Not Just Odonata: The Penang Botanical Gardens

Sunday 21 March 2010

The Penang Botanical Gardens

I was in Penang recently and as I had a few short hours to spare in the morning, I went to the Botanical Gardens.

Horror of horrors!

The approach to the entrance and parking area have become quite unrecognizable. The trademark quaint little coffee shop selling coconut water at one corner of the parking area is now gone! In fact, the whole area just outside the gate to the Gardens have been razed down and some concrete structures are being built instead. There are now two tall arches, still under construction, that stick out like sore thumbs. In my opinion, concrete monstrosities like these should not be built in gardens and parks in the first place! But maybe it's just me.

I was also there on the wrong day of the week! It was the weekend and the place was teeming with people - Penangites on their weekly morning walk for a bit of an exercise, joggers on some fitness routines, families on outings and tourists taking photos of macaques.

If I had thought I could sit somewhere for a few hours of tranquility, I was totally wrong. I had certainly forgotten how busy it can be at this place. And the reality of the crazy crowds of Penang rushed at me.

I made my way to the Lily Pond, which is one of the quieter spots in the Gardens. There were fewer people there and I could breathe easier but there weren't any dragonflies! Later, when the sun was higher up in the sky and lit up the pond, two red dragonflies did visit. Both were of the species Orthetrum testaceum.

On my way out, I took a different route by the stream and came across a few other species - a male hovering near an ovipositing female of the Orthetrum chrysis, a female Neurothemis fluctuans, Potamarcha congener, Prodasineura laidlawii, Pseudagrion pruinosum and another damselfly, which I have yet to identify.

Orthetrum testaceum