2012: A decade of biodiversity and focus on marine biodiversity

As International Year of the Forest 2011 winds down, what will be the focus in 2012? While no specific biodiversity aspect will be highlighted in 2012 as a "UN International Year of", 2011-2020 has been designated UN Decade of Biodiversity!

The Decade of Biodiversity have five strategic goals and 20 ambitious yet achievable targets.

MORE biodiversity happenings for kids for the holidays!

Next Saturday, lots of fun activities for kids this school holidays! Join the Raffles Museum Toddycats and discover Singapore's natural heritage!

The exhibition will showcase animal specimens, skulls, skeletons and even a REAL DINOSAUR BONE. We will also have fun activities and exciting biodiversity talks lined up for the day

Biodiversity for kids during the December holidays!

Exciting nature activities for kids are lined up for the coming school holidays! Lots of fun ways to discover and enjoy Singapore's biodiversity!

Here's highlights of some of the many exciting nature events for kids during the December holidays.

Your otter sightings wanted!

Yes! We have wild otters! A brand new facebook page, OtterWatch has been set up to gather your otter sightings! This is part of Meryl Theng's project to study Singapore's otters.

Where have otters been sighted in Singapore?

Free events at Parks Festival celebrates our biodiversity!

Lots of nature activities in celebration of the inaugural Parks Festival from 17 to 25 Sep 2011!

Here's highlights of some activities which feature our biodiversity! Most are free, and many are suitable for kids and families!

Meet the people working for biodiversity in Singapore!

20 speakers, 50 posters, all major ecosystems in Singapore! Only once every four years! A great event for those who want to learn more and do more for Singapore's biodiversity from those who are working on the issues!
Registration now open!

Biodiversity for kids during the September holidays!

Exciting nature activities for kids are lined up for the coming school holidays! Lots of fun ways to discover and enjoy Singapore's biodiversity!

Here's highlights of some of the many exciting nature events for kids during the September holidays.

29 Aug (Mon): Talk on "Understanding the dynamics of the pangolin trade"

Pangolins are found in Singapore! They are also found elsewhere in the region and sadly, the target of wildlife trade.

Pangolin photographed in Singapore by Norman Lim. From Wildlife Singapore.

Find out more about pangolins, and efforts to understand and control the trade in pangolins in the region.

20 Aug (Sat): A Public Forum on Forests

Learn about climate change and the ecological impacts on Singapore, and about conservation of our forests in this public forum.

Full pdf on Sivasothi's blog.

To celebrate the International Year of the Forest, 2011, the Singapore Institute of Biology (SIBiol) and Science Centre Singapore jointly present this public forum.

BeMUSE features the creatures that call Singapore home

The latest issue of BeMUSE Jul-Sep 11 features a story about Singapore's biodiversity!

In "We're not alone" Marcus Ng shares about the creatures that call Singapore home.

Have a Crabby National Day!

Singapore freshwater crab;
(Photo by David Maitland, from A Guide to Freshwater Life in Singapore)

It's National Day, and I thought that it would be appropriate to highlight some very special fellow Singaporeans.

Where it comes to food, chilli crab has got to be one of our favourite local dishes. And given that it was created here, it certainly is a serious contender for Singapore's national dish.


(Photo by ladyironchef)

The crabs that we most commonly consume in Singapore are the various species of mud crabs (Scylla spp.), with flower crabs (Portunus pelagicus) coming in a distant second. Both kinds of crab are regularly encountered on many of our shores, especially in shallow waters with muddy or sandy seabeds.


Mud crab, Pulau Pawai;


Flower crab, Pulau Sekudu;
(Photos by Ria Tan)

However, did you know that we have some very special crabs? They're way too small to be eaten, but that doesn't mean that they don't deserve attention from fellow Singaporeans.

Singapore's cool colugos: why they glide

Studying Singapore's colugos, researchers including our very own Norman Lim have discovered why these animals glide.

Although called flying lemurs, these creatures are not lemurs and they don't fly!

My Green Space: hornbills, helicopters and more!

Lots of exciting developments and interesting stories in the latest issue of My Green Space Issue 10 Vol 3/2011.

In the lead story Hornbill Happenings: Surprises From Nature learn more about what is happening with our Oriental pied hornbills!

Singapore Biodiversity Encyclopedia is launched

The much anticipated Encyclopedia has been launched! Finally, a great reference for everyone interested in learning and doing more for Singapore's biodiversity.

