I have one of those pocket prayer cards that read: God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; The courage to change the things I can; And the wisdom to know the difference. I don’t keep it in my wallet ‘cos I had memorised this a long time back for moments like these.

I received an email from one of last Sunday’s Reefwalk participants this morning. He raised many concerns regarding how much damage is imposed on our shores during Reefwalks. This is not an issue that is new to us. It is an issue that we grapple with all of the time. How do we educate people during Reefwalk yet minimise the impact of having large groups of people walking the reefs?

I was deeply troubled for the rest of the day. Just sat outside Lucky Plaza after work, putting my troubles down on paper ‘cos I didn’t know who to turn to for reassurance. I was so weighed down by what he said. — “Have we succeeded in spreading green ecology? Or, is this just another ‘outing’ for bored Singaporeans .. keen to brag on Monday what terribly different and exciting things they did?” — “If people cant learn to respect nature, I say it’s better to leave it… By highlighting these places as ‘things to do’, we are only helping in their decimation. Let them stick to Orchard and cinemas, .. so the mud skippers, crabs, anemones may live.”

I wasn’t upset by his words. In fact, I was very grateful and touched that he took the trouble to share his thoughts and feelings ‘cos it showed he cared. I was upset because I felt I didn’t have the wisdom to know the difference between what can be changed and what can’t, what is right or not so right in the long term, what may seem wrong but is actually right. Darn it, I didn’t even know the difference between a dead or live octopus.

We have always maintained a “soft approach” to spreading the message of marine conservation. We don’t storm into restaurants while people are enjoying their shark’s fin soup to show them gory pictures of fin-less sharks bleeding to death. We don’t picket outside buildings to fight for a cause. Our approach is simple - conservation through education.

“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum to the women and men to gather wood, divide the work, and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea.” - Antoine De Saint-Exupery, The Wisdom of the Sands

So for us, we can’t simply say “Don’t litter”, “Don’t throw rubbish into drains ‘cos it will end up in the ocean”. We SHOW them how littered our shores are. We don’t expect people to fight for or against something unless we know that the groundwork has already been laid - that people already FEEL for our shores.

But how do you make people FEEL?
— God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;

Do I have the ability to change a mindset or move a heart?
— The courage to change the things I can;

Can I do so without causing even more damage to the very things I’m trying to protect in the first place?
— And the wisdom to know the difference.

My life as a volunteer began only this year, when I joined the Blue Water Volunteers for a Reefwalk on 10 April. It’s been only 4 months since, and I can hardly believe that during my first Reefwalk, I had never seen live sea stars or corals before, and now I not only lead groups of people to share this humbling experience, I even talk about marine life like they’re my best friends. Just FOUR months, and yet I feel I’ve known the people at Reefwalk for ages! However, our Reefwalk coordinator is afraid that my Mom is gonna send BWV a strongly-worded letter about how her only daughter is too involved with sea slugs and hangs around fishy individuals (and soon I’ll also be hanging out with “icthy, orny bots” too…).

Since training as a Reefwalk guide at the end of April, things progressed at the speed of light. After less than 3 months, 2 training sessions, 2 Reefwalks as OJT with Pam and Daniel, one theory session and finally team guiding with Anthony, I did my first ’solo’ Reefwalk with a group of 11 participants on 26 June. Then the day came when none of the regular guides were able to assist MS with training on Sentosa, leaving only me to help with my so-so “skills”. Thrown into the deep end of the pool? Deeper than that actually.

Due to my overly enthusiastic itch, I sort of like did a “self-sabo” and threw myself into the deepest end of the muddy lagoon by making a certain “boo boo” last month, which ended with me coordinating the last Reefwalk on 21 August. After the walk was over, accounts settled, etc, I took a step back and reflected on what had just happened, and what I’ve gone through the past four months. At first it seemed like nothing much, but from a different angle, it seems I may have turned my life completely around. When I found out about BWV and Reefwalk at the end of January this year, an old flame was sort of rekindled with nature, and for the next few months prior to my first RW, I was busy borrowing books, buying little pocket guidebooks, sourcing the Net, for everything I could find about seashore and reef life and marine conservation.

Volunteering with BWV or other nature conservation groups is not only a learning experience, it HUMBLES you (especially “city folk” like me). Suddenly, even the tiniest ant is an important BEING, and every leaf on every tree is more than “just a leaf”.

