Explore the other side !

Semakau with the flatworms!

2010-03-02T19:51:00.030+08:00

It has been a long time since I guided. Finally the projects and exams are over, I can visit the shores again! ♥

I guided with yw a group of hyper and interesting ITE Clementi students from the Green Club at 28 Feb (: Thats them crossing the seagrass, also known as the 'death zone'.

The seagrass lagoon is a very good nursery ground for the animals to lay their eggs and juveniles to live in. To minimise trampling and damage from people, a 'death zone' is created as a passageway.

Love is in the air for the sand sifting seastars. For the first time, we could not find a single seastar to talk about since they were all in pairs!

Though the seastars are stacked on top of one another, they fertilise externally. This position only helps to increase the chances of fertilisation. The male, being the smaller one, is usually at the top. I have seen them swimming in this position before! (;

That's yw talking about the seastars..

Can you spot the anemone shrimp? The five-spot anemone shrimp gets protection from the anemone's stinging tentacles and feed on any remaining food of the anemone.

The flatworms (group) was excited to see the Knobbly Seastar. They may appear to be poisonous but they are not. Their knobs help to deter their potential predators. These knobblies prefer to feed on snails and clams though they do eat sponges and soft corals as well.

Mushroom corals are free-living animals and live singly. When it is young, it is attached to the ground with a stalk, just like a mushroom. The stalk eventually breaks off as it grows older. Food is passed in and out through the central opening.

The seahorse is a true fish! Being a poor swimmer, it can hook itself onto seagrass to prevent itself from being swept away. Few things I admire the seahorse about:

With no stomach and a simple digestive system, the seahorse eats a lot continuously and the babies can eat up to 1000 shrimps! I eat alot ended up accumulating the fats zz.
The male gets pregnant instead of the ladies. As ladies deposit their eggs in the males' pouch where it get fertilised.

The giant clam feeds in two ways. Besides filter feeding, the algae found on its mantle can make food and contribute to its nutrient intake. Its mantle is eaten by people in some countries. Its lifespan can be up to 100 years!

Not a very clear shot of the stonefish sea cucumber. It is edible but must be properly treated as tests have shown that it contain toxins.

A pretty nudibranch (Jorunna funebris) was found by the hunter seekers. It is carnivorous since it feed on immobile and slow-moving creatures like sea anemones and corals where they acquire their toxins. Its pair of rhinophores in front is used to detect chemicals in the hunt of their prey and mates while the flowery gills at the back is used for breathing.

We also saw a rather big cowrie (about the size of my palm!) found by Robert. A pity it was dead though.

Despite the hot weather over the weekend, it was a good trip and I hope the participants had enjoyed too!

Knobbly seastar galore!

2010-03-02T19:51:00.028+08:00

Did line transect with Kim at 27 Feb. Saw many many knobbly seastars!!! (thanks to July)

Never seen so many of them at one time. Semakau never fail to surprise us all (:

Sungei Buloh training with RMBR guides

2010-03-02T19:50:00.015+08:00

The Malayan Monitor Lizard is the biggest lizard you can find in Singapore. It is mostly a scavenger, though it eats live fishes as well. It do climb trees to feed on nestlings and small birds. Not only that, the monitor lizard can swim as well. Hence it can be considered a top predator since it basically eats anything that can fit into its mouth!

The roots and juice of the young leaves of Bandicoot Berry (leea indica) can be used as a digestive in Goa. The roasted leaves are applied to the head to treat dizziness and giddiness. For motr information, you can refer to http://www.flowersofindia.net/catalog/slides/Bandicoot%20Berry.html

This Fish Tail Palm (Caryota mitis) is poisonous! It may cause itchiness as it contain needle-like crystals that may be embedded onto your skin. However it has many uses. Its sap can be made into palm sugar. Its leaves are woven into household items; fibres into ropes and seeds made into beads.

The Sea Almond Tree (Terminalia catappa) is a common tree at our streets to provide colour and shade. Its nuts are edible, taste like almond, thus its name. Its leaves release organic acids when put in water. This lowers the pH creating a safe and soothing environment for the fishes in the aquarium. Hence some people even sell sea almond leaves at eBay! Its leaves also secrete sugary substances at its slits to attract ants hence protecting the plant.

The bark of the Wild Cinamon (Canella Winterana) can be made into fish poison. Its leaves and stem is toxic to poultry. One beneficial use is that its finely chipped wood may be smoked alone or with other plant materials to relieve headache and hangover.

This female Jungle Fowl like their cousins - domesticated chickens - forage the ground for seeds, fruits and insects. It uses its feet to scratch away leaf litter and peck at whats hidden underneath. The female usually dig a hole under the thick vegetation and incubates the eggs alone which hatch in about 3 weeks. The mother then keeps her chicks under her cover till they are fully grown for a period of about 12 days.

Cotton Stainer Bugs!!

They are often found in huge numbers to help them find their mates and protect against predators. This happens in most animals and this is 'safety in numbers'. These bugs feed on the seeds of Sea Hibiscus. So if you come across Sea Hibiscus, do look under the leaf and you may spot them! They are called 'cotton stainer bugs' because they stain the cotton bolls causing fungus growth. Their feeding habits also affect the growth of the cotton bolls since it cuts and damages its fibres.

The Barringtonia Racemosa (also called the Powerpuff Tree) has very very beautiful flowers!! It is said to be a rare plant. It grows very well under dry conditions. The pungent yet faintly sweet scent produced by the flowers attract moths and nectar-feeding bats at night. When the flowers shed, the ants are attracted to the dead flowers for its sweet nectar. In Bengal, its seeds are used to poison people and coconut is said to be its antidote! o.o

The fruit of the Nipah Palm is edible. It is grown and tapped for its sweet sap to make palm sugar. It is estimated that one hectare of nipah palm can produce 2000kg of palm sugar!

The Shield Bugs (Calliphara Nobilis) tend to congregate in large numbers.

Thanks LK and Ron for organising this informative and interesting trip!

References:

2010-02-27T11:39:00.002+08:00

Apologies for the lack of updates! Just finished the projects and papers (finally!) and will be updating the past trips real soon!

