wild happenings in singapore

6-12 Jul: Highlights of the week ahead

2009-07-12T23:02:00.001+08:00

For kids and the family

Sungei Buloh walk with Cicada Tree Eco Place
Sara goes carbon footprinting at the Botanic Gardens

Walks in our wild places

Nature walk at Admiralty Nature Area
Forest walk at the Botanic Gardens Rainforest Trail.
Nature walk at MacRitchie Prunus Trail.
Getting to Know MacRitchie Walk.
Mangrove walk at Sungei Buloh on Saturday and Sunday.

Talks

"The Wonders of Singapore's Mangroves Insect Fauna" by Dr Patrick Grootaert

Announcement

With effect from 10 Jun 09, the gate to Labrador shore will be permanently closed. More details on the Labrador Park: Jul 2005 blog

Registration now open

26 Jul (Sun): Chek Jawa walk with Cicada Tree Eco Place
25 Jul (Sat): Pasir Panjang Heritage Trail with the Toddycats!
18 Jul (Sat): Rainforest walk with Cicada Tree Eco Place
15 Jul (Wed) and 19 Jul (Sun): MAD lessons on insects with Cicada Tree Eco Place

Visit the wildsingapore happenings blog for a full listing of upcoming events for the next three weeks and to search for events by your area of interest.

Photo of the week is the Giant Reef Cuttlefish shared by Debby Ng. This and other amazing creatures were seen on our very own wild reefs at Pulau Hantu. Read more about it on the Hantu Blog.

Giant Reef Cuttlefish, originally uploaded by Debby Ng, Hantu Blogger.

12 Jul (Sun): Sungei Buloh walk with Cicada Tree Eco Place

2009-07-12T20:43:00.000+08:00

This wetland reserve is now a resting and feeding spot for migratory birds. But it also hosts a fantastic diversity of native fauna and flora. In the past, the area had several kampongs (villages) with the locals tending to vegetable and fruit tree plots. Many of these fruit trees and traditional herbs still survive and may be encountered along the trails. The people also constructed fish and prawn ponds in the mangroves. These are now used by the birds.

Trails: Level dirt paths and boardwalks suitable for children, the elderly, disabled or participants using wheelchairs.

Minimum 20 pax for walk to go ahead.

Advance registration & payment is required. Register with Celine Low contact@cicadatree.org.sg

Time: 9am-noon
Cost: $13 per person (adult or child), excluding park entrance fees. Park entrance fee is $1.00 for adults, 50 cents for children.
Website: http://www.cicadatree.org.sg/
Contact: Celine Low contact@cicadatree.org.sg

12 Jul (Sun): Mangrove walk at Sungei Buloh

2009-07-12T13:46:00.000+08:00

Free guided nature walk along the Mangrove boardwalk under shady mangrove trees. Spot mudskippers, crabs and other marine life, learn about our mangroves, enjoy views of the Johor straits.

Suitable for young children.

Registration is not required for small walk-in groups. But each walk is limited to 15 persons per guide and is on a first-come -first-served basis. The walks are weather permitting and may merge with other activities at the Reserve. Those coming with large groups are advised to pre-register.

More about the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve on the wildsingapore website and Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve website. This walk is conducted by the volunteer guides of NParks' Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve and is held every Sunday morning, subject to availability of guides.

Time: 9.30 am (subject to availability of guides) for walk in guests, register at the Visitor Centre.
Tour duration: One to one-and-a-half hours. Suitable for young children.
Entry charges: While the walk is free, admission fees to the Reserve apply: $1 per adult, 50cents per child/student/senior citizen.
Website: http://www.sbwr.org.sg/
Contact: info@sbwr.org.sg or call 6794 1401

11 Jul (Sat): Sara Goes Carbon Footprinting

2009-07-11T21:28:00.000+08:00

Join Sara, the Botanicosaurus, and her new friend, Rana the Frog in this tour and learn about carbon footprints and the many little but important things that all of us can do to make a difference for our home, Planet Earth! Young participants will also be introduced to some useful and multi-purpose trees!

For enquiry and registration, please contact the Education at 64719961 or nparks_sbg_edu@nparks.gov.sg . Online registration is available on www.sbg.org.sg (under "Education")

Suitable for children in K1 - P6 levels

Time: 10-11am
Venue: Jacob Ballas Children's Garden, Bukit Timah Core of the Singapore Botanic Gardens
Fee: $8.50 per child (includes $2.50 “Sara Goes Carbon Footprinting" workbook) and $6 per accompanying adult
Website: http://www.sbg.org.sg
Contact: 64719961 or nparks_sbg_edu@nparks.gov.sg

11 Jul (Sat): Nature walk at Admiralty Park Nature Area

2009-07-11T13:45:00.000+08:00

Experience the nature area filled with rich biodiversity of flora and fauna. Appreciate the beauty of the river at different water levels. Venture through both the secondary Rain-forest and the mangrove forest, and seize the opportunity to observe the various plants and animals.

This walk is held every second Saturday of the month.

Registration ends 3 days before the event. To register, please email Dorothy at dorothy_lim@nparks.gov.sg

Time: 8.30-10.30am
Venue: Admiralty Park, amphitheatre
Website: http://www.nparks.gov.sg/
Contact: Dorothy at dorothy_lim@nparks.gov.sg

11 Jul (Sat): Forest walk at the Botanic Gardens Rainforest Trail

2009-07-11T13:44:00.000+08:00

A free guided nature walk through a rainforest right in the heart of the city! Along paved trails, under the shade of giant trees, learn about our rainforests, spot forest creatures and strange plants.

