Pulau Hantu - A celebration of marine life

JOIN OUR EDUCATIONAL DIVES!

2007-08-26T04:16:00.000+08:00

The next Hantu Blog dive is scheduled for Sunday, 26 August, 2007. For reservations and enquiries, email us. RSVP with the following:
1. Your name,
2. IC/Passport number,
3. Your email address,
4. Your handphone number, and
5. Equipment required* including weights

*Please list size of BC and wetsuit in S,M,L and shoe size for fins

Join the The Hantu Bloggers Yahoo Group to read the trip itinerary, and to be informed of future dives.

Bumper harvest for anemone hunters

2007-08-05T12:47:00.000+08:00

Research mission uncovers many new species in S'pore waters
By Shobana Kesava Straits Times 4 Aug 07

SOME gaze into the marine firmament to look for starfish. For Dr Daphne Fautin, sea anemones give her the thrills.

As she peers down a microscope, Dr Fautin, 61, exclaims with excitement: Yet another discovery has been made here in Singapore.

The sea anemone expert has not seen anything quite like it: an anemone with bumps all the way down its throat. Just hours earlier, she and a handful of local naturalists had found one with strawberry spots running down its base.

There are about 1,000 known species of anemone, the smallest and largest of which are found in Singapore.

The tiniest one known to science, just a millimetre across, was uncovered on blades of seagrass here.

The largest, over a metre in height and diameter, makes up a complete ecosystem, supporting clownfish and shrimp.

Dr Fautin's discoveries bring the total number of sea anemone species identified here to 40.

The discoveries are potentially significant because of the dual nature of sea anemones.

Dr Fautin said they produce the most complex cell secretions. Stinging cells called nematocysts lie on these carnivores' tentacles, paralysing prey and pulling the trapped creature towards their mouths.

'Past studies have found this secretion fights cancer in mice,' Dr Fautin said. New finds could lead to new drug developments.

At the same time, these animals are so simple in structure that developmental biologists can use them to understand how cells divide to become heads, limbs or tails.

While no species of anemone is believed to be endangered, Dr Fautin said that it is possible for some to disappear before they can be identified.

The hantuensis species, once spotted on Pulau Hantu, has eluded the researchers in these last few weeks despite their efforts.

Dr Fautin warns against thinking that the world won't miss what it never knew it had.

'Fishermen have seen crabs and fish go missing. Only later, we found out it was because the mangroves, the habitat of their young, had been destroyed.

'Right now, we don't know what part of the ecosystem will also be affected down the road, because anemones have been removed too,' Dr Fautin said.

Siva's del.icio.us link on Dr Daphne's trip

More photos of sea anemones of Singapore's shores on wildsingapore flickr

Blog Log, 29 July 2007

2007-07-31T12:55:00.001+08:00

The cold and wet weather throughout the week made me a bit nervous about going for a dive. The last we hope for is having to cancel a dive because of bad and dangerous weather. But we should be so lucky, as moderate to good weather held up on Sunday, and thank goodness! Because Keppel Marina is undergoing renovations through to next year, we departed from Pasir Panjang Ferry Terminal.

Though we saw generally fewer nudibranches than were were used to on the reef, there were some super finds that made the trip all worth our while. Silver moonies and schools of damsels played the top of the reef slope, and in the deep I encountered my first Ceratosoma Trilobatum Nudibranch. Thanks to Chay Hoon for spotting it for me! Thanks also to her for taking all the lovely pictures featured in this Blog Log as I so cleverly brought my camera less the memory card this trip!

We did manage to spot some Blue Dragon nudibranches such as the one above, which was really tiny! Other tiny creatures that we manage to spot were cuttlefish! Chay Hoon and I spotted 3 altogether, and in 3 different sizes too! One was the size of your pinky nail, the 2nd the size of date, and the last one was about the size of a clenched fist.

Another beautiful nudibranch we ran into was this Chromodoris Lineolata. Chay Hoon and her amazing memory, blurted the its Latin name the moment we surfaced from the dive! I was flabberghasted. These critters feed on sponges and are found throughout the tropical Indo-West Pacific, growing up to 30cm!

Take a closer look at this photo of the Icon Seastar, and you'll notice quite unusual. There's a tiny mollusc called Thyca crystallina right in the middle, on top of the seastar. It's a parasitic sea snail that lives and feeds usually on the underside of seastars, most commonly found in shallow reef-top locations.