2009-09-24T13:26:00.002+08:00

In conjunction with the International Coastal Cleanup Singapore 2009, we had the first cleanup at Semakau together with the HSBC and Ministry of Environment and Water Resource(MEWR) volunteers. The RMBR nature guides did the cleanup at the mangroves, while the HSBC and MEWR volunteers did the cleanup at the coasts. All sorts of rubbish were found including tyres and big styrofoam pieces were found! Fishing nets are the headache as fishermen leave their nets discarded among the roots causing many creatures to get stuck. It was a refreshing experience as I totally did not expect the mud to be that soft. We had to crawl almost hip deep in the mud to remove the litters!

Although the cleanup lasted for about 2 hours, we have only cleaned part of it and there were certainly more trash to be cleared of! Of course we could not clear everything but to try our best in doing whatever we can within our own limits.

People dispose their trash into the sea carelessly, not knowing (or do not care about) the resulting consequences. These rubbish are swept to the shores, some animals may mistaken them as food and pollute the environment. Such cleanup sessions give us the opportunity to give back to the environment. Well if we do not clean up our own beaches, who else will?

*Sorry for the lack of pics. Will post more pics once I receive them.

2009-06-28T17:08:00.011+08:00

On the way to the intertidal flats, we spotted these feet markings on the sandbars. It belongs to the Monitor Lizard!(Thanks SY.) It probably come here in search for seafood eh.

That's sea turtle with Prof Tan crossing the 'death zone'!

A trail has been marked out in the seagrass lagoon for visitors to past through and this zone is known as the 'death zone' as no organisms are able to live in there. This is to prevent people from trampling all over hence minimizing the damage caused .

This spider crab was spotted by Prof Tan! They are hard to spot as they move slowly and camouflage really well with the surroundings. They are named after their long and skinny legs. Though they are small with a body width of 2cm, they belong to the same family as the Japanese Spider Crab- the biggest crab in the world! Its leg span can reach up to 4m!!

As a comparison, I have found this picture to show its size as compared to us!

Heart Cockle!

Unlike other bivalves, this shell opens at the centre vertically! People have been collecting their shells as a prove of their love to their other half. Isn't it ironic how people use such heartless methods to prove their love??

Giant clam can grow up to 227kg and 1.2m across! They are facing extinction due to overcollection of their shell and meat! They are eaten as a delicacy in certain places and their shells were used as ashtrays.

This noble volute is actually a very beautiful creature. Its body is even more attractive than its shell. This is a mother noble volute who is laying eggs. It's nice to see these animals are surviving well (: The noble volutes feed by suffocating the other bivalves till they have to open up their shells to breathe. Then it will scraps them off their shell to eat! Not so noble isn't it?

This jellyfish is usually found upside down as they habour zooxanthelle (symbiotic algae) in their tentacles. The algae photosynthesises in the prescence of sunlight hence provide food to the jellyfish. The upside down jellyfish in turn provide a home and minerals to the zooxanthelle.

We saw many other organisms but I didn't manage to get their pictures ><

nudibranch
flatworms
4 Knobbly sea stars!!
Cushion Seastar (A big one!)
Spidercounch
Seahorse
Carpet Anemone
Synaptid Sea Cucumber
Sandfish Sea Cucumber
Ocellated Sea Cucumber
Squid
Dead Cowrie

Soon it was time to leave..

and the sky was looming with dark cumulonimbus clouds.

The kids could not bear to leave and bidded farewell as they leave their tracks in the sand.

Many thanks to the hunter seekers, we saw many great stuff yesterday! A big thank you to my participants as well for making this yet another memorable trip! (:

2009-06-26T20:11:00.010+08:00

WOA what have we got here that attracted everyone's attention and snapping away with their cameras?

Sunrise!! Nice~ if only there's dolphins as well q;

Guided a bunch of enthusiastic happy people today, thanks mudskippers for making this walk such an enjoyable one!

Peek-a-boo seastar!

Soft corals- dead man's fingers!

It's best not to touch these soft corals as they have stinging cells. At low tides, it may look uninteresting as they flop over one another. But during high tides, they extend their polyps as they feed on planktons and it looks really beautiful! However its 'fingers' may look like calling out for us to join them and it is kind of eerie hence the name 'dead man's fingers' (;

There were plenty of red seaweed around! Compared to the green seaweeds, they can survive in deeper waters as being red allows them to photosynthesise in lower light levels. //edit (Thanks Ron) The 'nori' used in Japanese sushi is made of certain types of red seaweed. Some red seaweed are also used to make 'agar-agar' in jellies and stabilisers in processed food such as cholocate milk and yogurt.

Out of so many organisms in Semakau, my favourites are flatworms and nudibranchs (: They come in such vivid colous and patterns! They are poisonous since they feed on sponges and corals. That is where they acquire their toxins from as this is warned to their predators by their bright colours!

//edit. As we venture further in, we saw a school of fishes! It's best not to approach too close these fishes as we do not know if these fishes have protective mechanism like venomous spines.

Another red flower crab that was ready to fight us out. This swimming crab has a pair of paddle-like legs at the back allowing them to swim faster than other crabs. //edit. The male flower crab has brighter colouration in blue whereas the red female crabs come in duller colours. Now why the flower crabs that I usually see seem to be ready to declare war with me S:

The highlight of the day was the Aerobatic Flying Displays!

That was a bonus to all of us! We were awed by the displays and that certainly stopped most of my participants in their tracks! The airplanes had captured my participants' attention and boy was I jealous!

The trip ended off with holiday mode for the participants...

and I spotted two olive-backed sunbird within such close proximity on the way home! That certainly ended my day on a perfect note! (:

//Thanks Ron for the edit! (:

2009-06-16T22:11:00.006+08:00

Set off to Semakau again last Sunday (: always love the skies on our way there.

Nice clouds!~

Guided with Kim today (: Our group- horseshoe crab passing the seagrass lagoon.

The moon snail may look gentle but it is actually a ferocious predator! They can suffocate the bivalves and if they still refuse to open up their shells, the moon snail can secrete acid to soften their shell and suck them out! So now when you see empty seashells with a hole on them, you know who's the culprit huh.

Strawberry topping on the chocolate sponges!