Suitable for young children.

More about the Botanic Gardens Rainforest Trail on the wildsingapore website. This walk is conducted by the volunteer guides of NPark's Singapore Botanic Gardens and is held every second Saturday of the month.

A special Mandarin version of this tour is at 4pm.

Time: 9am, 10am, 11am, 4pm; Register 15 minutes before the tour at the Visitor Centre.
Tour duration: One hour.
Website: http://www.sbg.org.sg/
Contact: Visitor Services, 64717361 or NPARKS_SBG_Visitor_Services@NPARKS.GOV.SG

11 Jul (Sat): Mangrove walk at Sungei Buloh

2009-07-11T13:43:00.000+08:00

Free guided nature walk along the Mangrove boardwalk under shady mangrove trees. Spot mudskippers, crabs and other marine life, learn about our mangroves, enjoy views of the Johor straits.

Suitable for young children.

Registration is not required for small walk-in groups. But each walk is limited to 15 persons per guide and is on a first-come -first-served basis. The walks are weather permitting and may merge with other activities at the Reserve. Those coming with large groups are advised to pre-register.

More about the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve on the wildsingapore website and Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve website. This walk is conducted by the volunteer guides of NParks' Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve and is held every Saturday.

Time: 9.30am and 3.30pm for walk in guests, register at the Visitor Centre.
Tour duration: One to one-and-a-half hours. Suitable for young children.
Entry charges: While the walk is free, admission fees to the Reserve apply: $1 per adult, 50cents per child/student/senior citizen.
Website: http://www.sbwr.org.sg/
Contact: info@sbwr.org.sg or call 6794 1401

11 Jul (Sat): "Getting to know MacRitchie" walk

2009-07-11T13:42:00.000+08:00

Want to about the history and importance of MacRitchie? "Getting to Know MacRitchie" is the walk for you. Starting at the roundabout within the park, the first portion of the walk will cover the history of MacRitchie and its relationship with water. The second portion of the walk will cover how the forests around the reservoir play a very important role in maintaining the water quality�in MacRitchie�and how the various flora and fauna, within the forests, are vital to life. The walk will weave through the forest trail and end at the bandstand.

This free walk is also available in Mandarin, upon request.

Kindly dress in comfortable clothing and shoes for this walk. Do bring along water and an umbrella. In the event of bad weather, the walk will be cancelled.

Please register at least three days before the walk at 65545127 or email woon_ling_ling@nparks.gov.sg

Time: 9am
Website: http://www.nparks.gov.sg/
Contact: Call 65545127 for enquiry and/or free registration.

11 Jul (Sat): Nature walk at MacRitchie Prunus Trail

2009-07-11T13:41:00.000+08:00

Botanical wonders of MacRitchie. Free guided nature walk along boardwalks hugging the MacRitchie Reservoir. Learn about this mature secondary, spot forest and aquatic wildlife, enjoy panaromic views of waters surrounded by luxuriant forest.

Suitable for young children.

More about the MacRitchie Prunus Trail on the wildsingapore website and NParks website. This walk is conducted by the volunteer guides of NParks Central Nature Reserve and is held every second Saturday of the month.

Time: 9.30am. Meet at entrance of the trail, about 50m after the canoe kiosk on the eastern side of MacRitchie Reservoir Park.
Tour duration: About one hour.
Website: http://www.nparks.gov.sg/
Contact: Woon_Ling_Ling@nparks.gov.sg or call 6554 5127.

10 Jul (Fri): Talk on "The Wonders of Singapore's Mangroves Insect Fauna"

2009-07-10T14:43:00.002+08:00

In this talk, Dr Patrick Grootaert shares with us some of his findings from the Singapore Mangrove Insect Project (SMIP) and also the new fly species found.

The Singapore Mangrove Insect Project (SMIP) is a collaboration between NParks and NUS. Eleven mangrove sites in Singapore were studied during a one-month sampling campaign in May 2009. In the preliminary analysis, long-legged flies and dance flies were used as indicator species to assess the quality of each site. From this analysis, the original mangrove patch at Pulau Semakau showed the highest diversity and quality of species. Other sites that have good diversity are Chek Jawa Wetlands, Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, Sungei Cina and Belayar Creek. Changi Creek and Lim Chu Kang had the poorest diversity.

The insect fauna of Singapore is surprisingly rich and one of the best known in the world. During the one-month sampling, at least 10 new fly species for science were found. In this Public Seminar, Dr Grootaert will

Dr. Patrick Grootaert was born in Belgium in 1952. He graduated at Ghent University in 1973 and obtained a PhD on ultrastructure of nematodes in 1978. During his one-year sabbatical stay here in Singapore he found 150 new species for science showing that even in a small densely populated country like Singapore, treasures can be found.

All are welcome. Please RSVP LIM_Wei_Ling@nparks.gov.sg by 9 Jul (Thu) 5pm.

Light Refreshments will be provided after the seminar.

Time: 11am - 12pm
Venue: Function Hall, Botany Centre, Singapore Botanic Gardens
Contact: LIM_Wei_Ling@nparks.gov.sg