Welcome!

Hey, guys! Vanakkam!

Please note that all of you can now write, discuss, give comments and send pictures to BV. There are two of me in here, both are Amid (we use the same mind).

Amid.

kinam

baru mau kinam try bah ni .....

monica.

Getting to BV and other stories

Hi Guys!
Today, I can get into blogger.com but I couldn't go to BV - funny, eh?

VC and ITBC Director visited Danau Girang during the weekend. They spent about 2 hours there. For those who are unfamiliar (I don't know if you have visited this place, I suppose some of you guys did during the Kinabatangan Expedition some years ago), DG is about 30 minutes boat ride downstream from Batu Putih (Kinabatangan Bridge). The facility (probably to be called Danau Girang Field Centre) was built about 10 years ago and UMS is expected to sign a tri-partied MOU to run the centre with SWD and Cardiff Uni. That will be one of our field stations. You may now think about projects to be done there and the centre is expected to operate under the MOU from middle of next year. Think about it - Kinabatangan is the longest river in Sabah.

Amid.

A swamp in Kinabatangan?

Raymond (My Phd student) has been working in Kinabatangan the last 3 years, probably more, works on elephants. Recently when discusing the data, especially those from his satelite tracking, we saw this "void" in the wildlife sanctuary (sattelite pics of the Sanctuary), which he mentioned is a swamp. Based on the location, it cannot be a mangrove, rather a freshwater swamp. Now, this is interesting. I think it is sorrounded, partly by the sanctuary, but on its northern side, by oil palm. Raymond said people rarely go there because people are afraid to do so, so many snakes!

Well, I think it is interesting for Bornensis, whatever there are in that bloody swamp. Let it boggle your heads for a bit, may be something will work out later.

For the Botanists, I have just read a report by Susan Page of Manchester Uni about the information gaps on peat swamps. There's a huge gap on anything botany from peat swamps. The one and only peat swamp that has been well studied (which is not very well studied) is from North Selangor. Anybody fancy studying Pandanus from peat swamp? also, palms should also be an intersting one.

For guys who are doing small mammals, fish and herps, I think we already know what we will be doing if we ever get to step into those swamps, mozzy or not.


Now in Kedah, pekena a little bit of "nasi kander" - harga memang suda nai-la abangg...

Amid.

New Herps for BORNEENSIS

Guys,
These are the species of frogs collected in Klias recently (Thanks, Ahmad!)

1. Nyctixalus pictus (1)
2. Polypedates leucomystax (2)
3. P. colletti (3)
4. Rana baramica (12)
5. R. chalconota (6)
6. Limnonectes paramacrodon (4)

There were at least 3 other species (from calls) that we failed to catch on that visit. We'll see if we can grab them in multiple visits some us have planned throughout this year and early next year.

Ahmad, the rough-sided frog and the "thing" that had the bufonid call at check-point 3 need attention (we have not been in the swamp if we come back without the rough-sided frog!). A smaller one, which has a reddish color, Bufo quadriporcatus should also be there. I got loads of them in 1990 at Kpg Lumat, Beaufort.

Amid.