Aha that was described by one of my participants (; Sponges do come in varied colours and shapes. Sponges are cosy home for animals to stay. With the constant flow of water, it acts like air-conditioning for the tiny animals living within. They can eat the bits of food flowing in with the water too! Some animals like the velcro crab use the sponges as their protection as well as sponges are poisonous and distasteful to some animals.

This pic depicts a budding sponge. Sponge reproduce both sexually and asexually (for this case). So when a sponge buds, a part of the parent sponge falls off and this grows into a new sponge.

We saw many other organisms but did not manage to take a picture of them as was busy guilding.

Some of them include:

Seahorse
Spidercounch
Dead Cowrie
Octopus
Cushion/common/knobbly Seastar
Stonefish Sea Cucumber
Sunflower Mushroom Coral
Fanworm

Another great trip! It's interesting to see how the kids got fascinated by the intertidal animals (; Thanks rmbr for organising and horseshoe crabs for being such attentive audience despite the hot weather!

Some other entries to check out!

Eunice

July

2009-06-11T20:14:00.006+08:00

Went to Semakau at 4+ am to guide a group of PLMGS girls. There they are posing as our group- upsidedown jellyfish (;

During the walk to the intertidals, we saw an obstructed view of beautiful sunrise!! How often do we get to see this in mainland Singapore? Never in fact, with all the highrise buildings.

Horseshoe crab is spotted by one of our participants (: It is a harmless creature, often seen burrowing quietly into sands feeding on worms, clams and anything edible including dead animals. They may also scrape off algae. Another interesting fact: It needs to exercise in order to eat. It has no jaws. So walking movements grinds up their food, and its bits are then passed on into its four pairs of 'food processing' legs!

Also their blood has a substance that is so sensitive to bacteria that 10% of them died in the process of harvesting to test for the presence of bacteria in human medication. Thank goodness a team from NUS Dept of Zoology has cloned a substance with similar characteristics to replace these wild harvested horseshoe blood.

As they grow, their body shape become rounder and looks like a cushion!~ More often seen in diving, hence always a TREAT to see them in shores. They have been seen on feeding some species of hard corals and their diet include immobile animals, organic particles found on sand and seaweeds.

Upside down jellyfishes passing the 'dead sea zone'..

That's hen talking to our participants. Guided together with hen today (:

Juvenile Giant Glam.

That's a giant giant clam haha.

Giant clam feed in both ways. Besides filter feeding for food, the zooxanthelle (symbiotic algae) is also present to make food and provide extra nutrients. They are endangered due to overcollection as a delicacy and making into souveniers like ashtrays.

I always find the way flatworms swim mesmerising. Flatworms are very delicate creatures and should always be handed with care.

A group pic with the star attraction of the day: Knobbly Seastar (: They are one of the biggest seastar we have around.

On the way back, we accidentally intrude the territory of this blue flower swimming crab! It was very agressive waving its claws, ready to declare war with us aha. This is a first sight for me! (:

It is one of the few crabs that are swift and agile due to its last pair of paddle-like feet.

This is sandfish sea cucumber is the haisheng that we eat during chinese new year. It breathes using water that is being flushed in and out through its backend. With this constant flow of water, some tiny creatures find the backside of a seacucumber a cosy and safe place to be! I like how one participant liken it to being in a jacuzzi (;

This black phyllid nudibranch cannot be kept in an aquarium. It release toxic substances when dtressed and this kills the entire tank of fishes!

Very soon it was time for us to leave again as the tides come in. A big thank you to upside down jellyfishes for being such attentive and enthusiastic audiences today!

Do check out other guides' posts:

God's wonderful creation

2009-04-29T15:00:00.012+08:00

Woots it was a first for me at St John's Island! Volunteered with RMBR to help out in coastal cleanup together with members of Deutsche Bank(:

First and foremost, we started with a mangrove tour led by Ron..

Albizia falcataria

The Albizia is a valuable multipurpose plant for the tropics. It is used for pulp and other wood products, fuelwood, ornamental paintings etc. It is highly regarded as a shade tree as well. Albizia is a native plant to this region, but may not be in Singapore. Though it is a very useful tree, it regenerates too easily by natural seeding on any clearing that it may be regarded as a pest.

Sea Hibiscus (Hibiscus tiliaceus)

It can be identified by its distinctive heart-shaped leaves. The plant secretes a sugary substance through a small slit near the stalk of the leaf. Hence sometimes you can see many ants drinking from them when you turnover to the underside of the leaves. The ants, in turn will keep off insect pests hence protecting the plant.

We spotted a dead dried paradise tree snake lying on the grass. They are able to flatten their body and glide from one tree to the other.

Ron was talking about how peacock feather symbolises human courtship(; Male peacocks display their feathers to prospective female mates. The females will then check out the feathers of different male peacocks before making a choice. The length and quantity of male peacock feathers actually indicate his age, vigor and status! Just like how some girls may prefer guys with big cars and houses, the male peacocks with big and heavy feathers conveys the message that they have strong genes and have the resources aha.

The pong pong trees that are commonly seen on our roadside are non-native. They are commonly planted and its flowers are yellow in the centre.

Our native pong pong trees have flowers that are pink at the centre and have elongated fruits(:

Haha of course the journey is not all smooth. We had long walks and even crossed fences. If not this way, how can we see these many different species of plants?(;

We saw many of these volcano-shaped moulds. These are actually made by the mud lobster. They feed on organic particles by digging the sand and mud. Their action help to loosen the mud and allow air and water to penetrate through the soil. These facilitate the growth of mangrove seedling. The moulds also provide shelter for small aquatic creatures during low tides, forming a habitat otherwise known as the 'mud lobster condominum'!

Nipah Palm is a mangrove plant with the oldest known fossil, with pollen dated 70 million years old! Being a very useful plant, its immature fruits (also known as attap chee) are white translucent and hard jelly-like are a common ingredient used in local desserts.

Fig tree (also known as the Bodhi tree)

Although commonly referred as the fruit, the fig fruit is also the flower of the tree, in which the fruits and flowers grow together to form a single mass! The flower is invisible, as it blooms inside the fruit. Warning! Embrace yourselves: Small fig wasps crawl through the opening in search of a suitable place to lay eggs. The flowers provide a safe haven and nourishment for the next generation of wasps. The wasp pollinates the flower with pollen from the fig it grew up in. When the wasp dies, it is broken down by enzymes inside the fig. However fig wasps are not known to transmit any diseases harmful to humans.