Zoanthids are commonly sought after in the aquarium trade. In an aquarium, zoanthids are a demanding species of coral and require great effort to maintain. On the reef, zoanthids are sought after as prey by Hawksbill turtles.

Acoel Flatworms are often mistaken for nudibranches. Some species of acoel tend to be small predators of copepods, other small flatworms. They are not parasitic, but can reportedly damage corals by shading. Similar to corals, some species of acoel incorporate zooxanthellae in their bodies. Given enough food and enough light, they multiplies asexually. Normally, however, the worms disappear on their own accord after a few months, presumably after having exhausted some necessary nutrient. Mandarin fish purportedly feed on acoel flatworms.

A mushroom coral recruit amongst the algae, with its tentacles outreached.

A juvenile Harlequin Sweetlips frolicks amongst Goniopora coral.

Found worldwide in tropical and sup-tropical seas, primarily in sandy or muddy bottoms, tube anemones are another species that are highly sought after in the aquarium trade. Tube anemones are characteristically slender smooth cones topped with two sets of dissimilar tentacles. The outer fringing tentacles are particularly well armed with stinging cells. The shorter (less than two inch) inner labial or oral tentacles assist in food gathering and manipulation.

A large marine flatworm, and possibly one of the most commonly encountered species on our reefs. Pseudobiceros sp.

Tomato clown anemonefish are usually found together with bubbletip anemones, as I was told by Chay Hoon. These fish feed on zooplankton and algage amongst other things. They have also been observed to take care of the anemone they are living in by feeding it! As they say: There ain't so such thing as a free lunch!

A tube worm with its feeding tentacles outstretched. That summed up the end of our day. Other critters we saw but didn't manage to photograph include: juvenile Tiera batfish, Six-banded angelfish, Emperor grouper, Eight-banded butterflyfish, Long-beaked butterflyfish, Paradise whiptail, Dotted Sweetlips.

For more photos of Hantu's marine life, and a host of other beautiful living creatures in Singapore's shores and waters, check out Chay Hoon's Flickr site and be BLOWN AWAY!

Blooming Anemones!

2007-07-21T00:45:00.000+08:00

A research team comprising Dr. Daphne Fautin from the Natural History Museum of Kansas University, Dr. Tan Swee Hee of the RMBR, NUS undergrads and nature enthusiasts made a trip to Hantu on Friday morning with the sole purpose of discovering the many species of anemones that thrive along the islands reefs.

Learn which anemones are special to Singapore and why Pulau Hantu is such an important spot for studying them at the ever exciting Budak Blog!

Singapore's biodiversity may provide potential cures for diseases

2007-07-21T00:37:00.000+08:00

Channel NewsAsia 19 Jul 07

SINGAPORE: You may think that Singapore lacks biodiversity, but the latest collaboration between National Parks Board and an international pharmaceutical company may just prove you wrong.

Drug discovery company MerLion Pharmaceuticals and National Parks Board have inked an agreement to tap into Singapore's diverse plants, animals and micro-organisms.

The company will collect samples from here to support drug discovery that's based on natural products.

Singapore is one of many stops the company collects samples from.

The move will boost MerLion's library, which now contains more than 100,000 micro-organisms. Royalties from any successfully produced drug will also come back to Singapore. – Full

Love island

2007-07-04T13:49:00.000+08:00

Though just 40 minutes from the mainland, Pulau Hantu is proving to be quite the idyllic island getaway for lovers.. that is if you're a shrimp.

In your private and gorgeous anemone, anything can happen! Swing by the Budak Blog for a peek into the secret and naughty life of a little shrimp in the sea.

Wildfilms exploration at Hantu

2007-07-02T07:35:00.000+08:00

The Wildfilms crew visited Hantu islands intertidal over the weekend and uncovered a remarkable find of Mushroom Corals amongst other things.

How many kinds of underwater fungi can you find at Hantu? Bedazzled with the answer at the Wildfilms Blog.

Blog Log! June 17

2007-06-18T02:19:00.000+08:00

A nice coral head

Last Sunday wasn't too good a day for being outdoors. As you all might know, we had torrential rains almost all of last week, which probably accounted for the disappointing or rather, challenging visibility conditions at the island.

A phyllidia sea slug

To add to that, we thought that as we moved out of the marina, that the weather might clear up as we headed out to sea, but for some reason the clouds over Telok Blangah looked far brighter than they were looking Southwards! So we braced ourselves for a cool dive in warmer waters, because the strong winds that swept across the sea was absolutely chilling!

