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Discovering Fun Facts: Molly Cheeks’ Wild Rainforest Surprise
What else do the rainforest animals get up to when Molly is not around? Let’s take a closer look into the wild, wacky rainforest and learn more!
Rainforests and Pitcher Toilets!
Did you know that our Malaysian rainforests are among the oldest in the world? We are also home to one of the richest selection of flora, with thousands of unique plants and trees. An interesting one that you may have spotted in the book is the pitcher plant! The pitcher plant, like the rafflesia, is a carnivorous plant — it digests small insects with a liquid called phytotelmata that is stored in the pitcher plant. You may have noticed that the tree shrews in Leafy Apartment use the plants as a toilet, this is because tree shrews have a symbiotic relationship with the pitcher plant where they consume the sweet nectar on the rim of the pitcher whilst defecating, and the pitcher absorbs the mineral nutrition like nitrogen and phosphorus.
Talia the Tiger or the Malayan Tiger
The Malayan Tiger was once found throughout Southeast Asia, however presently, it’s largest population is in Malaysia. Compared to other subspecies of tigers, the Malayan tiger has the smallest ears to reduce heat loss while it hunts during the daytime!
Howie Hornbill or the Rhinoceros Hornbill
There are over sixty different types of hornbill birds, categorised by their different beaks and casques, and our rainforests are home to ten unique species! Howie is a Rhinoceros hornbill, the Iban people of Sarawak believe that on Gawai, their harvest festival, the hornbill is responsible for carrying human messages to the upper-spirit realm.
Hank the Proboscis Monkey
The Proboscis monkey is recognised by it’s large nose that amplifies noise and signifies health and dominance when attracting mates! They are also amazing swimmers and have evolved to have webbed feet and hands to outrun crocodiles.
Wildlife Extras!
Tarsiers have enormous eyes that can grow larger than their brain! This requires them to have a unique skull and balancing their heavy head allows them to wait silently for prey. Not only are their eyes super sharp, their hearing is also fantastic! This makes them very sensitive to bright light and loud noises. The tarsier gets their name from having elongated tarsus bones in their hind legs.
In comparison to other birds, Great Eared Nightjars prefer to live and nest on the forest floor amongst leaf litter and tree stumps. This may be due to their feather colouring that camouflages well on the forest floor! Because of the philosopher Aristotle, a strange myth follows the nightjar. The Greeks believed that nightjars drank goat’s milk right from their udders! This is not true and the great eared nightjar’s diet mostly consists of insects.
Speaking of Greeks, the Atlas moth borrows it’s name from the Greek god ‘Atlas’, known for his size as the Atlas moth is one of the biggest winged insect in the world! As adults, they are unstable fliers as their wings are much larger than their body. They only live for a few days due to their unformed mouthparts that restricts them from eating, thus causing them to run on the energy conserved during their larval stage. They are most abundantly seen between November and January, so if you manage to spot one in the rainforest, you’re extremely lucky!