These green dopping structures are often mistaken as the leaves of casuarina trees. They are actually casuarina stems that are grooved with tiny scalelike leaves(: Casuarina is a flowering plant as well.

After the mangrove tour, we proceed to our coastal cleanup. The amount of rubbish we collected is no joke!! People just litter their trash carelessly into the sea not knowing the circumstances brought about to our sea creatures. These trash can suffocate our poor marine animals and of course pollute the environment. Fishing nets leftover by fishermen have worse aftereffects! The long stretches of nets can trap all kinds of animals including birds. They all either get roasted under the sun or get drowned during high tides!

It was definitely hard work (looking at their sweat) and a great job done!- a big thank you to the participants!! (:(:

Everyone can do their part to the environment by not littering and better still, pick up rubbish along the way. We can do our part by practising the 3Rs- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Small little action like this goes a long way~

After that we had a short tour of the Tropical Marine Science Institute (TMSI). TMSI is a centre of excellence for research, development and consultancy in tropical marine science as well as environmental science. It is quite interesting as we tour around and see how they cultivate the marine animals in nurseries such as the giant clams(as shown in the right picture).

All in all it was a great trip despite the heavy downpour and thunderstorm! My first experience in St John's was good and I definitely want to go back there again, this time exploring the shores(:

References:

http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/plants/sea_hibiscus.htm

http://www.crystalinks.com/peacocks.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ficus#Fig_pollination_and_fig_fruit

http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/heritage/ubin/stories/2005/07/albizia-whatchamacallit.html

http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/pub/naturewatch/text/a103a.htm

Semakau! after so long~

2009-03-08T22:31:00.017+08:00

Finally get to go Semakau guide agan! With Eunice this time round(:

There was no rain but the weather was a little too hot q: still.. we see many creatures~

Red Swimming Crab (Thalamita spinimana ) can be quite fierce! Swimming crabs are one of the few crabs that are swift and agile swimmers because of their last pair of paddle-like feet. The reason why this carb appears to be 'sandy' is because it has rows of tiny hairs that trap sediments and sand.

//oops this is noble volute's eggs hee. thanks ron!

& we saw 2 nudibranchs!

Lined chromodoris nudibranch (Chromodoris lineolata)

Nudibranchs are known as naked slugs. They have a shell as a young but gradually lose it as it grows older. They are poisonous as advertised by their striking colours and they feed on sponges hence are carnivorous! This particular species feed on blue encrusting sponge (Lamellodysidea herbacea).

Rose nudibranch (Dendrodoris fumata)//thanks samson for ID!

It lacks jaws hence cannot chew on the sponges. Instead it secretes digestive juices into the sponge then sucks up the softened sponge with a long tube! ahah SPONGE SLURPEE?

hmm not too sure what are these transparent like jelly thing is. We saw 3 of it! It's like a jelly and sort of stick to the ground when we try flipping? Perhaps a jellyfish?

Synaptid Sea Cucumber use their feeding tentacles to filter feed for organic particles for consumption. Related to the sea star, they use water as their circulatory system. It is the longest sea cucumber around! People have often mistaken them as worms.

Horseshoe crab! They are 'living fossils" as they have been here days even before dinosaurs are around! Not related to crab, they are more related to spiders and scorpians. Their blood clots easily hence have been sedharvested for medinal use for sometime until NUS cloned a substance to replace it.

ah! thats the new (sea)star they have found recenly at semakau! (:

The sand-sifting stars are practising external fertilisation. Though they lie on top of one another, their sex organ do not actually meet. The sperms and eggs are fertilise externally so this position increase their chances of fertiliation.

A great trip with the giant clam-ers! (thanks Eunice for the group pic!) Thanks everyone for organising and info for the whole trip! Looking forward to the next Semakau trip cause we get to see many different things on each trip(: each trip is a new experience.

sources: wild fact sheets(:

MISSES kelong

2009-03-04T22:19:00.004+08:00

Enroute to kranji countryside this morning, I saw this jetty. Ahhh this jetty is where I take to my relative's relative's kelong.haha. He owns and sells fishes locally and overseas. Miss everything there! The kids can just drive the boat around freely. bbq in the middle of the sea. no pollution. mussels were aplenty there! & the toilet is the most ultimate hee.

ah when can I go back?

BOTANICS

2009-03-04T16:21:00.016+08:00

I just love going out with my parents to gardens in the mornings(;

These leaves so cute. If you notice it 'closes' and droops downwards. hmm not too sure what plant.

Ginger (Zingiber officinale)

The rhizome (whether young, old, fresh, dried or candied) are used to favour food, in cosmetics and medicine. Probably native to India, ginger is grown throughout the tropics.

Turmeric (Curcuma longa)

It is used as a food colouring and flavouring agent and dye. It is an important ingredient of curry powder and traditional cosmetics. Grown widely in tropical ares in Asia, it is the most valuable membr of the ginger family in world trade.

We also saw many other pretty plants(:

Costus lucanusianus (African Spiral Flag)

Hee though manage to find the ID, I didn't manage to find much info about it ><

I find this cute- small young bird nest fern in the middle of the coconut tree.

& on the way back, manage to capture insects hmmm.

SISTERS' island!

2008-10-20T20:39:00.011+08:00

Turban Shell (Family Turbinidae)

Its operculum (cat's eye) is smooth ad faces outwards. This prevents crabs from having a grip and pry out the snails within. They grazed on algae on rocks. These shells are listed as endangered due to overcollection for jewellery purposes.

Ths snail coming out wondering whats going on outside?

During low tides, we can see animals like the marine spider (Desis martensii) among the seaweed as well. It hides in air pockets among the rocks during high tide, coming out to feed on small invertebrates when the tide recedes. Its fangs inject poison to paralyse its prey.

Bigfin reef squids (Sepioteuthis sp., probably S. lessoniana) from the family Loliginidae.

