Chained to Our Roots (22nd-23rd June 2013): an appeal to protect Singapore's own rainforest

Teresa Teo-Guttensohn, a Singaporean eco-artist and Dr. Vilma D'Rozario, Celine Low, and Andrew Tay, together with their group of nature-loving friends, will be part of an eco-performance where they will be chained to a tree for 24 hours, to appeal for the Cross Island Mass Rapid Transit Line to be re-routed such that it will not run through our precious rainforest at the Central Catchment Nature Reserve.

When: 3 pm Saturday, 22nd June to 3 pm Sunday, 23rd June 2013
Where: Speakers' Corner, Hong Lim Park

The Cross-Island Line: why does it have to go through a Nature Reserve?

(Photo by coolinsights)

Over the years, Singapore has lost more than 99.5% of its original forest cover. Whatever little that remains is now concentrated in a few key areas, and preserves much of our surviving native rainforest biodiversity. The Central Nature Reserves, encompassing the forests of Bukit Timah and those surrounding the reservoirs in the Central Catchment Area, form the final refuge of many plant and animal species that have since vanished elsewhere on the island. As Nature Reserves, they receive the highest level of protection that any green space in Singapore can have.

And yet, as many of us in the nature community found out earlier this year, even being gazetted as a Nature Reserve does not grant immunity from urbanisation and development.

Hazy Friday

The haze is back! Oh dear. This was the view that greeted us this morning when we'd reached the top of the Jejawi Tower at Chek Jawa. Much of Pulau Tekong is obscured by the thick haze, and we can't even see the hills of Johor beyond.

DENSO Youth for Earth Action

For the last 3 days, I have been involved with DENSO Youth for Earth Action (DYEA), an international programme to support youths in Japan and ASEAN who are passionate about doing something for the environment in their home countries.

Year of the Dragon: Singaporean Dragons

(Photo by sayhitoant)

As mentioned in yesterday's post, Singapore is home to a number of agamid lizards (F. Agamidae). This post will discuss the several species of agamids that are found here.

Flight of Dragons

(Photo by Javier_M.)

Over the last couple of years, I've seen a particular image make its way around the Internet, popping up every now and then creating somewhat of a stir every time it resurfaces.

Seven Links Blog Project: A Milestone Year

We're almost a week into the new year, and while I'm not really the sort who likes to reflect on the past year and mull over my successes and failures, Crystal Riley from Crystal and Bryan in Singapore has tagged me to take part in the Seven Links Blog Project, where I repost links to seven of my posts from different categories. Although I was tagged last year, I only found out last night, and I guess it's still not too late for me to look back on 2011.

Ribbons: Terrestrial Nemerteans of Singapore

People with a fascination for marine life would probably have heard of nemerteans, commonly known as ribbon worms.


Black and white ribbon worm (Baseodiscus delineatus), Terumbu Pempang Darat;


Red ribbon worm, Kusu Island;
(Photos by Ria)

Most ribbon worms live in marine environments, with a small proportion adapted to freshwater habitats. Just earlier today, I learnt that a small handful of nemertean species have actually managed to colonise the land, and that they can be found in Singapore!

Macaques, Conflict and Keyboard Warriors

(Photo by John 3000)

About a week ago, someone named Paul Chan wrote in to the Straits Times Forum, in response to reports of several long-tailed macaques attacking visitors to the Forest Walk along the Southern Ridges.


Long-tailed macaque (Macaca fascicularis);
(Photo by gamebit)
(The photos in this post feature several macaques that have been encountered by visitors to various parts of the Southern Ridges over the past few years)

Cull monkeys if over-population is the problem (Mirror)

I WAS shocked to read that a search was on for a monkey believed to have attacked three people over the past three weeks ("Attacks spark hunt for monkey"; last Friday).

I was also disappointed with the response of National Parks Board (NParks) officials that the monkey-feeding problem might have reached a tipping point and that sometimes, animals just go crazy. Did NParks do an extensive survey or study to arrive at such conclusions?

