Orange-breasted Trogon (Harpactes oreskios)

The Orange-breasted Trogon (Harpactes oreskios) is a species of bird in the Trogonidae family. It is found in Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montanes, humid, lower-to-middle elevation evergreen forests, swampy forests, open dry forests, bamboo forests, thin tree jungles, and sometimes among clumps of trees near forests. (Wikipidea)

This species has an extremely large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence <20,000>30% decline over ten years or three generations). The population size has not been quantified, but it is not believed to approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (<10,000>10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern. (BirdLife International, 2009)

Ginger's Flower (Globba sp.)

Just wanted to share some more interesting picture that i have taken during my recent trip to the rainforest of Borneo. I posted some of my favourite wildlife photos in my Facebook but only my facebook friends are able to view it. One of my friends told me that i am lucky to be able to see these unique and amazing creature. That's why i think i have to share it here in my blog or my FB so that i am not too greedy and selfish, keeping it for myself. I didn't lost anything if i share besides i am happy coz i can share...........

Interesting.................

What do you guys think of this creature? I am not good in insects though....i find out this is really interesting creature to share....this was the first time i saw this species. Is this grasshopper? or....??

Banded Palm Civet (Hemigalus derbyanus)

Small to medium-sized carnivores, civets are in the Viverridae family which includes genets, linsangs, and mongooses. Civets vary in size and form, but most present a catlike appearance with long noses, slender bodies, pointed ears, short legs and generally a long furry tail.

Banded palm civet is similar to banded linsang (Prionodon linsang) but banded linsang is smaller with entirely banded tail and spots on the body in addition to barring.

This is a juvenille banded palm civet that the local people captured. He actually tried to get the mother of this "unlucky" little civet but unfortunately he missed her. Mostly local people in this area eat civet's meat. After the mother run away this man saw this helpless little civet and captured it.

This local people tried to kept this little guy as their pet but he have problem with it. It do not eat fruits such as banana that he gave to it. Why? It is because banded palm civet is not frugivores. Their diets are earthworms, insects and other small animals both invertebrate and vertebrate.

When he saw me interested with this little guy, he ask me what this animal normally eat? I told him that info. Finally he decide to give it away to me. I was very happy and thinking of donate it to our mini zoo at KK. On my last day at that village, i was waiting for him to give me this little civet. However, he told me it was escaped because his kids forgot to closed the cage door.

Anyway, i have other feeling about it. People at this area have a very bad habit. If they have something they will not give away freely. They want some token out of it. I will not do it because if i buy it, this will give them some demand on getting more wild animals to be sold as a pet. This happen before. The other guy from this village kept Bornean Gibbon as a pet. One teacher teaching in that village saw it and he admired this gibbon very much. He offered him about RM500 for that gibbon and he just sell it. Not only that, the other guy from the adjacent village own a Malayan Porcupine (Hystrix brachyura) and wanted to sell it with the price RM30.

Even how i really wanted this animal to live freely in the forest i still not gonna buy it from them. There is still a way that can make this people aware that it is wrong to sell this wild animal. They know it is against the Wildlife Enactment (law) but when there is demand they just get it. They need money to live their own life too. Therefore the only thing that i can do is by giving them awareness on why we need to let this animal stays in the forest. Especially the young/juvenile one.

It is still a long way to go. Working with human is not easy...................we have unique and different mind set...hmmmm...

Interesting Info About Civet

Don't you think that civet is one of an interesting animal? Here are some info on what civets can gave us......

Civet oil has been used in the perfume industry for centuries and has been recorded as being imported from Africa by King Solomon in the tenth century B.C. Once refined, civet oil is prized for its odor and long lasting properties.

Civet oil is also valued for its medicinal uses which include the reduction of perspiration, a cure for some skin disorders and claims of aphrodisiac powers. Although the development of sensitive chemical substitutes has decreased the value of civet oil, it is still a part of some East African and Oriental economies.

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Kopi Luwak are robusta or arabica coffee beans which have been eaten by and passed through the digestive tract of the Common Palm Civet. This process takes place on the islands of Sumatra, Java and Sulawesi in the Indonesian Archipelago.

"Kopi" is the Indonesian word for coffee and "Luwak" is local name of this animal which eats the raw red coffee 'cherries' as part of its usual diet. This animal eats a mixed diet of insects, small mammals and fruits along with the softer outer part of the coffee cherry but does not digest the inner beans, instead excreting them still covered in some inner layers of the cherry.

Locals then gather the beans -- which come through the 'animal stage' fairly intact -- and sell them on to dealers. It is believed that enzymes in the stomach of the civet add to the coffee's flavour through fermentation of some type.

Read more info on Kopi Luwak here: Paradise Coffee