What does this book reveal about our biodiversity?

23-24 Jul (Sat-Sun): More biodiversity talks this weekend

Learn more about Pulau Ubin's wildlife, find out more about our mangroves, and sea shores. Also about our dragonflies, gingers, trees and more.

These exciting talks are part of NPark's “Forests, People, Environment” Exhibition which runs until 24 Jul at the Singapore Botanic Gardens. Don't miss them!

Harry Potter and the Owls of Singapore

Today marks a significant milestone in a much-loved book and film series; Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, the concluding instalment of the movies, is being released in cinemas throughout Singapore today. Ever since the first of the books was released in 1997 (and the first movie in 2001), audiences everywhere have been captivated by the adventures of Harry Potter and his friends in Hogwarts, as well as his epic struggle against his nemesis, the Dark Lord Voldemort.



Given that the story revolves around a magical world where wizards and witches routinely create potions and cast spells on one another, a great deal of the so-called 'wildlife' are based on mythical creatures. Fantastic wildlife such as acromantulas, Hungarian horntails, hippogriffs, phoenixes, and basilisks are unfortunately not known to us muggles (people incapable of wielding magic). However, there are several species that are very much real creatures, the owls.

Biodiversity in Singapore: NParks photo and video competitions

Share your favourite nature photo in NParks' “City in a Garden” Photography Competition!

Attractive prizes, worth more than $29,000, to be won. Winning entries may be exhibited at various venues and at selected NParks events. At the same time, there is also a video competition focusing on our parks.

15-17 Jul (Fri-Sun): More biodiversity talks this weekend!

From our wild dolphins to wildlife in our nature reserves, seagrass meadows to heritage trees, birds to orchids. Also a chance to catch the repeat of talks on Singapore's marine biodiversity, Leaf monkeys and more.

The bulk of these exciting talks are part of NPark's “Forests, People, Environment” Exhibition which runs until 24 Jul at the Singapore Botanic Gardens. But some of these talks are held separately. Don't miss them!

9-10 Jul (Sat & Sun): Biodiversity talks at the Botanic Gardens

More biodiversity talks this weekend! Learn about our birds and how to photograph them. Find out about our orchids and efforts to conserve them. Hear about our hornbills, dragonflies and heritage trees. Learn about the effort to survey our marine biodiversity, and about the secret shores of Singapore.

These exciting talks are part of NPark's “Forests, People, Environment” Exhibition which runs until 24 Jul at the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

2-3 Jul (Sat & Sun): Biodiversity talks at the Botanic Gardens

This weekend, enjoy a wide range of talks ranging from our mangroves to wildlife in our forests, our heritage trees to leaf monkeys. And hear from the authors of the two recent publications on nature in Singapore: "Trees of the Istana" and "Wetlands in a City"!

These exciting talks are part of NPark's “Forests, People, Environment” Exhibition which runs until 24 Jul at the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

King-sized creatures of Singapore and more!

The King cobra is one of the animals featured among the latest articles in Nature in Singapore!

An awesome snake that eats other snakes! What do we know about our King cobras? Also articles about our Giant clams, cicada mass emergence and cicada 'rain' and more.

24-25 Jun (Fri-Sat): Raffles Museum Open House - for kids!

Come for guided gallery and behind-the-scene tours, work with scientists and experience the life of a curator.
Many exciting activities such as clay-modelling, face painting, mask making, photo hunt and button making. Attractive prizes to be won!

21 Jun (Tue): "The Sea Anemone Lecture" by Dr Daphne Fautin

Dr Daphne Fautin, world authority on sea anemones, is here to conduct a Sea Anemone Workshop (15-21 Jun) in conjunction with the Comprehensive Marine Biodiversity Survey. She will be giving a public talk at the end of the Workshop.

Dr Daphne on a field trip at Terumbu Semakau to find anemones.

Come for her talk to find out what was discovered at the Workhop! Dr Daphne will speak on the "Hidden treasures of biodiversity: flowers of the marine world (sea anemones)"

5 Jun is World Environment Day!

In Singapore, Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve celebrates World Environment Day on 4 Jun (Sat) with lots of activities!
Free walks! Also, fascinating talks by Dr Chua Ee Kiam and N. Sivasothi. And lots more activities for everyone from ages 5 to 55. Including a chance to nurture your very own mangrove sapling!

No longer extinct: a swamp forest palm! And more!

Lots of new articles in Nature in Singapore with fascinating finds and insights.

A palm of the swamp forest, Salacca affinis was considered extinct in Singapore. Adrian Loo's discovery of this palm  in the Nee Soon Swamp Forest "establishes its status from “extinct” in Singapore to “critically endangered”. He discusses the extreme vulnerability of this palm species "in relation to its habitat and only known locality, the freshwater swamp forest in Nee Soon, which is the last of its kind in Singapore." Read more in: Loo, A. H. B., 2011. Rediscovery in Singapore of Salacca affinis Griff. (Arecaceae). Nature in Singapore, 4: 123–126. [PDF, 300 KB]. And also in Adrian Loo's blog.

Biodiversity for kids during the June holidays!

Exciting nature activities for kids are lined up for the coming school holidays! Lots of fun ways to discover and enjoy Singapore's biodiversity!

Here's highlights of some of the many exciting nature events for kids during the June holidays.

22 May (Sun) is World Biodiversity Day

More properly called International Day for Biological Diversity, there's some special events planned for this weekend. Among the highlights: Kids’ Musang Watch! on 22 May (Sun).
In celebration of International Day of Biological Diversity, come watch the wild with Cicada Tree Eco Place! Palm Civets are mammals that live in Singapore—in our forests as well as in our midst! A few families of civets (called Musang in Malay) live wild and free in Siglap! Isn’t that neat? Find out where they live, what they eat, why they choose Siglap as their constituency! For kids 5 to 12 years old, and their families. The event is free, and registration is required.

14 May (Sat) is World Migratory Bird Day

With the theme “Land Use Changes from a Bird’s-Eye View”, this year's World Migratory Bird Day highlights humankind's dramatic impact on the global environment.

World Migratory Bird Day highlights the need to protect migratory birds and their habitats. It is celebrated world wide on the second weekend each May since 2006.

1,000 fans of the Celebrating Singapore's Biodiversity facebook page!

1,000 people have 'liked' the Celebrating Singapore's Biodiversity facebook page! The page features stories and photos of ordinary people who share about Singapore's awesome biodiversity! From otters to birds, tiny spiders to giant trees, remote reefs to forests in the city! 24/7 365 days a year!

Your feedback and help is needed! So that more people can learn and care about Singapore's biodiversity!

Hundreds of new Singapore biodiversity discoveries, a new website and more!

About 500 species of plants and animals new to Singapore, and more than 100 species new to science have been discovered over the last decade! Among them, the Green Tree Snail (Amphidromus atricallosus temasek). Described by Mr Tan Siong Kiat, a curator at the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research. According to him, these snails are very well-camouflaged in the tree tops. Trying to spot one is like looking for a needle in a haystack!
This is highlighted in Singapore’s Amazing Biodiversity Discoveries, in the latest My Green Space newsletter (Issue 9 Vol 2/2011) by NParks which has many other interesting articles about our biodiversity.

22 Apr: Earth Day in Singapore for kids!

Lots of biodiversity activities specially for kids at the Singapore Botanic Gardens! And MORE activities to celebrate Earth Day in Singapore.

Image from The Stem blog

What is Earth Day?
There's often much confusion about Earth Day.

16 Apr (Sat): Talk on "Success in growing native orchids in parks and gardens of Singapore"

Did you know that of the 226 species of native orchids recorded in Singapore, 178 of these species are considered to be extinct? Only five of them are common!

Native orchids have been attached to trees in many of our parks.

Come for this talk to learn about the recent orchid conservation programme in our parks.

Mangroves: the "most carbon rich forests in the tropics"

Mangroves store more carbon that almost any other forest on Earth! Let's celebrate mangroves together with other forests, in this International Year of the Forest 2011!

Mangrove forest at Kranji Nature Trail

A recent study found that mangroves store up to FOUR times more carbon per acre than most other tropical forests around the world. How do mangroves do this?

19 Apr (Tue): Second sea turtle forum - How are the released sea turtles doing?

In August 2010, several captive bred hawksbill turtles were released at Big Sisters Island.
This month, a follow-up forum is being conducted to share how these sea turtles are doing. All are welcome to attend!

Hurray for hornbills!

Find out more about hornbills in Singapore and beyond in the latest The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 2011 Supplement 24!
What is the Singapore Hornbill Project and what has it achieved?