Squids are the fastest aquatic invertebrates, reaching up to 40km/h for some! They hunt for snails, clams, crabs and prawns. Squids communicates by changing of colours during their courtship. They camouflage really well from their preys and predators as well.

Can see nemo clownfish at the carpet anemone?(: this fish secretes mucus that disable the anemne from stinging them. is also believed that the movements of the fish inform the anemone of its identity. In return for the anemone's protection, the fish brings scraps to it, and lures larger fish into the anemone's tentacles.

Reef Hermit Crab (Dardanus lagopodes)

They are scavengers, with a good sense of smell. Unlike typical crabs, their back part of body is soft hence they use discarded shell for protection. & as they grow, they change to a bigger shell. //edited thanks ron for pointing out!

Onchidium Slug (Onchidium spp.)

It is very easy to miss them cause they are very well camoufliaged! Without a shell, this creature have developed thick and waterproof skin to protect themselves. though closely related to marine animals, they have developd pseudo-lungs instead of gills to breathe in atmosheric air(;

Sand-sifting seastar on a sexy mood q:

Beautiful moon snail

These land hermit crabs are so well adapted to land that it will drown if kept underwater! So don't pick seashells from the seashore cause you are depriving them from a home!

Black long sea cucumber (Holothuria leucospilota)

These creatures can grow up to 1m long. When disturbed, it ejects sticky white threads to entangle the kajiao-er. It gathers edible bits frm the surface using its long feeding tentacles with bushy sticky tips.

Star barnacles (Chrhamalus sp.)

During high tides, they extend their feathery, segmented legs to gather plankton from the water. It encrust itself on any surface including animals and ships. They are bio indicators- it accumulate heavy metals hence determine the level of water pollution.

2008-10-19T11:45:00.013+08:00

hee apologies for the longgggggg absence.. finally exams are over!

UPDATES!

Batik tailed slug (Philinopsis sp.)

Cute pattern(: It has a tiny internal shell. They feed on bubble shell snails, hunt them by following their slime trail then swallowing them whole.

Noble Volute

This living volute is more beautiful han its shell. It seeks out hidden shells and wrapped them with its huge foot to 'suffocate' them. When the bivalve is too tired and open its shell to take a breath, the noble volute will then scrape the flesh out from its prey. not so noble isn't it.

Swimming Anemone (Boloceroides mcmurrichi )

NEVER pick them up as the tentacles may come off and stick to your hands!

When threatened, they will purposely drop off its tentacle to distract the predator (like lizard?). It harbours zooxanthelle (single cell algae) where it makes food for the anemone while in return the anemone povide shelter and minerals to the algae.

Moon Crab (Matuta lunaris)

As the name suggest, they are more active at night. Moon crabs normally burrow just below the surface during the day. They forage for small shellfish, worms and other animals at night. Their paddle-like legs are specially modified for swimming and digging.

That trip with the methodist girls!

Sources/references: A guide to seashore life & WildSingapore fact sheets(:

flatworm penis fencing

2008-08-15T16:56:00.004+08:00

hmm was browsing the net just now & saw this interesting footage

http://www.spike.com/video/2458366/

they can 'fight' for an hr?! gosh.

P.S not sure what species though ><

preview.

2008-08-04T22:26:00.005+08:00

pardon me for the lack of updates. been really busy these days. will update once my exams are over(:

so here's a preview of the upcoming posts q:

Beautiful Sekudu ! frog island.

Semakau stayover !

bbq under the stars woohooo! cool :D

SGF: SAVE THE EARTH ! it's sinking.

2008-07-13T11:06:00.007+08:00

SENTOSA ! will update soon q:

so.. pics preview first ahah.

2008-06-22T00:02:00.009+08:00

This morning, went along with SP Rovers to explore our shores(: haha bunch of funny & hyper people.

Hermit crabs crossing seagrass lagoon..! The seagrass lagoon is a rich ecosystem! It provides a calm breeding ground for creatures to lay eggs & juveniles to develop into adults. Note that seagrass is actually a flowering plant! with a proper root system and all.

Ribbon worm.

They may look defenseless. But they are actually fierce predators! Also studies have shown that they habour bacteria that produce poisonous toxins that make them poisonous to eat.

Octopus!

This october that the hunter-seeker found was actually quite large! & it was trying to escape from the container. no wonder it is one of the brainiest invertebrates around. & we actually witness how the octopus change colour to camouflage with its surroundings! cool!

Pregnant male seahorse! as you can see his pouch is actually bloated.

long-spined sea urchin (Diadema setosum)!

They may look immobile, but they are actually able to move by using their spines. Their head & mouth are located at the base. Sea urgin feed on seaweed and algae. The spines can inflict a painful wound if one happen to step on them.

Rhizostome Jellyfish (Order Rhizostomeae)?

I still can remember clearly during kayaking days at obs when one of them happen to vomit on board then we saw these jellyfishes!lol. Like any other jellyfishes, they have umbrella shaped bodies, stinging tentacles and pores at their tentacles where they filter feed for small organisms. Being poor swimmers, they swim by pulsing their bells but usually at the mercy of the currents.

Star Anemone (Condylactis sp.)?

Notice how their 'arms' actually congregate together thus forming a star shape aha.

Soft Corals (Family Alcyonaceae.)

This one looks like heart-shaped isn't it. Soft corals may look uninteresting as they 'flop over' during low tides. But underwater, when expand they look spectacular..! They too possess stinging cells but not dangerous to us human beings as our skin are thick enough (;

Hermit Crab with Knobbly Seastar!

This seastar can be as big as your face! It possess hard skeleton and is not poisonous though it may look like it is with the 'knobs' and everything.

It was again a great trip! Thanks everyone(:

O & happy birthday in advance to Ron, Samson & KS..!

2008-06-14T14:44:00.004+08:00

was rushing off to work as usual yesterday morning. on the way passed by a roadsweeper sweeping off the leaves and all.

luckily i was observant enough to spot these from the (debris) ground(:

beautiful flowers~! though I don't know the ID for it q:

typical city people like us are always rushing and we hardly have time to stop by to notice the beautiful little things around us. so thats why we should slow down our pace at times and take a closer look at our surroundings. esp the plants around cause you never know what you are going to see..!haha.

hermit crab with jurongville sec!

