Frankie’s Encyclopaedia of the Weird and Wonderful found at the MLC

Dinner Face Attacker:  This energetic critter (a.k.a. "cicada") enjoys leaping at your face when you are sitting at a candle lit table. It’s sheer force and scary buzzing sound upon impact can be quite nerve-wracking when trying to enjoy a well-earned meal.


Queen of the Jungle: This photo was snapped at night with a camera trap, where a sensor signals movement and sets off a camera device. The MLC has identified a larger than expected number of jaguars in the reserve, which is most likely due to habitat loss in surrounding and unprotected areas

Party (and sleep) Crashers: They might look cute and tiny in the day, but at night these little monsters (a.k.a. bats) like to make themselves noticed. This is achieved through urinating all over the staff and volunteers in the common area (as some have made a home in a ceiling nook) as well as attacking prey loudly in the wee hours.




Furry-fanged Tarantula: Found lurking around outside my accommodation at the MLC, this large hairy-scary spider was gracious enough to have its photo taken by five volunteers. I envisaged it would leap at my face, but it didn’t. It just quietly crawled away back into the forest after the photo shoot was over.


Clown Critter: It’s colourful and crawly – it’s the Tetrio Sphinx Caterpillar. This bright and meaty looking insect is rather large and likes to hang around its caterpillar family and friends in the rainforest.


Bug-alien Hybrid: Also known as a katydid, this otherworldly insect comes in various shapes and colours, including fluorescent green. It also goes through metamorphosis (and I witnessed this process whilst going on a night hike)

Jurassic Park Beetle: Spotting this clumsy and slow-moving rhinoceros beetle really made me realise that I was staying in the rainforest, as it was so large and primitive looking. I am not a huge fan of insects, but this strange creature really was a thing of beauty.

Orapendula Nest

Alarm Clock Bird: Identified by their unique bird call (similar to water dropping) and odd hanging nests, the Orapendula helps the sleepy volunteers at the MLC rise every morning.