I realised after coordinating the walk that I’ve probably “grown” too quickly and this deep end of the muddy lagoon might actually be quick sand. I need to slow down. I still have a long way more to go as a guide, still have so much more to learn. So I guess it’s best if I stop growing too quickly for fear of burning out, becoming jaded or losing sight of the big picture.

When I was balancing the accounts for the walk, my mind drifted (as it often does) to other weird ideas, thoughts, dreams…. I thought about balancing the “account” I hold with RW. Like how much they owe me, how much I owe them…. Here’s my crazy thoughts put down in writing:

WHAT I’VE SPENT
Transport - Lost count
Guidesheets, Guidebooks, Fines from overdue library books that I renew to the max and borrow over & over again ‘cos the marine & coral reef guidebooks at the bookstores cost an arm & a leg - Lost count
Feeding hungry guides & trainees with bread, tuna and coffee - Lost count
New Reefwalk guestbook - Undisclosed amount
Time spent Klogging, sending emails, replying emails & other “admin” stuff - Lost track
First Aid Kit, plus lots of Mopiko for those dang bites - Can’t remember

WHAT I’VE EARNED
The joy I get out of doing all of the above even if it burns a little hole in my pocket and takes up a huge chunk of my already non-existent social life – Priceless
Knowledge about marine life, as well as other aspects of nature, conservation and the environment – Priceless
New friends of kindred heart and mind – Priceless
Seeing how a child is so amused by something as common (to some) as a goby – Priceless
Seeing adults awed by something as insignificant (to some) as an Avrainvillea seaweed – Priceless
Reading the heartfelt comments left by participants in the guestbooks – Priceless Getting to know the crazy & passionate people at Reefwalk – Priceless
Which then led me to know the dedicated & even crazier people at Wildfilms – Priceless
A chance to pursue dreams that were once forgotten – Priceless

I would say the “accounts” are balancing out rather well, with a priceless surplus. Some volunteers may be overworked ‘cos there’s no one else willing to get the job done, and yet they continue with their good work day after day, because at the end of the day, bruised, battered but not beaten, they can sit back and say “It was worth it”.

Here’s to all volunteers, those dedicated people who believe in all work and no pay. - Robert Orben

I love posting happy blogs! And I’m utterly pleased to report that Reefwalk’s “Ultimate R&R Event of the Year” was a success! A total of 14 adults and 2 children made their way to Kota Tinggi, Johor last weekend for 2 days and a night of pure R&R. It was a well-deserved getaway for all, and a memorable experience that has left us hungry for more!

After meeting up at Kranji MRT station at 8.00am on Saturday, we decided to have breakfast at the old Woodlands Interchange while waiting for the traffic jam at the Causeway to ease a little. “We” included Daniel & his wife Belle, Merey with husband Eng Wan & 2-year old son Reef, Doreen & daughter Lotus, Seow Nan, Saify, Darius, Min Sheng, Heng & I.

Freddy & his wife Livia and Peter were to join us in Kota Tinggi later that afternoon, as Freddy was called back to work at the last minute, and Peter was down with a high fever & flu.

Some of us had not slept the night before or were pretty beat from the journey up, or in the case of Eng Wan, had come straight after a flight back from Sri Lanka. So after checking in to Kota Rainforest Resort, most of us headed straight for the mattresses…

Except for these few who were raring to go!

I guess by observing who did what on the first day you can tell what he/she came here for - fun in the sun, quality time with loved ones, doing nothing but chill-out, or doing some big time soul searching of some sort. Whatever we did, we were surrounded by little wonders of nature, set within the rustic setting of the resort, amidst the lush tropical rainforest.

Later in the afternoon, a few of us headed for the waterfall to literally chill out. The water was freezing! But shiok man! While MS & Saify were enjoying their “hydro jet back massage”, I had fun splashing Doreen with icy cold water while Seow Nan gave the locals an eyeful with her DIY mud spa. Out came her huge Ziploc bag filled with Dead Sea mud all the way from Israel, which was then generously slathered all over her body, as well as my back, all over little Lotus & big D. Soon, she managed to convince the guys to join in the fun too, so all of us got a complimentary mud rub + back massage from this petite girl.

In the evening back at the resort, all of us regrouped for a lovely charcoal-fired steamboat dinner that tested our patience, chopstick skills and appetite for the “exotic”. Merey was served with some extra “liao” in her soup from one of the resident lizards or birds perched above, while MS found a “black bean” in his soup - a “bean” that has 2 wings and large eyes, that you often find hovering over food or other less than appetising (and usually smelly or dead) objects. Yum!

