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Monday, December 16, 2013

Saving a Legacy Fraser Hill



The Malaysian Nature Society (MNS) published "Footprints - 1963 Till Present" which chronicled the establishment of the society from 1940 to 2008. If 2013 is taken into account, that's 50 years of footprint left since the 1963 initiative to conserve the Giant Leathery Turtles in Terengganu.

The Footprints publication was a very interesting read indeed. I didn't realize that the Malayan Naturalist was introduced in 1974 and that it is a publication as old as myself. Seeing Raptor Watch Week, Tanjung Tuan being recorded way back in 2000 reminded me of the time when I first joined MNS as a member.

MNS has issued a Press Release on Fraser's Hill dated 13th April 2010. The shorter URL link is available Fraser's Hill Left Natural. My friend Fong Lin and I had visited Fraser Hill recently in mid-November 2013.

Our lunch stop at Kuala Kubu Bahru consisted of wantan mee with chicken curry, bowl of yong tau foo and Coca-cola. We sat under an Indian Cherry Tree to savour Cendol along Jalan Dato' Muda Jaafar. However, the cendol was just ok and really couldn't compare with the Cendol Bakar of Kuala Selangor!

Next stop was Teng Wun Bakery & Confectionery Cake shop where the fluffy muffins of KKB which I remembered reading in a blog sometime ago, were finally discovered!

There was a lovely tiled corner in the outer wall of the shop just outside its counter, with lovely pink roses motif.
Fong Lin drove her car with her friend and myself, surely and steadily up to Fraser's Hill. We started birding along the Old Telekom Loop around 4.30pm. Lo and behold, the long-tailed broadbill called and flew pass us at the entrance to the Old Telekom Loop towards this yellow lime tree.
Quite a number of resident species were sighted during our evening walk at the Old Telekom Loop. By the time we reached the Town Centre, it was around 6.45pm. It was really nice to have a view of the iconic Fraser Hill clock tower from Puncak Inn where we stayed.

We started our birdwatching at Jelai Highland Resort that early Saturday morning. Below a picture of the Silver-Eared Mesia, my all-time favourite bird species in Fraser Hill! This mesia was hopping about the bottle-brush tree. There was a bird wave that morning in Jelai. Fong Lin snapped away with her camera very professionally and has published a few beautiful pictures of the endemic birds in her FB page including that of the Chestnut-capped Laughingthrush and Streaked Spiderhunter.