Highlights of field trip to Miri, Malaysia

I am taking a breather from reading research papers by posting about my recent trip to Miri, Malaysia for the Tropical Ecology module! It was held during the recess week from 4 - 8 October. I personally wanted to join the trip to see the diversity of forests in other parts of Southeast Asia. However, as the trip drew near, the amount of work I had was building up as well, thus I decided to download a pile of research papers into my phone to read during spare time (in reality, I had trouble staying awake).

Our first stop was Lambir Hills National Park. The first day was mainly used for briefing and getting acquainted with the surroundings as we arrived in the late afternoon. On Day 2, I managed to get out of bed at 6.30 am to look for birds.

Morning scene at Lambir Hills. I thought the silhouette of the trees was so beautiful but I only had my Sigma fat beast with me at that time. I think the compression works great for this photo although I would like to have captured more of the scene.

The only species I found - Eurasian tree sparrow.

So. Many. Cats. There was a whole family of friendly cats and kittens which enjoyed hanging out in the canteen.

Into the forest! This is a giant forest ant, one of the largest species of ants in the world.

Tristaniopsis obovata.

Group shot at a waterfall! We used my Gorillapod (China replica) for this shot. For this trip, I did not bring my full-size tripod.

I had accidentally deleted the EOS remote app from my handphone, thus I had to set the camera to self-timer mode and quickly get into position.

We visited another waterfall on Day 2 afternoon. While most people were swimming/wading into the waters, I was having fun playing with my camera. I mean... it is not like I am a great swimmer.

We went on a forest night walk with Nick Baker! I am partly amused and partly impressed by his habit of bringing a chair on his shoots. I did think of getting a ground sheet so that I can sit anywhere without getting a ton of mud and dirt on my gear, but his method is way more comfortable.

Shawn taught us to look for creatures at night using eye-shine, where you shine a torch at the same level as your eyes. I found more creatures than I would ever be able to during the day and it was extremely fun. The shots were lit up by my torch.

Day 3. I went around the chalets looking for birds while waiting for the rain to stop. It took me so long to realise that I have shot the same species in Singapore (Pacific swallow).

We went to the Smithsonian plot after the rain ceased. I did not intend to bring my Sigma, but I managed to convince myself to lug it with me in case I spotted something. From hiking hills in Panama to short field trips in Singapore, I always carried that fat heavy lens along to end up not using it. The one time I stayed with my decision to leave a telephoto behind (Tamron 150-600mm) was actually for my exchange, the longest trip I have ever been on. My brain works in funny ways.

We made a detour on the way back to visit another waterfall. I stood at the same spot for a long time firing away at the waterfall and I think some may wonder why I needed to shoot the same waterfall for so many times. I was actually trying to do handheld long exposure because I did not want to set up my Gorillapod. My hands were ridiculously shaky and I only managed one clear shot at 0.4s.

I thought Sinharaja would be the first and last place where I would encounter leeches, but reality dictates otherwise. I had leech socks with me but did not bother putting them on. Well, it is too late for regrets now. The bite is currently still slightly swollen and very itchy.

There is a research centre at Lambir Hills decorated with posters of research projects carried out in the park. I thought this was a creative way of reusing tyres as chairs.

Day 4 at Niah Caves. We joined the students from Layers and Landforms for this segment. Yours truly managed to trip on her own shoelaces at the carpark outside the caves. I knew from past clumsy experiences that I will get dizzy right after a fall and sure enough, the whole world turned yellow in a few minutes. After recovering from the nauseousness, I continued to visit the caves with Rick, who is one of the organisers for this trip. I felt bad whenever he had to wait for me because I was so slow.

Lots of millipedes along the boardwalk.

Inside the cave. If I was there on my own, I would set up my tripod and probably spend an entire day trying to do long exposures.

We went to Tuscan Cliff Beach after leaving the Niah Caves. I honestly had no idea why we went there. I think my brain stopped operating by this time because throughout the bus journey the sun was shining mercilessly on my side of the van and giving me a headache.

For our last stop, we went to visit the peat swamp near the boundaries with Brunei. I had worked on peat before and it was eye-opening to see it in real life.

We checked into MCity Inn and sadly, this was the worst part of the trip because of bed bugs. The good thing is I do not think I brought any back with me.

The trip ended on a more positive note on my flight back to Singapore. Not only did I get a window seat (yay!), a few of us got Airasia's hot seats without paying for the upgrade. My back was so grateful for the reclining seat and I spent the flight gazing at the cloud formations outside the window.

I am really thankful to the school for bringing us overseas. I appreciate attention to details and this trip is so well-executed and organised. I want to write a post on what I learnt from this trip, but it will come after I finish another 2 reports.