shut up its leaves if you express your frustration or weight. Its fluffer puffball (ok, sic.) flowers are less touchy.

We saw our first ever wild pea flower. But my mother and the Internet, who agree with Raed on the species thing, kindly confirmed that this cannot be called a butterfly pea flower, as it's a lighter blue. So suck it! It is still named Clitoria ternatea, named after the human part of a similar name, whose full structure was not known until 2005. Shocking? I think not.

Speaking of human body parts, I had discarded this monsoon-logged photo until the glories of Basidomycota nomenclature were revealed to me. Below is a Phallus indusiatus, Bamboo Fungus, or the Basket variety of Stinkhorn. Did you now that Stinkhorns have a veil? The cap exudes a smelly, sticky, sweet liquid that attracts insects which then unwittingly spread the spores. You know, like a boring-ass flower, except the bugs get get athlete's foot.

Here, a cluster of Cookeina speciosa jelly fungi teach us about the Temuans people of Penninsular Malaysia, who reportedly used some genus as food and fishing bait. Don't be eating them, as my genus expertise is limited, and so is yours.

The push-button mushrooms below are called Lentinus sajor-caju. The real issue in cultivator-mycology, you know, is the persistent misapplication of the name Pleurutus sajor-caju, even in scientific texts! I dedicate this part of the blog to Raed, who told me to look up the names o'stuff.

Let's spend some time with the gandoderma. Above, the Ganoderma tropicum (Junghuhn) Bresadola (which I would have called the shiny shoeshroom), and below, the Ganoderma sp. 6, which gets a lamer name given its lack of sparkle. In case you were trying, you can differentiate Ganoderma from other polypores due to their double-walled basidiospore, which should be obvious.

The Favolus Roseus Lloyd was discovered in 1922, and were fantastically boring thereafter. According to Wikipedia, the fruit bodies of Favolus fungi are annual, and have a stipe that is situated laterally to substipitate or almost sessile. The shape of the cap is spatulate (with a broad, rounded end), reniform (kidney shaped) to dimidiate (divided into two equal parts). So there's that.

Here, we have something less obvious in the Clavulina genus, perhaps Clavulina cristata, but who really cares?

Let's continue this nonsense with a beautiful specimen of the, oh my god, I have no idea. Raed, my blog creation has gone from 1 hour to many just in fungaldentification! I haven't even moved onto preferred kingdoms such as, say, animals or plants!

On that note, I hope that you had an exceptional level of fun with this kingdom of Fungi learning. Perhaps you'd like to try the rest on your own? Let's start off with a super-cool multilegged, bug-killing waddler.

For this one, I'll give you a clue, it's in the Tricholomataceae family, I think.

And for a final challenge, perhaps some crusty bark itchers ?

#nomorefungiforme #laurainsingapore.

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