Hartlaub's Turaco

I managed to get another picture of the Hartlaub's Turaco.  Looks like a better shot than the previous one.

Beautiful Rooster

This rooster likes to proclaim its territory by yelling out from its favourite perch which is the corner of this wall. 

Curcuma roscoeana

This beautiful ginger plant is flowering again.  The flower bracts of this particular plant is not as bright orange as the ones I bought from Thailand but the plant is bigger. 

 

Another plant of Curcuma rosceana is also flowering now and has darker colors.



 

 

Hartlaub's Turaco spotted

This morning, I was finally able to get a couple of pictures of this beautiful bird behind my house.  I spotted it many times but was always too late to bring out the camera.  It would appear in the early morning, upsetting the yellow orioles as well as the koels.  There would be an intense chasing around with loud calls echoing through the tree tops.  This morning I finally had a chance to hear the deep call of the Turaco.  I've previously mistaken it for an alternative repertoire of the koel.

My pictures are far from the clear shots of an expert photographer so please accept my apologies.. I will try again with my simple camera.  I may get lucky one day.

 

I've always thought that it is a big black bird with red wings and a head crest. After consulting with my colleague who is a bird watcher, he positively identified it as a Turaco and the next picture gave more details.  It is in fact greenish on top, and has white bands around the eyes.  My colleague explained to me that the bird appeared black because I was always watching it from below against the light!!

 

Praying Mantis

How often does one get a chance to witness a praying mantis laying its eggs?  This cute little predator was seen laying its eggs on an old flower stalk of my Dendrobium distichum.

A very hot chili

Last year Jason gave me a chili from India.  The friend who gave it to him said it is very hot so I presume it must be one of those chilies related to the "Devil's Chili" (Bhut Jolokia).  After a year in the pot, the seedlings are now quite matured and are flowering and fruiting now.  The very first pod is still green though but already looking like a devil.

Interesting Places, Flora and Fauna in Bhutan

The open-air market from the airport to the city looks interesting so we couldn't resist asking the driver to stop there.  We Singaporeans never miss any shopping opportunity!

This is an interesting bird call Hoopoe.  Found it foraging among the grass in the Folk Heritage Musuem on my first day in Bhutan.  The little boy is doing what boys do - harass the poor bird.

Near the entrance there are many beautiful roses growing.  Roses have never been my favourtite flower but the roses in Bhutan are really huge and colorful.

On the second day of the trip, we had to do an introductory hike which would help us to acclimatise to the high altitude.  Along the way, there were interesting finds too.  I spotted a clump of Bulbophyllums at the bottom of the trial.

There is also an interesting bird which was not really afraid of humans.  It stayed on its perch for a long time despite me snapping away just a few feet away.

On top of the trail is the Chagri Dorjen Monastery and Tango University of Buddhist Studies.  Beautiful flowers are everywhere!

  

 Having tea in Bhutan