The day's first flabellina

We managed to pull into our first dive site with few problems and one of our divers clocked a dive time of 60 minutes as she drifted along the fringing reefs and spotting a Juvenile Sweetlips along the way!

A colony of sponges

Usually after our 1st dive, we'd anchor up at the 2nd dive site as we sit through out surface interval and chow down our lunch. But today, strong winds made that regular task very challenging. So we took refuge by docking at the Big Island jetty, and took a walk on the island, checking out its lagoon and mangrove. Despite the gloomy weather, the island still burst with tranquil bird songs.

Some sponges take on wacky shapes

Though the weather had worsened, the 2nd dive proved to me far more encouraging!

A seemingly innocuous-looking hydriod

Tons of fish took to schooling near the surface during the storm, and the wonderful sea whips and corals had all their tentacles out to take advantage of the increasing current.

Gloomy skies, rain, wind, and waves

ReefXplore guide and Hantu Blog volunteer Marcel, managed to turn out 2 seahorses and an eel during the second dive.

Trees swayed in the wind, as our boat did on the surface!

It's been awhile since we dived at Hantu in the midst of a storm. It was refreshing albeit more challenging, as sometimes it necessary to be reminded that nature doesn't always comply to our needs or wants, and that sometimes a change, even if for the worse, is good. It was all part of the experience of being outdoors - the choppy sea definately looked impressive and the rain made the day a whole lot cooler.

The jetty in the storm

The rest of the pix are for your viewing pleasure! As with most low vis times, it a good opportunity to look out for interesting coral instead of the usual hunt for queer fish!

An unusually-shaped neptune's cup (barrel sponge)
Whips favour sites with strong currents
A young sea fan
More whips reaching out into the current
A huge sea slug! Compare it to the size of the coral-encrusted glass bottle its resting upon!
A young crinoid (feather star) seeks cover in a crevice
Tube worms
A young soft coral colony
Various corals growing together
A red swimmer crab scavenges on a tusk fish
A closer look
Flabellina
The Tan and White cowry is often found in association with red encrusting sponges.
Red and Blue algae
Whiptail
Whiptail
Coral
Coral
Seafan

Animal release

2007-06-07T02:33:00.000+08:00

White Manta Diving, a local dive operator will be conducting an "Adopt-a-fish" program over the weekend in areas that include the Johor Marine Park and the Anambas archipelago.

For an adoption fee of between $18-$90, tourists can release a frogfish, a pair of seahorses or a pair of mandarinfish into reefs close to the dive sites at which they operate.

According to the operator, the fishes in question have either been "donated by marine aquarists" or "liberated from aquarium shops". It is not certain what their origin is, apart from the fact that they are from the "Indo-Pacific region".

As a tourist/diver, here are 7 simple questions you should ask before participating in such an activity:

1. What is the objective of such a venture? e.g. Research experiment, marketing gimmick, welfare objective (i.e. setting wild animals free), event promotion (e.g. Earth Day, Environment Day, World Animal Day, Vesak Day etc.)

2. How sustainable and appropriate is the activity with regards to the objective? Can the adopted animals be monitored and with what methods and frequency? Are the methods credible? Is there a resident scientist involved? What are the impacts of releasing non-native species into new reefs? Who are the people that will conduct the follow up surveys?

3. What is the origin of the animals and what method was used to collect them? 95% of all marine ornamental fish are derived from the wild. Where these methods sustainable and socially and environmentally responsible?

4. What is the source of the animals? Which aquarium/s were they from? Are they environmentally and socially responsible companies? Have they traded in endangered species? Why are animals that could be sold for profit being released into the wild?

5. What is the agenda of the organisers and the donors? e.g. Profit making? Conservation? Pioneering study? Education?

6. How are the funds being used and generated? Are the uses of the funds publicly known/transparent? e.g. Educational projects, Donated to an NGO or marine research fund, Awareness campaigns, Profit

7. What is your objective in participating in such an activity? Is this a feel-good experience? Are you in support of the organisers objectives? For a chance to see these rare animals up close? Are you just doing this because its part of your holiday package?

The Hantu Blog urges all divers and marine tourists to be responsible and educated about the choices they make. If we seek pleasure from this amazing marine environment, it is crucial that our choices play a part in ensuring its sustainability for our future enjoyment and that of others.