2008-06-07T17:11:00.015+08:00

Yes hermit crabs with the sec 3s from Jurongville secondary! (:

I must say we are wheelie lucky today! We actually saw dolphins on our way to Semakau! (though I only managed to catch a glimpse of it haha) The weather was good- no sun, so the walk to the intertidal flats was actually quite cooling.

& that’s ag with her own group who is a lead guide for the first time ahaha!

Cloudy weather.

Creeper shell (Family Cerithidae)! They usually gather in large numbers to feed on organic matter and algae.

Turban shell(Turbo sp.). They feed on algae and have a round thick operculum otherwise known as the'cat's eye' covering its opening. The 'cat's eye' is often collected for jewellery, buttons and even paperweights(bigger ones that is). They are also collected as food in some countries.

Cowry(Cypraea errones). Note that it actually has a pair of tentacle so it is actually alive! Their shell is covered with mantle which protects it from scratches hence maintaining its glossy appearance. Because of their beautiful nature, cowrie has greatly sought after by shell collectors hence are danger of becoming extinct! Cowrie shells have been used as currency in the past.

Fan worm(probably Sabellastarte indica). Beautiful creature I must say. It lives in its own tube using mucus and sand. Its end has a magnificent fan-like structure that protrudes outside the hole. This ‘fan’ helps to filter water for food which the fan worm can feed on! The tentacles also have ‘eyespots’ that detect changes in light intensity so that it can retract safely into its tube when threatened.

So these are zoanthids(or colonial anemones)! That many creatures like the hairy crab feed on making them poisonous. (the poison is transferred from the zooanthids to the animals which feed on it.)

Ocellated sea cucumber(Stichopus ocellatus)! This is recognisable by its many ‘eyes’. This species actually sput out its internal guts when it feels threatened! However they will still be able to regenerate their organs back. Still during this time they are not able to eat anything!

Flat worm(Acanthozoon sp.). ! They are haemophrodites- which means can be both male and female in nature..! However they will avoid being the female as it is very energy-consuming. They also perform sexual intercourse through ‘penis-fencing’! That is they can poke their penis into any part of the other party.

Pufferfish can inflate their body twice the size to deter predators! This can be done by sucking in or retaining air and water in their bodies. Puffers have also a pair of sharp front teeth that resembles a parrot beak, which enables them to crush on the shellfish and crabs they usually feed on. They are considered a delicacy by the Japanese and Koreans but must be properly treated as they are highly toxic!

Sunflower mushroom coral (Heliofungia actiniformis). Unlike hard corals which exists in tentacles of 6, this is a singly animal! It does not exist in colonies. This particular coral is also detachable from surface as it is not rooted to ground.

Maze coral(Platygyra sp.).

O talking about hard corals, we have some interesting(proud) facts:

There are about 200 species of hard corals in Singapore. Although Singapore's size is only 0.02% of the Great barrier reef, we have almost half the number of species found at there! (:

Nemo~! The clownfish is often found in the sea anemone as it offers them protection with its stinging tentacles. In return for its protection, the clownfish often lure fishes to the sea anemone for its food.

Marginated glossodoris nudibranch (Glossodoris atromarginata). Nudibranchs also mean 'naked gills', as seen in the flowery gills found at their back which is used for breathing. They are sea slugs without shells, however they are able to eject toxins to protect themselves. They are carnivores which feed on immobile creatures like sponges and corals!

Black phyllid nudibranch (Phyllidiella nigra).

They are well-known for ejecting toxins into surrounding waters when stressed! So it is not a good idea of keeping them in your aquarium.

Soft corals(Family Alcyonaceae)

They are closely related to hard corals but they lack in calcium carbonate skeleton. They also possess stinging cells but are usually dangerour to humans.

A Seahorse (Hippocampus sp.) is actually a type of fish! Seahorses are poor swimmers, hence they can only make a short burst of speed when faced danger. One thing I like about seahorse is that the male gets pregnant instead of the females! The female inject their eggs into the male's pouch using a penis-like tube. Inside his pouch, his eggs are fertilised and embedded to the bloodwalls where they obtain the nutrients and oxygen. When the baby seahorses are hatched, the male is ready for another patch of eggs! In other words he is constantly pregnant!

Stonefish sea cucumber (Actinopyga lecanora).

During low tides, it can actually harden up making it look and feel like any other rock! It is also edible as long as it is well treated.

Can you guess what is this?

(after flipping over.)

Yea it is the upside down jellyfish(cassiopea sp.)! Their tentacles are often coloured green, due to the presence of symbiotic algae(zooxanthelle). The jellyfish are found upside down as the zooxanthelle makes food for them, in return for a secure home.

Enroute back into the forest, we saw the sea hibiscus(Hibiscus tiliaceus).

It is a one day flower. As in its flower grows and withers within a day- changes colours throughout. This plant is easily recognisable by its heart-shaped leaf.

We were really lucky as it started to pour really heavily only after we board the boat back. Perhaps it was due to the students? Ahaha. All in all, it was a lucky and cool trip! Thanks to the students, guides and everyone!

Do check out the other guides' blogs!

First OJT !

2008-04-27T11:45:00.012+08:00

went to be an assistant guide with Ron to bring a group of public (spiderconch) to Semakau. First time to guide the public so was pretty excited & looking forward to it haha!

waking up at 5+ was no easy feat.. but it was rewarding as the sunrise was really beautiful..

at the jetty

a clearer view at the boat

enroute to the intertidal flats. it was a great weather(: though it gets a little hot after that.

This piece of grassland used to be the sea. But it has been reclaimed for the landfill. This is actually a red beacon which is used to mark the end of the sea(last time before it is reclaimed).

Sponges! like what you see in spongebob square pants. It is actually an animal, a simple one though. These organisms eat by filtering the water for plankton. Some sponges are actually poisonous so avoid handling them with your bare hands. With its natural defense mechanisms and a constant flow of oxgenated water through it, sponges are actually home to many tiny creatures as well!

Raise your hand up if you are enjoying yourself..!

That's my group- spiderconch crossing the seagrass lagoon. Do not belittle this patch of seagrass..! With plenty of shelter and food, the seagrass meadow is actually an important habitat for organisms to lay their eggs and juveniles to develop into adults.