After dinner, we headed straight for the Fireflies Rivercruise that Daniel had thoughtfully arranged for us earlier. Man! It was amazing! At times I felt like I was lost in a magical fairyland… more like Neverland, as the little specks of dancing light reminded me of Tinkerbell. I expected the tour to be a rather short one ‘cos as a Malaysian, I don’t really place much hope in what my country has to offer in terms of “customer service”. But the boat ride just went on and on along the river, encountering more & more trees that were covered with these tiny and mesmerising creatures (more info about fireflies in the Appendix below).

And up above, a different show of twinkling light, a sight I crave for every night - diamonds in the sky! Aaahh… To be surrounded by so much beauty just gets you all warm & fuzzy all over!

Back at the resort, it was bedtime for some, and time to kick back, relax & t-c-sing-song for others. Nothing like a bottle of musty wine to get the ball rolling, and soon we were happily discussing topics as varied as Sri Lankan tea & soya sauce, religion & lost civilisations, scholars & tapeworms, weight loss & ’snakes’… It was fun joking about Changi Village ‘cravings’ and Seow Nan’s “Andrew”. “Andrew” is a tapeworm that Daniel believes lives in Seow Nan’s stomach ‘cos she’s so skinny. So we try to picture her rubbing her tummy near mealtime and going “Aaaandreeewww… what do you feel like eating today?”

Oh, and since we keep pronouncing Saify’s name wrongly, he’s now officially nicknamed “Anaconda” (for other ‘reasons’ too!).

Most of us slept really well that night after such a fun-filled day, some wine, and for me, a big gulp of cough mixture. But in the middle of the night, I awoke in fright when I heard a guy scream, and opened my eyes to see Peter leaning over Darius in bed! Darius looked white as a ghost, and Peter looked guilty yet innocent at the same time. Ahaha… Some Changi Village ‘cravings’ going on here or just Darius having a really bad dream? I’ll leave that to your imagination!

The next day went by really quickly, with breakfast, packing up, etc etc till it was check-out time. We then headed for a very nice lunch back at the same place we visited the night before for the fireflies tour. The food was really good, and in the words of Eng Wan as he savoured the Nonya-style steamed fish, “Wah steam! Steamology man!”.

As each of the 4 cars were headed in different directions, we said our goodbyes after lunch, each with fond memories to keep us warm, fuzzy & tickled pink for a long time to come. Thanks again to Daniel for coming up with the idea of this trip & planning the nitty gritty logistics side of it, to all the drivers who brought us from point A to B and back in one piece, and to all who came, lending to the trip your unique personalities and sharing the best of yourselves with everyone else. Aaahhh… warm and fuzzy again…

“The ultimate expression of generosity is not in giving of what you have, but in giving of who you are.”- Johnnetta B. Cole

Fireflies are actually beetles!

Fireflies are not really “flies” but are beetles in the family Lampyridae (from the same Greek word which is the English source of the word lamp).

“Flies” have one pair of wings (like houseflies) while all other winged insects have two pairs of wings, or, four wings altogether. In general, when the common names of insects contain the word “fly” as part of a one word common name such as firefly, dragonfly or scorpionfly, the insects are not true flies and belong to another order of insects. When the word “fly” is hyphenated or follows the first word of an insect common name, it is most likely a true fly (and by definition, has only two wings.)

Habitat and Range
Most firefly larvae are found in rotting wood or other forest litter or on the edges of streams and ponds at night. Some Asian species are fully aquatic (due to the presence of tracheal gills) and live underwater, feeding on aquatic snails.

Adult fireflies are found in the same general habitats as their larvae. Generally speaking, the highest number of firefly species are found in warm, humid areas of the world. The greatest number of firefly species (highest species diversity) are found in tropical Asia and Central and South America.

Behaviour
Firefly Larvae are predaceous and have been observed feeding mostly on earthworms, snails and slugs. Larvae can detect a snail or slug slime trail, and follow it to the prey. After locating their future meal, they inject an anesthetic type substance through hollow ducts in the firefly’s mandibles into their prey in order to immobilise and eventually digest it. Multiple larvae have also been observed attacking large prey items, such as large earthworms. Other observations suggest larvae sometimes scavenge dead snails, worms and similar organic matter.