Celebrating Dugongs in 2011!

2011 is Pacific Year of the Dugong!


What are dugongs? Does Singapore have any dugongs? What can I do for dugongs in Singapore?

Raffles Bulletin of Zoology: New animals named after Singapore!

A land snail and a mangrove slug have been named after Singapore! The latest issue of the Raffles Bulletin of Zoology (RBZ 59(1): 1–115. 28 February 2011) features these and other fascinating papers.

The Singapore population of these beautiful green land snails have been described as Amphidromus atricallosus temasek, a new subspecies!

New snake record for Singapore: Dendrelaphis haasi

This rare bronzeback snake was spotted at the boardwalk at Lower Peirce Reservoir and Upper Seletar Reservoir Park! You never know what you might find if your really look!

Kelvin K. P. Lim1 and Cheong Loong Fah share more about this amazing find on Nature in Singapore.

Biodiversity for kids during the March holidays!

Exciting nature activities for kids are lined up for the coming school holidays! Lots of fun ways to learn more about Singapore's biodiversity!
Here's highlights of some of the many nature events for kids during the December holidays.

Forest Biodiversity: a new booklet

Check out this new booklet (pdf) with lots of information about forests worldwide!
A great resource for those wanting to learn more and do more for our forests. The booklet is issued by the Convention on Biological Diversity in preparation for 22 May International Day for Biological Diversity.

A child speaks for the forests

A child speaks for the children: about forests, monkeys and mosquitoes.

Why is there so little action among adults? And what can be done? In a hard-hitting speech at the UN, 13-year old Felix speaks up.

Our Forests in February!

International Year of the Forest was officially launched earlier this month with the unveiling of the "State of the World's Forests" report by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization.

What is the state of forests worldwide? And how can we learn more about Singapore's own forests?

Celebrating Singapore's Wetlands!

2 Feb is World Wetlands Day 2011! Singapore has wonderful wetlands to celebrate! Mangroves, freshwater swamps and streams and more!

Our wetlands are home to amazing creatures including the adorable otter!

In Singapore, World Wetlands Day is celebrated at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve with special events on 12 Feb including a mangrove exhibition, talks on mangroves, and guided walks!

Study on endangered raptors in Singapore

Yong Ding Li and Tan Kok Hui are doing a study on our endangered raptors focusing on the Grey-headed Fish-Eagle and Changeable Hawk Eagle. They need your help to share sightings and information on these birds!

Grey-headed Fish-Eagle

Changeable Hawk Eagle

Here's an email from  Ding Li about their project.

Singapore has wild dolphins, porpoises and dugongs!

YES! And your help is needed to look out for and report sightings of them. How to identify them? Check out these awesome ID charts by the Singapore Wild Marine Mammal Survey (SWiMMS) project!

Singapore wild marine mammal survey(marine mammal identification chart)

With their kind permission, these resources are now on slideshare for your download.

You can also learn more about marine mammals at N. Sivasothi's talk on 27 Jan (Thu) with Green Drinks. More information on this earlier post.

Monitors of Singapore: Who's the Rarest of Them All?

(Photo taken from Varanus.nl)

Singapore has 3 species of monitor lizard, and 2 of them, the Malayan water monitor (Varanus salvator) and clouded monitor (Varanus bengalensis nebulosus), are commonly encountered.

Previously, I wrote about the Malayan water monitor, corrected some misconceptions and discussed some threats faced by monitors, and also shared information about the clouded monitor. In this last post of the series, we take a look at our 3rd monitor lizard, a rare and elusive species that was once thought to be extinct in Singapore.

Conservation textbook available for free download

Conservation Biology for All, highly regarded conservation textbook, is now available online for free download.
Edited by Navjot S. Sodhi of the National University of Singapore and Paul R. Ehrlich of Stanford University this book has been posted on mongabay.com, an environmental science and conservation news site, as a free download.

More on Monitors

Many of us are familiar with the Malayan water monitor (Varanus salvator), a large lizard commonly found near water, from urban drains and canals to reservoirs, as well as in coastal areas such as beaches and mangroves. This species was the focus of 2 earlier posts, one discussing its biology, and another post about how this common species is so often misidentified or feared, as well as some of the threats it faces. However, this is not the only species of monitor lizard found in Singapore, and another relatively common species will be covered in this post.