Common seastar (Archaster typicus)

Yes they are mating! The male being the smaller one, lies on top of the female one. Despite doing this, their reproductive organs actually do not meet..! Seastar practise external fertilisation, where their sperms and eggs are released outside silmultaneously. This position is to increase their chances of fertilisation. Seastar also have remarkable regenerative power. They can regenerate their lost limbs as long as the central disk is not damaged. But that does not mean you can pluck off their arms q: Unlike human beings, they use sea water instead of blood so do not take them out of water for too long.

Those tiny things sticking out are their tubefeet. Seastar travel by using tubefeet.

These tiny shells are homes to the hermit crabs! So try not to pick up shells in future even though they are empty. Hermit crab changes shells every now and then as it grows. Without shells, they are vulnerable to their predators and external factors.

The carpet anemones (Stichodactyla sp.) are among the largest of sea anemones. They have stinging tentacles and eats small animals! It can inject toxins at the organisms and move them to its central mouth. It does not have an anus so it actually has to spit out indigestible wates from its previous meal before it can consume the next one.

& we saw nudibranches(:

Chromodoris lineolata

Nudibranchs also mean 'naked gills'. these sea slugs are really colourful. They breathe using the flower-like feathery external gill found on their backs. The pair of tentacles found at the other end is known as the rhinophores. They are believed to detech chemicals in the hunt for their prey and mates. As they have lost their shells as adults, they inject poisonous toxins to protect themselves and tis is warned by their bright colours. Despite being small, these beautiful little creatures are actually carnivores! They feed on immobile creatures like zoanthids, sponges and eggs of other organisms.

Gymnodoris rubropapulosa

This is another nuidibranch. It is actually a fierce eater as it eats other slugs from the same species! Since slugs are haemophrodites, they have both the male and female reproductive organs hence fertilises each other. However for the gymnodoris, seeing its same species means food and sex for them! So when they meet each other, they try to fertilise and eat each other! Eventually the loser will be eaten up and the winner will perform the function of the mother to give birth.

A ferocious predator, the noble volute seeks on other shells using its siphons and suffocates its prey with its huge muscular foot and wait till the exhausted clams to open out their shells to breathe (which may take several days)! It then sticks its proboscis in and consumes it with its radula(tongue).

Boulder coral (Family Favidae)

or is it knob coral? (Favia sp.) X:

The above is a hard coral. Each hole on the hard coral has a coral animal (known as polyps). These animals build their own house using calcium carbonate. & they are actually carnivores that feed on planktons.

Ocellated sea cucumber (Stichopus ocellatus)

This species of sea cucumber do not eject sticky threads for defense, but it may eject its internal organs which is even worse! When removed from water for too long, it becomes limp and may disintegrate. But it is still able to reverse the process if it is not too badly 'melted'.

Moon snail (Family Naticidae)

Looks pretty, but it is a fierce predator. Unlike noble volute, even if the bivales refuse to open up their shells, it can secrete an acid to soften their shell. & it uses ts radula(tongue) to further create a hole so as to feed on them! So next time when you see empty shells with hole at its end, you know what has happened huh.

Scallop (Chlamys sp.)

Bivalves(two part shells) feed by taking in water and filter it for planktons. It can 'swim' by flapping its valves.

After the walk, we went to the southern most end of Singapore where the public can access. The sea water is really blue and beautiful here. Agnes and July even mention of swimming and snorkelling here which I think is pretty cool aha.

Overall it was a great trip and again an eyeopening experience. Thanks everyone!(:

Southern Island Cruise!

2008-04-10T21:41:00.016+08:00

Went with a group of nature guides at 6 apr to bring a group of foreigners to explore our southern islands! It was a breathtaking one, beautiful weather, great audience, sun, sea along with the other experienced guides.. what else can I ask for? haha(:

Beautiful skyline we have. & of course we can see the Singapore Flyer as well.

Singapore once consisted over 60 offshore islands and patch reefs, mostly found at the southern part of Singapore. Singapore's coastlines has since changed drastically at the 1960s due to land reclaimation. Currently, we have a combined land area of 690km2- a 10% increase from its original size.

Singapore currently supports one of the world's busiest ports and one of the largest oil refining centres. Despite all these rapid developments, our reefs(remaining) are still very much alive!

Kusu Island is only 15 mins away from the city centre.

It is said that a magical giant turtle turned itself into an island to save two shipwrecked sailors- a malay and a chinese. The grateful sailors then returned to the island to give thanks and others continued the tradition every year. Before it is reclaimed, people say the island looked like the shape of the turtle. One ridge the head, the other (where the hilltop is) the back of the turtle. There are now two Malay shrines and a Chinese temple on Kusu Island. There is also a Tortoise Sanctuary houses hundreds of tortoises.

Kusu is ringed by reefs with a wide variety of hard and soft corals. Commonly seen animals include clown anemonefish(nemo!), anemone shrimps as well as other fishes and crabs seldom seen on other southern shores.

As you can see, Lazarus Island has lush tropical vegetation, golden sands and aquamarine waters. the reef flat is rich as well hence it is earmarked by the STB for development into a tropical beach island resort! This island however is not accessible to the public yet.

Folktale state that pirates once used St John Island as a hideout. It is a former penal settlement for political prisoners and ringleaders for secret societies. In the central portion of the island, the ruined remains of housing remain for the unfortunate folks remain.

Swimming and picnicking are the most popular activities on the island. The island has plenty of beaches and shelters. There are also holiday bungalows that are fairly comfortable and include cooking facilities.

There is an unusually large number of land hermit crabs and sea cucumbers. There are also some of the most exquisite corals and other reef life but the shores are rather delicate so please be gentle when visiting them.

Sisters Island(the two small islands at the right side)The Sisters Island are home to some long-tailed macaques. These monkeys can be quite aggressive, so do be mindful of them. The two sisters island are seperated by a narrow channel. It may look harmless BUT the currents through this channel are very strong and deep so it is NOT possible to swim across them. Commonly encountered animals include giant clams, seahorses and octopuses.

One of the man-made lagoon at sisters.

The Indonesian mountains.

me, Aye(from Myanmar) and Agnes!