Adult Fireflies also have mouthparts suggestive of predation (long sickle-shaped mandibles). Although it is widely known that fireflies of a few species mimic the mates of other species in order to attract and devour them, observations of adults feeding on other prey items are practically non-existent. It is likely however, that adults might feed on plant nectar in order to sustain their energy requirements in the adult stage (which can last several months or longer).

Baby, Light My Fire!
Mating occurs when the male lands by the female. The female lays her eggs at the base of plants on or in the moist soil. The eggs of some fireflies glow. The eggs hatch into firefly larvae which usually glow. These are called glow worms. The females of some fireflies are wingless and are also called glow worms. The larvae stage of the firefly may last one or two years, again depending upon the species.

When the larval stage is complete, the insect enters the pupae stage. It is now near the surface of the ground. This lasts about three weeks, and the pupae do not feed during this time.

Killer Queen
The adult finally emerges, and the cycle begins again. The adult usually feeds on nectar or nothing at all. Adults live only from one to three weeks. Some types of adult fireflies are predators. And some predatory females have learned a way to an easy meal. They have learned the flashing patterns of other species, known as aggressive mimicry. They flash a male of another species and when he lands to mate, she kills him and eats him!

Bioluminescence
The glow of the firefly is produced by a chemical reaction within their bodies. A chemical called luciferin produces the glow when an enzyme called luciferase is mixed with it. Oxygen is required for this reaction and is supplied by a special opening in the abdomen of the fireflies’ body. The lightning bug, as this little insect is sometimes called, controls the intensity of the flash by varying the amount of oxygen which is mixed with the luciferase.

Most light forms we are familiar with produce heat as a waste product of the light producing energy. The firefly has a very efficient means of producing light because no heat is produced by the light it emits. This effect, light produced without heat, is called luminescence, and if the light is produced by a living organism, such as lightning bugs, plankton at sea, or other creatures or plants, it is called bioluminescence.

Male Flashers Wanted!
Fireflies have been studied extensively by biologists, but we still don’t know all there is to know about these fascinating insects. The flashing of the fireflies is thought by most scientists to aid in reproduction. Females, it is assumed, prefer males who can flash their light more frequently than others.

The timing and pattern of the flashing seems critical and varies by species. The light colours of the firefly can also vary by species and can be yellow, green, orange, or red. Some type of lightning bugs can produce two different colours of light.

The male typically flies over grassy fields flashing, the female lies in wait in the grass below. She will answer his flash with one of her own, signalling her willingness to mate.

Fireflies have developed a method to escape predation. Since the flash of light is pretty conspicuous, the male of some types have developed the strategy of turning sharply right or left immediately after the flash. Many critters, like dragonflies and frogs have developed a taste for fireflies. If you are around a pond or stream and notice a frog with a glowing throat you know he has been dining on fireflies!

The above is adapted from http://www.plumcreekmarketing.com/articles/16firefly.html and
http://IRIS.biosci.ohio-state.edu:80/projects/FFiles/frfact.html

More interesting info: Fireflies Offer Weapon Against Cancer - Spark Can Trigger Cancer Treatment Deep Inside the Body

kilbunny is so right about basking in whatever sunlight remains. Just 2 hours before the mangrove walk, it wasn’t raining cats and dogs, it was more like thundering elephants and hippos! Day seemed to turn to night and I prepared myself for a very cold, wet and dark venture into the swamps of Kranji. But the rest of the day was so amazing, that I can only describe it with pictures and prose…

“Written in March” by William Wordsworth
“The cock is crowing, The stream is flowing, The small birds twitter, The lake doth glitter, The green field sleeps in the sun —

 

There’s joy in the mountains, There’s life in the fountains, Small clouds are sailing, Blue sky prevailing, The rain is over and gone!”

To truly appreciate nature, we should be like “The Happy Child” that poet W.H. Davies describes…

 

 

“I saw this day sweet flowers grow thick, but not one like the child did pick. I heard the packhounds in green park, but no dog like the child heard bark.

I heard this day bird after bird, but not one like the child has heard.
A hundred butterflies saw I, but not one like the child saw fly.

I saw the horses roll in grass, but no horse like the child saw pass.
My world this day has lovely been, but not like what the child has seen.”

Every walk with Daniel is a learning experience as he has so many interesting facts to share - about nature, plants & creatures, and even weird non-nature-related facts. This Reefwalk R&R outing was a success, with a comfortable group of ten, cool weather for a leisurely stroll through the Kranji Nature Trail, followed by ‘high tea’ & a getting-to-know-you session at the cafe at SBWR. Thanks to all who came, and till we meet again…