Learning+Journey+2010




 * This year's Learning Journey to Lower Peirce Reservoir was a rather interesting one. The greatest attraction, the long tail macaques were quite amusing and peculiar to observe and viewing them brought back memories of my childhood days where I would visit the zoo and glue myself to the Orangutan Enclosure whilst claiming that they were "only MY cousins".

This page will be dedicated to the Learning Journeys. **



**Aural Circle **
 *  Location : At the bank of the reservoir **


 * With reference to the diagram: **
 * 1) ** Mellow Chirping ** - Possibly caused by a cicada. The sound was coming from the direction of the water and had a “vibrating” quality to it. The sound was probably produced by the contraction and relaxation of its muscles and as a result, there is a vibration which is produced and resonated in a chamber, probably in the abdomen. Since male cicadas are known to make mating calls on the hotter days in summer, it is highly possible that the cicada heard was making a mating call. Additionally, certain species also have a distinct distress call, usually a somewhat broken and erratic sound emitted when an individual is seized. A courtship song, which is often a quieter call and is produced after a female has been drawn by the calling song could possibly account for the mellowness of the chirping.
 * 2) ** Scratching and ** **scraping** - This sound was created as a result of leaves being raked. The scratching sound may have been caused by the dry leaves cracking when the rakes scoops them together. The scraping can be accounted for as a result of the rake scraping against the dry surface of a pile of leaves.
 * 3) ** Bulbul calling ** - The bulbul was calling in a quick rhythm with a high pitched tone and it seemed as though it was singing. The last note was slightly muffled and the pitch gradually decreased throughout the period of the call. Despite that, the second note was louder than the first note. The bulbul heard is a red-whiskered bulbul as its presence is frequent at the reservoir. The sound is probably produced in the lower throat and is aided by the contraction and relaxation of muscles lining the throat.
 * 4) ** Swoosh of the water crashing gently against the bank ** - small water waves, caused by a disturbance lapped gently against the bank of the reservoir thus, accounting for the swooshing sound.
 * 5) ** Rustling and Crackling of leaves ** - The wind at the bank seemed to fluctuate in strengths. At one point, when the wind was blowing mildly, the leaves of a tree nearby rustled. The crackling was probably heard due to the dry leaves moving as a result of the wind.
 * 6) ** High pitched whirring that wasn’t very loud ** - Though I personally didn’t see any generators around, there might have been one that caused this sound. Alternatively, since there is an army installment nearby, planes could have been flying in the distance and thus, to me, at the bank, it would have sounded softer due to the distance between the source and the listener.
 * 7) ** Man thumping his hand against his thigh ** - sound created by a jogger who happened to take a break by the river bank.
 * 8) ** Bee buzzing past ** - A bee happened to buzz past my ear during this period of time.
 * 9) ** Deep, dull rumbling ** - Due to the live firing range and military installment nearby, the rumbling could have been causing because of the activities carried out there. Firing ranges usually create a lot of sound but the sound seems dull probably due to the distance and density of the range.

**Sketch of Two Organisms Interacting** **Some Smells of the Natural World** - Pungent smell coming from the reservoir. This could be due to the abundant amounts of algal bloom seen. - Musty smell of the just-watered soil. It smelt slightly warm as well as earthy. - The distinct smell of wet grass - fresh, pungent and earthy.


 * Observing the Macaques **

1. Are able to scratch themselves in a way that is similar to a human.

2.They scoop the food up and for a cup shape of their palms before pouring the food into their mouth. They are able to hold particles of food in a pinch between the thumb and index finger steadily.

3. They move quarupedally.

4.They show their teeth when they are scared. This display can be interpreted as a threat, especially in the presence of strangers/unknowns.

5.Yawning is a sign of nervousness that they display when there are strangers/unknowns present.

6. Fighting - They advance towards each other head-first and later jump backwards. One of them crouches and bends forward, as though signalling an advance. Its hands grip the sides of the branch and this seemingly helps it gain momentum to spring up towards the other monkey. Both monkeys wrestle with each other whilst one of them tries to buckle the other's head down wards. The monkey, who is being buckled downwards, does a back flip and gains its balance by climbing onto the branch. Whilst this is happening, a 3rd monkey who is watching nearby comes in to intervene and tackel the other monkey. The monkey which has regained its balance, joins in the fight with the mediating monkey.

7. Eating discerningly- One monkey was observed to have been picking food from its mouth, staring at it, biting something off it and staring at it again. This cycle repeated around 3 times and after each cycle, it bit something off and discarded it onto the grass. Similar to humans, this long tail macaque seems to have an awareness of what it is eating and is able to eat discerningly. It seems to be biting the chaff of the object is has picked up and is fastidious in its actions.


 * Some Interesting Images: **