A mature Pulai and several Terentang trees tower over the suspension bridge of the HSBC Tree Top Walk. Distant smokestacks can be seen on the northern horizon at times, but there are spots on the 250m canopy trail that succeed in defying the city's looming presence. Most visitors tarry not, breezing over the walk and descending within a minute or two. If they'd stay a little stiller, they might have heard flowerpeckers fussing over fruiting mistletoe, forest bulbuls flushing each other from favoured perches and the chirrups of foraging slender squirrels.
Near the top of a dead tree trunk, a flying dragon basked. It seemed rather larger than the usual Draco volans seen closer to the ground. Halfway across, somebody uttered 'Snake!' and pointed to a slender body draped over branches close to the handrail. Probably 1.2 metres long, the animal appears to be a Kopstein's bronzeback, one of four Dendrelaphis species known to occur locally. These lithe snakes hunt lizards and frogs in trees, are non-venomous and are generally inoffensive. On a whim, the creature snaked itself around the trail's siderail, prompting me to ask evie to call the ranger, more out of fear for the snake than concern for fellow walkers. It glided with silent ease over the network of blue ropes for a little while, its head sashaying with consummate elegance to survey forward territory with large, keen eyes, before deciding that the tree offered a superior refuge. The ranger stood watch for a time, while a few troopers gawked or gah! until the painted serpent lurched its way to safer boughs.
"more out of fear for the snake than concern for fellow walkers."
*sniggers* evie wont feel the same about that ;) she prolly ran back to the rangers for fear for her own safety hehehe
Posted by: monkey | 01 January 2008 at 02:09 AM
Gah! You are right, Monkey. I think he asked me to go find the rangers so I won't scare the snake with my screams!
Of all places, I met my first snake on a tree top walk..
Posted by: Evie | 02 January 2008 at 10:48 AM