Despite many reports of rogue monkeys attacking people and foraging for food at bus stops and households, NParks prefers to pin the blame on human feeding or provocation.

The attack on Hort Park visitor Tang Mae Lynn was apparently due to the monkey pack invading her personal space at the Forest Walk; she carried no food or drink. The problem could be due to monkey over-population or lack of monitoring by NParks officials.

I disagree with NParks about not going after the monkeys because the creatures belong there as much as humans. Does that mean we should silently accept monkey attacks as normal?

It is the job of NParks to ensure monkeys behave where they co-exist with us. NParks has a duty to patrol and monitor the growth of the animal population within the forest boundaries. The animals should be culled if they encroach on human living space and disturb our peace. They should also be punished if they misbehave.

NParks could install closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras along the Forest Walk and areas prone to monkey attacks to check on the culprits while initiating programmes to control such disturbances so that both animals and people can share the limited space on our island in peace.

Paul Chan

They're durian lovers too: Squirrels and monkeys go for king of fruits at Bt Batok

Climbing Bukit Timah

Despite my passion and interest in exploring our wild places, I have to say that I have neglected the forests of the Central Nature Reserves. Including today's trip, I have visited Bukit Timah Nature Reserve only a miserable 5 times in my entire life.

Today wasn't supposed to be a relaxing hike up and down the hill; this was meant to be a training session in preparation for my trip to climb Mount Kinabalu in December. Still, I did stop to take photos whenever possible.


I started up the Main Road, then took the Rock Path, which was a path I had never used before.


There's something about walking down narrow forest trails that never fails to remind me of the time I spent in the Maliau Basin in 2007. Especially when the trail soon forces you to grab onto tree trunks, or even get down on all fours as you scramble over obstacles. One big difference though is the absence of bloodthirsty leeches.


Despite it being a weekend, there were not many people using these trails, possibly because of the somewhat rainy weather. At least it didn't rain while I was there, and it did make for a relatively pleasant and cooling hike through the forest.


It's always nice to stop for a break at one of these small forest streams.


After scaling the Rock Path, I went up the Summit Path, and finally reached the highest point in Singapore.


The reason behind such a blatant showcase of stupidity still eludes me.

I continued down the Rengas Path.


Signs of treefall are everywhere, but this is probably a very recent case. While trees die and fall all the time, it does raise a lot of questions about the continued health of our rainforests.


Are our trees dying at an especially high rate? And if so, what could be the reason? Accelerated erosion from trampling? Changes in the microclimate of the forest due to opening up of trails, leading to increase in penetration of sunlight, decrease in humidity, loss of moisture and stability of the soil?


And even if trees are dying at apparently normal rates comparable to more pristine habitats, one wonders about recruitment of seedlings. Are enough seedlings germinating and surviving to replace their fallen predecessors? How has the loss of many of our large frugivores affected the dispersal of seeds? The tangled and intricate tapestry that links a multitude of species is especially apparent in rainforest ecosystems.


The Dairy Farm Loop branches off the Rengas Path. This was another trail I had yet to visit.


Even within these forests, it is not difficult to discover signs of past human activity.


There are small clearings with dense patches of ferns and other secondary vegetation more typical of forest edges. The young fronds always make for interesting photo subjects.


I continued down Seraya Loop.


There are regular reminders to stick to the trail. Still, one wonders if there are people brave or stupid enough to ignore the warning signs, and get themselves killed or seriously injured.


I cross another stream. This one seems more heavily silted up and clogged with forest debris though.


Reaching Jungle Fall Path was somewhat of a relief, as I was quite exhausted by now, and was ready to head back down towards the Visitor Centre.


There is something very disappointing when you realise that the waterfall here flows out of a drain.


Upon returning to the Main Road, it was a brisk walk downhill back to the Visitor Centre.


As I headed out of the nature reserve and returned to civilisation, I could not help but notice the construction works going on right at the edge of the forest. The impacts of urban development, as well as the inevitable human-animal conflict that results, raise a lot of questions about the long-term survival of this last substantial patch of primary rainforest.

Hopefully, the planned ecological corridor that intends to reconnect Bukit Timah to the Central Catchment Area will help revitalise these forests, giving them a new lease of life as reunited fragments of a larger whole.

Bukit Timah is priceless, not just in terms of its biological treasures, but also in its iconic status as part of our natural heritage. While its continued existence as a Nature Reserve appears secure for now, the forests are in a state of upheaval, slowly changing in the face of degradation and loss of the vital links that once sustained certain elements of this habitat. Hopefully, the forest will weather these changes, and continue to flourish. It may not be the same forest that once captivated Wallace, but it is still a very important forest in our collective psyche, and any further loss and degradation would be an unspeakable tragedy for all.

Missing

Singapore's last remnants of rainforest harbour few remaining hazards for careless hikers; having lost virtually all of our large mammals, wannabe explorers, blind and deaf to everything around them, have no fear of being ambushed and eaten by jungle denizens. By our hand, the forests have been tamed, sanitised, and made almost entirely safe for everyone to explore and enjoy. What remains is but a shadow of a forest primeval, a shell that at first glance still seems wild and untamed, but which actually disguises a biome thrown off kilter.



If only the forest could share the stories from its past, of the rumbling growls of tigers, of the clash of antlers as stags fought, of the thundering of hooves as wild boar charged through the undergrowth. In a forest devoid of its megafauna, and subsequently thrown into a state of disarray, do the trees clamour for the return of the tiger?



The tiger is long gone, and will never return. And yet, if you just close your eyes, allow your mind to wander, and listen, you may just catch the slightest ghost of a roar of a long-dead big cat. And for a moment, you forget everything else, and you feel the rush of adrenaline coursing through your veins, as dulled senses are heightened once again, awakening memories once thought lost and buried.

This pitcher plant captures insects for their nutrients!

A STOMPer was trekking through Bukit Timah Nature Reserve when he saw all these rare and exotic plants with leaves so huge that they left him amazed.

Trekker told STOMP via email today (Aug 12):

"These pictures were taken near the forest trails of the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve.

"This pitcher plant grows near sandy soil where there is little water.

"While plants get their energy from sunlight, air and water, they still need nitrogen and phosphorus to grow.

"In some places they are so rare that it is hard for plants to grow.

"Some plants have resorted to getting nitrogen from living insects.

"With slippery pitchers they catch insects like ants and mosquitoes and digest them to get precious nutrients.

"The pitcher plant can grow in extreme habitats where there is a lack of nutrients.

"This leaf from a giant tree is almost 1m long and if you look at the pen you can gauge the size of the leaf.

"This leaf is big and if you look at the $1 coin you can assess the size of the leaf.

"The forest abounds rare plants like the African spiral flag (Costus lucanusianus) which blooms flowers the whole year round.

"This plant grows in dark and damp places and its brightly-coloured flowers attract bees and butterflies."

Related posts: Meet the carnivorous pitcher plant (28th June 2009)

Squirrels jump from tree to tree at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve

STOMPer Jungle Man would like to share these pictures he took of the interesting wildlife at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve with fellow STOMPers.

In an email to STOMP today (Jul 6), the STOMPer says:

"These pictures were taken at the Rifle Range Trail of the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve.

"The squirrel is a small furry animal that jumps from tree to tree. Last Sunday I saw this squirrel clambering up a rambutan tree and a durian tree.

"It plucked a rambutan and then sat down on a branch with its hind paws grappling the branch.

"With the front paws holding the fruit, it bites into the skin and eats the juicy pulp effortlessly.

"In another picture, you’ll see a half-eaten durian lying on the forest floor. This provided a good meal for the ants.

"Some ripened rambutans dropped onto the forest floor after a shower of rain.

"In another picture is an insect with a black body. Its crimson wings have two saw-tooth antennae.

"The last picture shows a white and brown bracket fungus growing well on dead tree trunks."

The squirrel in the photo is the plantain squirrel (Callosciurus notatus), which is the species most likely to be encountered here in Singapore. It's widespread and common, even in urban housing estates. The stripes on the flanks and the reddish belly distinguish it from all the other squirrel species in Singapore.


Plantain squirrel, Singapore Botanic Gardens;
(Photo by mjmyap)

Another squirrel species that is quite commonly encountered is the little slender squirrel (Sundasciurus tenuis), around half the size of the plantain squirrel. This species is restricted in its distribution, being found largely in the forested areas of the Central Nature Reserves and Singapore Botanic Gardens.


Slender squirrel, Upper Peirce;
(Photo by hiker1974)

A relative of the plantain squirrel, the variable squirrel (Callosciurus finlaysoni) is not a native of Singapore, being found in south Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and eastern Myanmar. True to its common name, there is a great deal of geographic variation within this single species; depending on the subspecies and the location, the colours can range from entirely black to reddish-brown to grey to white. Since the early 1990s, a population belonging to the subspecies bocourti from central Thailand has become established in Singapore, largely in the Woodleigh area. It's not known what possible ecological impacts might occur as a result, especially if the squirrel manages to spread to more parts of Singapore.


Variable squirrel, Bidadari Cemetery;
(Photo by hiker1974)

Singapore's other squirrel species are much more elusive, and rarely if ever spotted. The shrew-faced ground squirrel (Rhinosciurus laticaudatus) is restricted to the forests of the Central Nature Reserves, as are the red-cheeked flying squirrel (Hylopetes spadiceus) and Horsfield's flying squirrel (Iomys horsfieldii). The red-cheeked flying squirrel, known only from Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, was first recorded locally only in 1996.

Unfortunately, the three-striped ground squirrel (Lariscus insignis) is thought to be extinct in Singapore, while the fate of our 2 giants of the squirrel world looks bleak.

The story of the cream-coloured giant squirrel (Ratufa affinis) is especially tragic, considering that the species was first described by Sir Stamford Raffles, and was once quite common throughout Singapore. In fact, it was often caught as a pet or for food up to the late 1960s. Deforestation seems to have been the main cause of the squirrel's decline; it appears that it was eventually restricted to the forests of Bukit Timah and the Central Catchment Area. With a frightfully small population (estimates of the total population in Singapore range from a mere 2 to 10 individuals), it's clear that even if the squirrel hasn't already gone extinct in Singapore (it was last sighted in 1995), it's just about nearly so.

Less is known about the red giant flying squirrel (Petaurista petaurista) in Singapore. This species was last recorded in 1986, so it's possibly already extinct. However, its nocturnal nature and shy habits mean that there is a chance that it still survives in our forests.


Red giant flying squirrel, Langkawi;
(Photo by kwokwai76)

Not to be mistaken for a squirrel is the common treeshrew (Tupaia glis), a mammal that's actually much more closely related to primates than rodents.


Common treeshrew, Singapore Botanic Gardens;
(Photo by astro08)

Similarly, the Malayan colugo (Galeopterus variegatus), another distant primate relative, is not to be mistaken for a flying squirrel.


Malayan colugo, Central Catchment Area;
(Photo by Lip Kee)

In a completely unrelated vein, the insect pictured above is a net-winged beetle. Net-winged beetles belong to the family Lycidae, and many species feed on nectar as adults. Most species are brightly coloured in hues of red or orange, signaling that they are toxic and distasteful. They're related to fireflies, among many other beetle families.

Here's a picture of the long-nosed lycid beetle (Porrostoma rhipidius), an Australian species, for comparison.


Long-nosed lycid beetle, Victoria;
(Photo by Wimm/WL)