Traipsing Around: Travel and Psychogeography: Butterflies, Dragonflies, a Waterfall and Centipedes

In the last few days my pattern has changed a little. The weather has been overcast, at least in the mornings and there has been heavy rain at night and I know the snorkelling visibility will be poor, so instead of swimming, I have been exploring the interior of the island. Away from the coast the island is a lush, variegated green paradise, full of coconut palms, banana trees, pineapples, durian and other red and orange fruits that I don’t recognise. Most are growing wild, some are obviously cultivated. The island is a mountain with a number of peaks at different heights and consists of a series of hills and valleys, each climbing higher and higher on twisting sealed and then dirt roads, until there is a long straight and steep, bumpy uphill climb to the summit. There is only a small, flat plateau at the top, but with fantastic views over the sea and the nearest islands beyond and then a severe descent the other side.

It is hot and humid and smells musty, woody and green with life. The noise is amazing, a constant, shimmering curtain of sounds, with what I suppose are cicadas, accompanied by birds which I can hear in the trees, but it is hard to catch a glimpse of them as they contribute to the cacophony. Except a couple: I saw a large, magpie shaped bird with a fan-tale, but twice the size, with a black body, head and legs, with hints of purple and brilliant, bright browny-red coloured wings (an Indian Roller, I’ve subsequently discovered) and much smaller warbler type birds. I spotted one of the latter which seemed to be in competition with a cicada, each trying to out-trill the other, like two competing forest rappers, or perhaps the bird is using the audio-competition as a means of locating its next meal? Or perhaps it was just coincidence and there was no link between the two? Whichever, it was fascinating to watch and listen.

I have also discovered butterflies in the interior. The real ones, not the bodily sensation kind! The variety and abundance of butterflies is just fantastic! I saw one the size of a small bird, which swooped towards me in the opposite direction. My first reaction was to get out of the way, it was so large, but I then immediately turned around on the bike to try and follow. I struggled to manoeuvre the machine quickly enough and it flew lazily but swiftly beyond me as I tried hard, dismounted now, running, to try and catch up and take photos. Luckily it slowed down for a moment and swooped low just ahead of me. It is jet black, its wings fringed with a striking metallic blue. I have subsequently found it is called a Great Mormon, with a wing span of up to 13.5cm. It was massive! There are mottled blue and black butterflies with brownish undersides, bright powdery-orange butterflies, butterflies with white wings tipped with powder grey and with bright orange bodies. Some have brilliant purple and yellow wings. Instead of looking up fish, I’m now searching the internet to try and identify the fantastic variety of animals I’ve spotted during the day!

Yesterday I stumbled across a waterfall by accident. I was struggling to get the bike slowly across a very stony, deeply rutted dirt road, when I passed a lady, covered with hat and scarf to ward off the sun, working on a small holding. Two black dogs emerged from the bushes, growling and barking and I instinctively stopped, wondering whether to proceed. I said hello to the lady and she responded, quietened the dogs and gestured for me to proceed, saying ‘waterfall’. That sounds interesting! I proceed for about 200 metres, park the bike and follow a steep path, first through a durian and banana plantation and then through thick rain forest, guided by a faint path and the sound of water. Eventually I drop down onto the top of a steep, vegetation bounded ravine. It consists of a series of stepped boulders, rounded by the water (which at this time of year is just a small stream) that spills from one level to another, through pools of water darting with fish. There are more butterflies and now dragonflies, both taking it in turns to fly through the cooling spray as the water tumbles over a ledge. It is completely isolated and I have this small, fantastic tropical oasis to myself. I sit and watch the butterflies dance together in spirals and the large purple black dragonflies which flit in zig-zags through the air. I see small lizards and the smallest frog I have ever seen, with a copper brown top and a black line down its body and creamy undersides, perhaps only 5mm long. There are very large black ants. Suddenly I see a flash of brilliant red and there is a dragonfly with a bright red abdomen and black body resting on a twig about 5 feet away. I get down on the floor and crawl with my elbows towards it. It senses me and takes off, but fortunately it flies in a circle and returns to the same place. I continue to crawl along the boulders until I am just a few feet away. I can see the brilliance of the abdomen now and the fine, intricate detail of the wings, the waxy black shine of its head and mouth in the sunlight. I take about 10 photos and it is gone, flying down the ravine and beyond my sight. Perfect. Just so perfect!