It Starts With A Leaf
"Why do these leaves stick together" I asked Son
"err... because of photosynthesis? he asnwered.
"Nope. It's a nest for kerengga or weaver ants" I told him
"The poor trees will get its fruits eaten by the ants, Mommy?" asked Son, looking worried
"On the contrary, the weaver ants actually protects the tree and its fruits. A traditional way to control insect pests is to use the weaver ants by introducing a tree to the ants. One way is to put a weaver ant's nest at a tree so that they colonise it. It's a useful insect but of course, we got to be careful being near them because while they don't have stingers, their bite is painful."
"To build a nest, it starts with a leaf. The weaver ants then form a chain along the edge of a leaf and pull the two leaves together and hold it up with thread of silk that's being oozed out by the larvae", I continued.
"Isn't that great teamwork? Adults ants and even the larvae help out in building a new nest", I finished.
I didn't have this conversation poring over a science book with my son. Rather, we went out for a walk yesterday and saw a weaver ant's nest.
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| photo credit : Suzie |
It was hazy and rainy earlier in the morning but it got much better later in the morning as we went for a walk around the core island of Putrajaya.
Son even stopped and looked (plus poked) at this too, among other things...
We blame kids for being glued to their gadgets. Well, my son loves his too. But during our 3-hour walk yesterday, he didn't ask a single time for his Nintendo DS (which I allow him to pack) until we finally stopped, rested and waited for his Daddy to finish his run. He was kept occupied with the things around him and also with questions that I tried to answer the best I could. I think I need to go back and study just to answer his questions now. Haha
How can we blame them when we ourselves seems to be unable to wrest our eyes away from our gadgets; smartphones, pads, tabs or whatever we have now?
A lady runner was run over by a truck this morning. Apparently, the driver was looking for his handphone while driving and managed to swerve to the opposite lane and hit the lady. He tried to make a dash but was caught by a group of runners. I guess to him (and a lot of us who never seem to think driving and texting+smsing+messsaging+FBing and whatever that is not focusing on the road is bad); his phone is more important than a life. Some updates here. Hope she will recover. :(
We can try and be as safe as we can but if some idiots out there still doesn't value other lives, then...
That said, be safe, stay safe everyone. Accidents can happen anywhere, anytime.
that's interesting..I would love to bring my kids out for a nature walk too.
ReplyDeleteI bet there are plenty to see in Ipoh. :)
DeleteIf yhe driver sleepy then can say la but this one driver careless...terrible
ReplyDeleteDamn irresponsible too.
DeleteTried to run away some more. :(
The ants is to protect the tree ka? I yhought to destroy the tree ...ish...science failed betul me
ReplyDeleteYes! Kerengga protects the trees and fruits from its predators. Kerengga eats small insects, you know. Not leaves or fruits. :)
Deleteso they are very important to the tree and its fruits.
Deletethey are natural pesticides. :)
DeleteOmg.....feel so itchy by looking at those ants!!! =[
ReplyDeleteTry get them to bite you! LOL
DeleteWhat's so important that the driver can't just wait until he stops to retreive his stupid phone?
ReplyDeleteDiorang ni , bila cakap bodo melantun - lantun , dia melenting.
I hope the lady runner recovers. I also hope the driver recovers from his stupidity.
Itulah... kalau ye nak cari phone, why can't he stop??? o.O
DeleteI really hope Ms Lai recovers. It's such a tragedy.
Sekarang ni, in a organized race pun ada driver boleh langgar runners. Cam kat NTV7 hari tu. What's with these driver, seriously. :(
This is one of the reasons why I refuse to own a TV. Forget about the stupid screen, go out there and experience it yourself.
ReplyDeleteOr read a book.
Computer screens are not stupid, of course, especially not while Googling or leaving intelligent comments. :D
I get very angry when people are glued to their smartphones while walking. I don't make way for them; I rugby tackle them!
I hope the runner recovers soon!
Very lekker story about the ants! Clever critters.
DeleteI really want to run over those who seems to think that looking at the screen is way more important than their life! There are plenty who stay glued to it even while crossing roads! @.@
DeleteAnts are clever and sure are hardworking.
But ants have to buck to community living. For some one who wants to be wild and free, that's rather stifling. :P
TV is not all evil though.
DeleteThere's this one reality-docu kinda show on KBS World called the Human Condition where comedians live in a house for a week and was given challenge to forgo one modern day convenience each week.
Now, Raimie worries about the amount of water used to flush because of what he watched on that show. That's pretty good, right? :)
Learn Japanese from Naruto too. Hahaha
that was a very valuable and informative lesson from the nature.. thank you for this, Uncle SK also learned a lot and was impressed that Mak Lina knows so much about the nature..
ReplyDeleteIt was something I learn as a child.
DeleteMy home was one big open area filled with trees, plant & critters too and there's a stream in front it. It would be stupid not to learn anything about nature when I was growing up.
That's a very interesting place to live in.
DeleteI grew up in a kampung style house. Right at the entrance to my small town of Raub.
Deletegood to hear that Raimie actually enjoy spending his time with the nature.. pembuli siput he was?? hahaha, at least better than being dibuli siput right?? muahahaha :D
ReplyDeleteHahaha
DeleteHe loves the semalu tree too. I think he is forever fascinated by things that react to touch. ;)
Kesiannya kalau dibuli siput right? But if you are scared of it, you kinda IS being bullied by it? No? :P
what a tragedy!! and yes, i have seen many drivers playing with their phone while driving, and that is indeed very dangerous and putting life at risk..
ReplyDeleteIndeed.
DeleteBeing stuck in a jam is no excuse to lose focus on the road too. :(
Wow, now I know why those leaves sticked together like that one, thanks to your entry, Sis? I once thought that the leaves were already like that for the weaver ants to build their nest on it... Never know the larvaes secrete silky thread too... Mama Bunny was very resourceful and wise too ;D
ReplyDeleteThat's the privileges of growing up in the kampung, unlike me, the bandar boy, only know how to play video games, eat McD, read comic books and watch TV only... Otak x berkembang sangat ;P
My prayers and hope for Ms Lai... This is really unacceptable. I hope the driver will be punished hard for his carelessness. Strip off his license for good, I hope... Which reminds me for not to text/tweet/watsapp/line/fb while driving too... Dangerous!
Kampung ke Bandar ke, kalau tak mau ambik tau about nature,tak tau jugak kan? ;-)
DeleteBut then I guess untung jadi budak kampung... Dpt main kat luar, ada gak baca comics (my fave masa kecik was Asterix & obelix), tengok Tv pun apatah lagi. Hihihi
Yes, please ignore your phone while driving. Tak mati ram whatsapp org for 30min. :-D
Saya dah besar panjang nih barula nak belajar menghargai keindahan nature, masa kecik2 dulu tahu main dgn kawan2 je, main tutup botol, kayu aiskrim, pemadam, ting-ting kat sekolah rendah, oh my childhood... =P
DeleteYup, btol kata Stupe, ON your engine, OFF your phone truss... Safer that way...
Patutnya tak payah tunggu orang suruh. Common sense is we need to focus on the road and on our safety. Not on our smartphone screen. Tapi kalau dah takde common sense, memang takleh cakap apa la kan...
DeleteGood news is Ms Lai seems to be recovering right? :)
I learnt something new today, the reason why those leaves stick together!
ReplyDeleteGlad to be sharing it with you. :-)
DeleteI really wanna laugh at this post so much!!!
ReplyDeleteFirst, I was also not aware about the ants and its nest. I had seen them many times but no one told me its nature and reasons. You make a good mama!!!
2nd laughter - You wanna go back and study more so that you could educate your son better! This happens to my wife all the time although we have no kids. Her students often asked her the silliest or dumbest questions yet she could not answer! Thanks to the smartphones that allowed her to google and pretend to be the smartest lecturer.
DeleteI have said many times that I envy and like the way you bring up your son with quality time and bonding. Most of us missed this upbringing.
DeleteBonding with family can come in many forms.
DeleteI like being outdoors so I bond with son that way.
Some bond with cooking or baking, right?
Some with playing games or watching movies. :)
Kids ask questions is such a way that they make us think too. I like that. What I don't like is when they don't think and don't reason but want the answers served to them.
What about you, Anay?
The Kerengga is indeed useful but I'm unhappy when they are around because they tend to bite me. Hahaha!
ReplyDeleteMe too!
DeleteThey are always at the trees that has the juiciest fruits too. Hahaha
I have them on my jambu tree.
DeleteI pulak. it's always on the rambutan tree. ;)
Delete