Further reading:
Global Invasive Species Database
IUCN Invasive Species Specialist Group
Invasive Species Weblog
Invasive Species on the Conservation Science Institute

Banded pipefish and stalky swimmers

2007-06-06T17:26:00.000+08:00

Samson Tan joined the Hantu Blog for his first dive into local waters! He has guided and attended several reef walks with the Raffles Museum Toddycats and the Blue Water Volunteers, but taking the plunge gave him a new and unexpected perspective of underwater life in Singapore! Above is one of the many great spots and observations he recorded at Hantu with us on Sunday. Swing by his Manta Blog for more great pix!

Ambiguous goby

2007-06-05T12:06:00.000+08:00

The "goby?" photographed in last weekend's Blog Log on May 27th has been identified as Amblygobius decussatus. Zeehan Jaafar from the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, explains: "We have not seen this species although historically known, but not in the museum specimens, except once individual from Jeff Low's photo 8 months ago."

Star studded Sentosa

2007-06-04T00:02:00.000+08:00

The Wildfilms crew made a visit to Sentosa's shores which are due for reclamation. Read about the dilemmas of raising awareness of our shores and view some of the amazing wildlife that can be spotted, such as mooncrabs (above) and Nemos, on the wildfilms blog.

Strange slugs and sweetlips

2007-06-03T17:18:00.000+08:00

Ceratosama were amongst some of the critters I missed at last Sunday's dive. For everything else small, elusive, and totally invisible check out Hui Bing's site.

Blog Log May 27

2007-05-31T01:36:00.000+08:00

Despite the recent spade of torrential rains, the skies cleared up for us last Sunday. We set out on our bum boat to Hantu Island. We were informed that morning that boat prices will increase in July, which might affect the cost of our dives when July comes, so please be alert to the possibility of revised pricing. We began the day with a commonly spotted Phyllidia sea slug. This was a rather small individual and had a lovely pair of rhinophores which it retracted when it sensed that I was getting close.

Copper banded Butterflyfish are one of the most conspicuous fishes on our reef. They are also great for photography as they seem rather comfortably with cameras and flashes as long as you approach cautiously. I like to compare them with the Black-naped Orioles that we find on the mainland - beautiful and highly visible.

Bubble coral

This juvenile Flabellina was photographed creeping along the edges of a small barrel sponge. Looking rather pain and simple, not even very colourful like other sea slugs, the Flabellia is actually a solar powered creature. Also known as the Blue Dragon, it swallows microscopic plants called zooxanthellae whilst feeding on hydriods. Within the nudibranch, the plants use the sun's energy to produce sugars, passing on a considerable portion to the nudibranch for its own use. This nudibranch can also inflict a sting by using the hydriods untriggered stinging cells in its body.

There were loads of filefish (aka. leatherjackets) out this weekend. Alot of them were quite busy feeding so weren't too bothered by all the photos we were taking. While we usually see small ones about 5-6cm in length, most of Sunday's sightings seemed almost palm-sized! Some species of filefish and grow up to a meter in length.

Pretty sea fans - these can be quite a challenge to photograph during low visibility days, so I took clever advantage of the opportunity!

There were many photo-taking opportunities for everyone! Just as well, there were alot of cameras on the reef that day!

A cuttlefish makes a run for it after its cover was blown!

More coral whips in the deep...

A teeny-tiny nudibranch on a mess of algae. It was only a few millimeters long!

As large a size as they were, the Six banded Angelfish seemed less excited to meet us than we were to see them...

What a pleasant treat! A juvenile batfish! It wasn't too fond of being photographed and often turned its back to the cameras or swam into holes and crevices to evade us.

Employing extremely good camouflage, this Tigertail seahorse would never have been spotted if not for Hui Bing's unparalleled keen sense of sight and patience!

Rabbitfish were much sought after on Sunday as one of the Hantu Blog's dive guides, Marco Perrig from Switzerland, has been encouraging everyone to take as many pictures of Rabbitfish as they can as part of his postgraduate project. If you have pix of Rabbitfish and would like to contribute to his research efforts, please email us!

A gorgeous school of silver moonies - They are always magical to watch, silently circling the shallow waters.

One of the 3 Six banded Angelfish cruising by again...

Icon seastar

The soft and elongated polyps of the Goniopora coral can make the colony appear about 4-5 times larger! Pretty to look at but nasty to touch, they have a mean sting that may take a few weeks to recover from. I speak with experience!

Pseudoceros flatworm

Platygyra is a boulder or massive coral that can be identified by its merged and elongated, wavy walls.

A goby fish?

HUGE and very conspicuous barrel sponges (aka. Naptunes cup) surely give the reef a burst of colour!

