While travelling in Surabya, Indonesia, I acquired a fold-out book of about 20 leaves. I never knew what the book depicted, so I placed it on the shelf, hoping to find out. After showing it to many people over the years who said they did not know, the puzzle concluded yesterday when historian John Tan […]
“Mona Lisa” of China Read More »
Salam The Mouse Deer- Second Evening Old Abdullah picking his way homewards through the deep forest one evening at sundown by following the narrow winding Wild Beast tracks that criss-cross it in every direction but which to him were as familiar as our town streets to ourselves, had picked up a baby honey bear which
A Mouse Deer Story Read More »
Barclaya All Creatures Great and Small # 23 Gas and Oil A report from Petronas, the oil company for Malaysia, indicates that production of 5.0 thousands of gallons of oil per day is possible from the Brownfield Sarawak area. https://doi.org/10.2523/IPTC-22448-EA White Shrimp A disease affecting white shrimp being grown in Sarawak has concluded it attacks
All Creatures Great and Small # 23 Read More »
Historian John Tan, of Kuching and Australia, wrote the following essay about early Chinese immigration. He translated and used information from the Chinese language publication Hainan Temple 天后宫 published by Dr Lin YT and his own sources. The Han Chinese The Han Chinese migrated to the south of China from the central part over about
The Chinese Come to Sarawak Read More »
Flycatcher Plumage Resolved The plumage of the female and sub-adult Yellow-rumped Flycatcher, Narcissus Flycatcher, Green-backed Flycatcher (F. elisae) and Ryukyu Flycatcher (F. owstoni) has been resolved. Three species winter in Borneo while there is no information about the Ryukyu Flycatcher. BirdingASIA 36 (2021): 22–34 Leptospirosis This disease is on the increase in Sarawak. The current rapid test for leptospirosis did
All Creature Great and Small # 22 Read More »
Brunei and Sarawak This essay was very convoluted and confusing. I have taken out the facts, numbered them and arranged them so they flow in chronological order. The story begins in the 1790s. 1. Sultan Mohammed Tajuddin abdicates the Brunei throne. 2. His son, Jemal ul Alam, takes the throne. 3. Jemul un Alam dies
Gold in Sarawak The first gold was discovered in the Montrado and Sambas areas of Kalimatan. The Chinese were brought in to work the goldfields in ~1760. Panning of gold in river deposits of Bau began in about ~1828, and this type of activity continued until 1898. The Malays noted a small amount of gold
New Book Ian Douglas Water and the Rain Forest in Malaysia Borneo Hydrological Research at the Danum Valley Research Center Switzerland: Springer Nature Ecological Studies,362 p. 2022 e-book Euros 129; hardcover Euros 159.00 The book is a collection of scientific papers dealing with water at the Danum Valley research station. Book review later. Non-flying mammals This paper reviews
All Creatures Great and Small #21 Read More »
Hornbills Hornbills are fruit-eating birds with eight species found in Sarawak. They include the Helmeted Hornbird,(critically endangered) Rhinocerous Hornbird, Black Hornbill, White-Crowned Hornbill, Wrinkled Hornbill, (threatened) the Oriental Pied Hornbill, the Bushy Crested Hornbill and Wreathed Hornbill.(least concern species). The Malay peninsula supports ten Hornbills. The “horn” on the bird is called a casque. Its
Notes from Benedict Sandin Sources of Iban Traditional History published by the Sarawak Museum Journal 1994 Sumatra Suriani and I have maintained the Iban came from Sumatra. On page 140 n.2 “The question of where the Iban originated is largely unanswerable. On linguistic grounds, it has been frequently argued, that, as Malayic speaking people, the
Iban origins, floods and rules for sex, war and kitchens Read More »
