"Tree Huggers" is a somewhat derogatory term for those who are nature's staunchest advocates.
Communing with nature has a lot to recommend it, although physically wrapping ones arms around a tree might be problematic and especially so in the tropics where all sorts of venomous and unsavoury animals lurk.
In Singapore shaking a branch could prove to be an explosive event as the discovery of a discarded object in the forks of a tree recently goes to prove.
Xinhua news agency has reported that "Several construction workers were resting near a tree close to the Outram subway station near the downtown area on Thursday when they were drawn to the sight of a tree stump with a heart shape".
The 'heart shape' in question turned out to be a World War II hand grenade which was taken away and safely disposed of by the Singapore Armed Forces, Explosive Ordnance Disposal team.
But most things found in or near trees in Singapore are far more benign.
Khew SK's wonderful butterfly blog site records that four new species of these tropical delights have been found in "residential apartments, office buildings, shopping malls and multi-story car parks".
There has also been a marked increase in the large Tropical Swallowtail moths (Lyssa zampa - see picture above) in recent days; a sight not greeted with much enthusiasm by the superstitious who regard them as a portent of unfortunate events to follow.
The butterflies have the North-East monsoon to thank for their assisted passage from Malaysia to the Singapore. And, unlike old hand grenades, they add rare beauty and pleasure to the trees and plants they populate.
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