A little wrasse

Summing up the day's diving just before ascending, this brightly coloured Hypselodoris nudibranch popped into my view and I had to stop my ascent just to photograph it! It feeds on algae and is fond of shallow rubble bottoms... just what Hantu has!

All of us saw more than what we could've asked for during this day's dive at Hantu. Continue to swing in during the week to see what other treasures were sighted in Hantu by our divers and reef guides!

Summing up Sentosa

2007-05-23T23:12:00.000+08:00

Wildfilms blogger writes... "And the saddest thing about this is that this section of the beach is doomed for reconstruction - carparks and whatnots. All these pretty critters will dissapear and be replaced with clean, spartan concrete."
"[T]he underwater world, purported to showcase the marine world to the tourists, has all of 2 or 3 coral exhibits. And right outside their doorstep is a whole wonderland of corals!"
Visit the Wildfilms Blog for the full story.

Slugs, sharks and stripey fish!

2007-05-23T20:42:00.001+08:00

Blog diver Geraldine Lee dived with us in March and shares these exquisite photographs with us!

Though she claimed they weren't "professionally shot", I think she managed to capture the essence and excitement of the dive, and another perspective that was missed by other divers who preferred to focus on the macro life. I certainly missed out on the bamboo shark and the golden travelly!

Frill fin gobies can be a challenge to photograph because they are good at making quick getaways. Here, Geraldine manages to get close enough to capture the colourful dorsal fin of an otherwise subdued-coloured fish.

Not only did Geraldine manage to get some nice wide shots, she even managed this cool closeup of a blue dragon nudibranch. Aren't they spectacular?!

These red swimmer crabs and sometimes get pretty aggressive. Despite their threatening demeanour, they are shy creatures that are anxious to evade contact with curious divers!

Thanks to Geraldine and her dive buddies, this bamboo reef shark was relieved of its predicament. Bubu fish traps are indiscriminate, fishes caught can end up in the ornamental or food fish trade.

A bullocki nudibranch sniffs the current for some direction..

Tracking the movements of golden travellies. It looks like they were swimming around Geraldine! Something the curious fish sometimes like to do!

A great close up of a Seagrass filefish!

If you joined us on one of our dives and would like to share your photos on the blog or like us to put up a link to your photo gallery, please email us! We'd love to hear from you!

Black tipped reef shark!

2007-05-22T02:40:00.000+08:00

See the brilliant photograph of a Black tipped reef shark, shot at Semakau on the nature spies blog.

International Day for Biological Diversity

2007-05-18T23:19:00.000+08:00

Wildsingapore marks upcoming International Day for Biological Diversity, coming up on 22 May (Tuesday) with photos of marine life on our Red List.

Videos of dolphin's sighted off St. John's Islands, 7th Apr 2007

2007-05-09T00:56:00.000+08:00

Tan Sijie has posted two videos up at YouTube that he took of dolphin's off St. John's Island on 7th April 2007.

Dolphins are occasionally sighted along Singapore's coast. To see the video, swing onto the Habitatnews site.

Environmental report for disposal of dredged material at designated containment site east of Pulau Semakau

2007-05-09T00:46:00.000+08:00

The Environmental report for disposal of dredged material at designated containment site east of Pulau Semakau is now available for viewing for 4 weeks from 02 May 2007.

"The Public Utilities Board plans to dredge sediment material from Sungei Punggol and Sungei Serangoon. The dredged material will be placed in the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore's designated containment site east of Pulau Semakau. Studies have been carried out to determine the environmental impact of this activity.

The environmental report is available, for public viewing by appointment, at the Environment Building, 40 Scotts Road, Singapore 228231 for 4 weeks with effect from 2nd May 2007.

To view the said report, please contact Mr Sim Hock Lai at 67313820 or via email at sim_hock_lai @ pub.gov.sg.

Anyone who wishes to inspect the said report after 29th May 2007 can contact Mr Sim Hock Lai to make arrangements to view it."

- First published in the Government Gazette, Electronic Edition, on 2nd May 2007 at 5.00 pm.

For a graphic depicting the location of the site, please refer to Habitatnews.

"Hantu at it's Best!"

2007-04-30T22:55:00.000+08:00

That's what Hantu Blog volunteer Marcel dan Herder from the Netherlands texted me on my mobile phone after surfacing from the 2nd dive at Hantu last Sunday. He was so excited from his dive as he had to tell me as soon as the dive was over that he'd seen a huge blue cod, which we also call groupers.

