Most of us might not observe a lot of wildlife while walking in our neighbourhood park.
For nature photographer, Jayaprakash Bojan, daily visits to Pasir Ris Park became a routine in the past month to capture photos of kingfishers or monitor lizards.
On Tuesday morning (Sep. 22) at around 6.45am, the photographer came across a different scene, as he spotted a reticulated python at Pasir Ris Park.
Here's his breathtaking shot:
Photo by Jayaprakash Bojan
Speaking to Mothership, he said that the python was trying to sneak up on a heron during low tide when he took this shot.
In that moment captured by Jayaprakash, the python was resting before its hunt.
If you are wondering, pythons are excellent swimmers and here you have one:
Photo by Jayaprakash Bojan
But the heron still caught sight of its predator. Uh oh.
Photo by Jayaprakash Bojan
After its unsuccessful attempt to catch the heron, the python later slithered back into the sea towards Pulau Ubin in disappointment.
Sad.
Photo taken by Nat geo photographer
It's no surprise that the shot reminded you of a shot in National Geographic as Jayaprakash is an award-winning photographer.
Notably, he was awarded National Geographic Photographer of the Year in 2017.
A nature and wildlife photographer by profession, Jayaprakash shared with Mothership that he has travelled across the world to capture photos of animals and the environment to educate people about conservation.
He shared that one of his favourite photography subjects are orangutans.
While the photographer usually travels to Africa, Japan or various countries across South East Asia (before the pandemic), he recently started exploring Pasir Ris Park as part of a daily morning routine in the past one month.
Pasir Ris Park is a "treasure trove"
Having travelled the world, he commented that even in a small island with limited amount of green space, he considers Singapore to have a lot of wildlife and that it is a testament to how clean our ecosystems are.
Calling Pasir Ris Park "a treasure trove", he mentioned that he has slowly gotten to learn more about the green space during his daily visits.
The photographer shared a tip for wildlife photography, which is to return to the same place again and again over time to learn more about it.
Sharing an analogy, he highlighted that it is like meeting someone again and again, which would allow you to find out more about them.
Here are some of his other shots from Pasir Ris Park, which can also be found on his Instagram profile:
Photo by Jayaprakash Bojan
Photo by Jayaprakash Bojan
Photo by Jayaprakash Bojan
Photo by Jayaprakash Bojan
Photo by Jayaprakash Bojan
Photo by Jayaprakash Bojan
Photo by Jayaprakash Bojan
Photo by Jayaprakash Bojan
Snakes are more scared of us then we are of them
After posting his photo of the python online, he came across a comment on his post of a parent who mentioned that they won't bring their kids through that area of Pasir Ris Park where the python was spotted.
Snakes are "one of the most misunderstood creatures on earth", Jayaprakash said.
While they are often perceived as a threat by people like the parent mentioned above, snakes are shy by nature and they are in fact more scared of us then we are of them, he adds.
It is safe to bring kids to nature areas and to learn to respect the animals' space, and not get too close to wild animals.
Jayaprakash brings his young child to Pasir Ris Park too and here's a photo of the father and son taking a stroll on the mangrove boardwalk:
Photo from Jayaprakash Bojan
More about reticulated pythons in Singapore
Reticulated pythons are not uncommon in Singapore.
Being nocturnal, they are mainly active at night, which means that they usually rest in the day.
The native species usually resides in nature areas. Occasionally, they are spotted in drains or in urban areas that are infested with rats.
Reticulated pythons are not venomous, and like most wild animals, they only attack when they feel threatened.
If you come across snakes in the nature area, keep a safe distance, slowly move away and leave them alone.
Acres and NParks also provide helpful advisories about snakes which you can read more here and here.
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Top image by Jayaprakash Bojan