We dropoffed at Pulau Semakau where we had a landfill tour.

Semakau landfill is the world's first offshore landfill! It was created when Singapore's last remaining landfill was exhausted. It is expected to last beyond 2o45. The landfill is not filthy smelly or anything. As care has been taken to protect its natural surroundings, it smells of flora and fauna with a tint of refreshing sea breeze! It is also open to public for nature related recreational activities such as bird-watching, sport-fishing and intertidal walks(that is us!).

After the trip, lunched at masonic club(cheap food and cool place)-ginger beer-masarai-home(:

P.S thanks aye and agnes for the pics!

LK and all the other guides for the info as well!

Marina East Exploratory Walk!

2008-03-29T19:32:00.007+08:00

Is this Singapore??

Yeap! Went to explore marina east to explore this morning as this area will soon be destroyed to make way for some golf course -.- but the highlight was actually the nudist gay beach haha!

At this pond, we spotted lots of dragonflies(:

there are many more but the rest of the shots are too blur. Spotted a couple of birds as well(: like coucal, blue-tailed bee-eater, pacific swallow and sunbird. Did not take them due to lousy cam haha. can check out ron's and mountain and sea's though.

& of course there are many lovely plants as well.

Simpoh Ayer

Do you know how it got its name? Ayer is water in malay. & since it lives near water, it's called simpoh ayer! It is a very useful plant. The large leaves of this simpoh ayer plant is used to wrap to wrap food and are also used by the tailor birds to make nests. Sap from the twigs or leaf stalks are applied to external wound to stop bleeding!

The Singapore Rhododendron can be used for the cure of diarrhoea. Birds love to eat their fruits, which are also used by people to make 'poh-chai' a traditional stomache medicine.

sea morning glory

Unlike conventional spiders, the St Andrew's Cross Spider pairs its legs into a X shape hence its name! When attacked, it shakes its web till it becomes blurry to its opponent. Thus this spider is not just literally cross in its appearance but in its temperant too! That white zigzag line stabalises the web and deter birds from hitting it. It is also said that like flowers, it reflects ultraviolet light as well hence direct the insects right to the spider!

These places never fail to leave me happy and rejuvenated(:

Nono that is not a safari vehicle. It is a police car aha. Yup due to Indonesia 'idol' mas selamat. The police are hunting him for his autograph.

Enroute to the beach. These people sure know how to find these ulu places so they wont be disturb huh.

ahhh~ nothing. hahaha. it's still a good trip after all with all these beautiful findings(:

all these nature things in exchange for a golf course?!! NAH. BOOOO!

http://www.sbwr.org.sg/biodiversity/flora/backmangrove/

http://leshonlovesnature.blogspot.com/2005/12/plant-of-day-simpoh-ayer-or-simpoh-air.html

http://www.wildsingapore.com/places/lpt/040904lpt/photos/photo_13.html

http://wetlands.sbwr.org.sg/text/00-7-1-4.htm

http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/inverts/argiope.htm

Semakau exploratory trip!

2008-03-22T09:49:00.001+08:00

After a few trips with the guides, I am inspired to set up a nature blog, so this is it! Nopenope. Semakau isn't just a rubbish island, theres lots of cool stuff there as well! Various nature groups have organise lots of activities, eg bird watching (heard lots of rare birds are sighted), inter-tidal walks etc.

Today went out on an exploratory trip with Dr Dan and the US students. Again, it was quite a fulfilling trip(:

Thank god the rain has subsided by the time we reach the shores. But we were caught by an unpleasant surprise. we saw a crab (swimming crab i think) got stuck in a fishing net. aiyoo. They released it and tried to remove the net. Then we realise the net was like from one end to the other. super long! and theres a guy laying the net so we decided not to cause unnecessary trouble.

Take note this is soft coral, despite being hard. When cut, it reveals a blue skeleton. Personally i feel that it is good for massage q:

A fan worm is a segmented worm with a feathery fan on its head. Beauiful isn't it? These 'feathers' can actually gather tiny food particles to the central mouth.

Polka-dot nudibranch! Another beautiful creature! This one looks extremely fat so it might have just taken its dinner haha. Nudibranch is also known as 'naked gills'. They feed on sponges. Being shellless, they protect themselves by secreting toxins and this is clearly warned by their bright colours. It also has two little structures otherwise known as the rhinophores that can detect its prey and mate.

Squid eggs! It look like 'mitaimak'(white noodle) to me.

Spider conch (top view)

Bottom view

Shy cute creature with its eyes sticking out(: The conches have big eyes on long stalks that can peep out of the shell. However these snails are listed among the threatened animals of Singapore due to habitat loss and overcollection.

Often mistaken as worm, this is actually a synaptid sea cucumber. This sea cucumber is quite long! Up till 1m I think? It crawls very slowly using microscopic 'hooks' on their skins while they mop up the abundant organic debris.

Soon it was sunset. beeyoutifull~! now makes me feel like going semakau again in the early morning where I can see the sunrise(:

& soon the moon is out as well.

hmm don't feel like Singapore right? Anyway this is when the night creatures are coming out(:

Octopus!

This creature actually camouflages. I was amazed by their ability to camouflage. Check out this footage (forgot where I taken from though). The octopus is the most intelligent of all invertebrates. Octopuses are renowned for their ability to squeeze through the tiniest crevices. Their saliva is poisonous to their prey.

Snapping shrimp! (or pistol prawn)

So this is the culprit that has been making those incessant 'pop' earlier. These snapping sounds were made A high-speed jet of water is released by the rapid compression on its 'finger' on its pincers. This vapourises the water and create the bubble. When the bubble collapses, it POPs! This stuns prey like tiny fish and cracks the shells of small clams. It is also used to ward off predators and intimidate rival pistol prawns.

Knobbly seastar (top view)

They fertilise externally and is reported to spawn in large numbers. This creates a concentrated mass of eggs and sperm in nearby water, thus increasing the chance of fertilization.

bottom view

Its tubefeet are found below. The seastar move and eat using its tubefeet. The knobbly seastar prefer to eat snails and clams, but will also feed on corals, sponges, algae as well as dead animals.

finding 'treasures' in action(: