An
introduction to the wildlife of Singapore, by way of the
Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research and its curators and
the National Parks Board of Singapore. We will be given a
brief history and overview of the natural areas in the
country, and the main concerns affecting their
preservation. Prof.
Peter Ng, an eminent biologist and director of the museum,
speaks candidly about his concerns and wishes for future
conservation in Singapore. We
are also introduced to N. Sivasothi (Siva), research officer
at the museum, and a mangrove ecology expert. His
introduction of the mangrove forests in Singapore will
explore the ingenious adaptations of plants and animals to
the tough living conditions of the mangroves. We
will also set the stage for some of the most opportunistic
residents of the mangroves &endash; the mudskippers, the
fiddler crabs and the monitor lizards. One
of the most enigmatic residents of the mangroves are the
aquatic snakes. They are there, but so elusive that they are
often overlooked. We join a band of snake-hunters from the
other side of the world. Daryl Karns is a professor
representing the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago.
And he has a passion for snakes. We’ll
speak to him about the amazing resilience and adaptability
of Singapore’s water snakes, and what their continued
success says about the real state of Singapore’s
mangrove forests. We’ll
also meet the opportunistic marshland birds &endash; all
intriguing characters in their own right, and each uniquely
adapted to their various roles in the mangrove’s
natural systems. The
rich food source here also attracts a host of shorebirds,
including the Herons, of which there are a few species in
Singapore. A Heron colony is a noisy affair at the best of
times, with males courting females and aggressively
defending them from rivals. Herons are also very determined
hunters, using stealth and camouflage to catch their
prey. We
will take a closer look at some of Singapore’s
intriguing bird species, and a share a few moments of their
life in the mangroves. Rocky
Shores and Sandflats are the destination today. Despite
their close proximity to coastal settlements and urban
developments, these oases of life on the borders of the land
are in fact alive with activity. It
is here that the huge family of marine invertebrates hold
their own. A microcosm of animals, in infinite colours and
shapes fight for their territories and feeding rights along
the shore, as they take advantage of the debris and
transitory rock pools that dot the shore’s
landscape. We
may also get a few tantalising glimpses from the shores, of
the legendary mermaid, the highly endangered Dugong, and the
majestic White-bellied Sea Eagle, the largest bird of prey
resident in Singapore. In
Episode 3 we mention one extraordinary habitat in particular
&endash; Chek Jawa; a coastal sandflat lying tucked away on
the east coast of Pulau Ubin. We trace the wealth of life
found here, and the events that lead to its
eventual... Into
the secret swamplands of Singapore. These waterways are
thick with vegetation, and teeming with aquatic life. In
fact because of their water conditions and relative
inaccessibility, the swamplands are the last stronghold for
Singapore’s endemic fish species &endash; which have
suffered considerably at the hands of the ornamental fish
industry and competition from introduced fish from abroad.
In the tea-stained waters of the swamps, they team in
colourful shoals &endash; resembling on far smaller scale, a
tributary of the great Amazon River. Native
turtles and terrapins join the sparkling shoals, together
with countless numbers of unusual crabs and
crustaceans. We
discuss the continued threats to this fragile ecosystem and
explore the habitat by night &endash; when the quiet swamp
forests come to life with the calls and cries of countless
nocturnal animals. Among
the enormous variety of life here, we may also catch a
glimpse of one of Singapore’s rarest birds of prey, the
Barred Eagle Owl, hovering tantalisingly above the forest
canopy. Singapore
was once covered almost entirely by rainforest, a habitat
that is well known for its wealth of plant and animal
species. And the same can still be said about the
country’s remaining rainforest reserves. We
explore one of the last areas of primary rainforest in
Singapore, home to one of Singapore’s more unusual
mammal residents &endash; the flying lemur &endash; a
primitive primate, and distant ancestor to modern
apes. In
fact the rainforest is home to a number of primates. Along
with the Flying Lemur can be found the incredibly shy and
retiring Slow Loris, a large-eyed climber of the twilight,
and in stark contrast, the Long-tailed, or Crab-eating
Macaque &endash; one of the most successful and
opportunistic apes in the whole of South East Asia.
We’ll
follow a troop as they go by their daily business and
discover some of the traits that have enabled the macaques
to out-compete their neighbours, and adapt to life in new
urban surroundings &endash; with less than favourable
results. We’ll
also discover the smallest deer in the world, the diminutive
Mouse Deer, growing as large as a hare! The
wealth of forest life in Singapore will also be illustrated
by the amazing variety of insects, continuing their
struggles and successes in a microscopic secret world of
their own. Urban
areas are not the biodiversity desert that they at first may
seem. There are several species that have adapted and
colonised Singapore’s cities and towns, and have made
them their own. Bats
represent the nightlife of the cities, roosting under
fly-overs and in urban trees by day, and taking to the wing
by dusk, feeding on the bounty of wild and cultivated fruits
growing through the city. Another winged hunter, the
Brahminy Kite, hunts in large numbers over the city, gliding
on the thermals, on the look-out for potential
prey. Closer
to the ground, another bird species has taken real advantage
of the rich food source available in cities, thanks to our
less than efficient garbage disposal. The three species of
egret in Singapore have thrived so well in the cities, that
they have even set up their homes nearby, giving up their
native mangroves in favour of easier pickings. We
will also investigate the mystery of the vanished Leopard
Cat &endash; Singapore’s last truly wild feline,
destined to go the same way as the leopard and the tiger.
Although thought long extinct on Singapore’s mainland,
we discover tantalising evidence that they may still be
around. The
presence of all these animals in the city is an indicator of
how nature is making the most of this new concrete habitat.
It is natural selection in action &endash; whilst some
species, so specialised that they can only survive in forest
environments, die out in the cities &endash; the more
adaptable animals are carving out a whole new niche for
themselves. Which
begs the question, what will Singapore’s natural
history be like in the future, if the rate of development
continues as fast as it is doing today?
EPISODE
1
A SECRET
HISTORY
EPISODE
2
SECRETS
BY THE SEA
EPISODE
3
ROCKY
SHORES AND SANDFLATS
EPISODE
4
ON
SECRET SANDS
EPISODE
5
A
FOREST OF SECRETS
EPISODE
6
THE
SECRET CITY