Thursday, December 02, 2010

Blooming Mushrooms

Catch of the Day

The next day after the Tangkoko Nature Reserve trek, we went to Pulisan Jungle Beach Resort which is located in Pulisan village, North Sulawesi. We managed to book a taxi who is willing to take us to the resort, and if I can remember it was around a 2 (or was it 3?) hours drive from Manado. There were no roads leading directly to the resort, so we stopped at the point where the road ended and trekked through the jungle and finally arrived at the beach where the resort was located (hence the name jungle beach resort).

Along the way we met a fishermen who just came back from his daily fishing chore, and he managed to show his catch of the day.

Batuputih Beach, Tangkoko Nature Reserve

Inside the Tangkoko Nature Reserve, they have a beach area named oddly Batuputih, which means white stone. But the sand there, or at least the ground beneath are surprisingly black. The view from the beach was amazing, especially when the sun glistens and shines through the nearby landscape, and although it's not necessarily good for swimming, it's nice to splash around there because there were no reefs around.

Spectral Tarsier, Tangkoko Nature Reserve

The Spectral Tarsier (Tarsius tarsier) is one of the stars of the Tangkoko Nature Reserve. It lives in the giant ficus tree and it is nocturnal, thus we have to wait for a while until the sun sets for this little primate to come out. The guides lure these huge-eyed animals out of their resting place with a cricket, and they quietly creep out to snatch them. According to IUCN, they are vulnerable to extinction.

Giant Ficus Tree


This giant ficus tree is home to the Tarsius spotted in the Tangkoko National Park. My guide said that it is approximately 60 years old.

Note: Apologies for the lag in updating, will try to do some catch up now.