Down with a cold, I missed out on Sunday's dive but it seems it was one of the best days at Hantu since! Apparently 6m vis, which was very welcome for all. Even regular divers Chay Hoon and Wai were thrilled at the findings from Sundays dive, and they are out in local waters ALOT! So I get to experience the excitement vicariously though the wonderful and insightful Blogs of 2 very enthusiatic divers...

Apart from the common animals such as swimmer crabs and sea slugs and flat worms, the divers also spotted and photographed the elusive Gorgonian shrimp or Sawtooth shrimp, which we haven't seen in awhile! Good to know that they are back on our reefs! These slender shrimps live on sea whips and remain hidden by staying absolutely still along the length of the coral, much like whip gobies! Below are some pix taken by Wai on her Fire & Light Blog.

Chay Hoon also managed to catch a glimpse of "not one but THREE!" ceratosoma (pictured below). See her account and pictures on the Colourful Clouds Blog and check out the other amazing pictures and creatures that were observed last Sunday.

Ferry ticket prices to Southern Islands going up from May 2

2007-04-16T11:29:00.000+08:00

Channel NewsAsia 11 Apr 07

SINGAPORE : Beginning May 2, passengers will have to pay $4 more for ferry tickets between Marina South Pier and the Southern Islands. The new charges for adults will now be $15, while children will have to pay $12.

The operators of the ferry services York Launch says there are two reasons for the increase - the low number of passengers on the routes to Kusu and St John's Islands, and the berthing cost of its ferries onto these islands. It says the previous operator, Sentosa Leisure Group, used to absorb the berthing cost which ranged from $5 to $10 for each boat, and 50 cents for each passenger.

York Launch takes over the operation of ferry services on May 2.

Full story

Tourism plans for Southern Islands put on hold

2007-04-16T11:26:00.000+08:00

By Krist Boo Straits Times 12 Apr 07

Five months after announcing with much fanfare that the Southern Islands would be turned into the next big tourist attraction, the plans have been put on hold.

Although the Singapore Tourism Board wouldn't reveal why, industry sources say the Government is considering housing a casino on the six-island cluster. If this is true, the islands could remain asthey are for the next 10 years.

If the two IRs prove to be successful, the Southern Islands will command a premium, the tourism industry sources said.

The STB would not comment on the speculation, saying only: 'A premium destination, an eco-tourism resort, or an attraction
leveraging on the islands' existing cultural elements - all remain possibilities.'

The STB had, in November last year, said it would in the first quarter of this year come up with tender guidelines to transform the island into a tourist attraction, possibly for the well-heeled.

The board did meet potential investors in January to gauge their interest and listen to ideas, but the results apparently were not very encouraging.

In response to queries from The Straits Times, STB's assistant chief executive for leisure, Dr Chan Tat Hong, said: 'No decision has been made yet on a development concept, including whether an RFC (request for concepts) exercise will be launched.'

Full story

Excited eel

2007-04-14T13:15:00.000+08:00

On Good Friday, the Hantu Blog visited Hantu's intertidal reef. It was a refreshing perspective at Hantu's underwater life that sometimes lives a life between the zones. It's a harsh environment from a creature that needs water to survive, but we found out that the habitat is a bouty full of animals that know how to rough it out and find the means it needs to survive.

Here's a video of an eel found scurring along the reefs in search for a meal. It was a very efficient worker, scouring through every nook and cranny, not to mention all the goby burrows that were scattered throughout!

Eventually the eel found something worth slowing down for inside a goby's burrow. I finally got an idea of how deep a burrow could be. They always seem rather shallow burrows, but this eel almost managed to insert the entire length of its body into the hole! We stopped to observe it for awhile, and soon enough, a little goby showed up at the burrow entrance. Could that have been its home? Check out the video to see its reaction when it found more than a goby in the burrow!

Sex on the Reef!

2007-04-10T02:41:00.000+08:00

You don't have to go all the way down under to experience a mass coral spawning! The same thing happens right here in Singapore!

Scientists in Singapore have been trying to follow the patterns of the spawning every year in an attempt to predict when the mass spawning is most likely to occur. Marine biologists from the NUS and NParks currently station themselves at Raffles Lighthouse where there are some fantastic reefs that unfortnately not open to the public.

However, knowing that such spactacular reef life exists within our waters gives us an awareness of what there is to protect and why it is worth protecting! Swing by Wai's Fire and Light blog to track her survey of the reef during this very special period! So far, such a mass spawning event has only occured once a year, during the low tide, and during a certain lunar phase.

All the above photos were taken off the Blog.