NParks Spotlight: Creatures of the Night

A fascinating series that covers many topics in regards to biodiversity in Singapore. This talk in particular covered the creatures creeping through the night and an insight into the nature conservation master plan. Mr Lim Liang Jim and Ms Lim Tianjiao, the group director and manger of the national biodiversity division respectively were the main speakers for this talk.

So what drew me to this event? I have always wanted to know what NParks really did in terms of conservation in Singapore so this talk was just the right one.

Something I learnt was that we lost about 99% of our primary forests by 1930 due to many factors such as an increase in demand for rubber plantations. The nature conservation master plan is also a multi-faceted plan that involves different stakeholders to ensure the success and continued protection of the biodiversity in Singapore.

The first key point of the 4 main ideas is conservation of key habitats. The four main areas are 1. Safeguard and Strengthen core areas 2. Secure and Enhance buffer areas 3. Enrich and Manage Additional notes of greenery 4. Develop Ecological connections. This results in an interlinked ecological network being set up all across Singapore which is really beneficial to Singapore given the land scarcity we are constantly facing.

Did you know there are 3 animal activity patterns: Diurnal, Crepuscular and Nocturnal. Diurnal are animals that are active during the day and sleep at night while crepuscular animals are mainly active during twilight hours and sleep during the night. They maintain low activity levels during the day. Nocturnal animals are active at night and sleep during the day such as civets, bats and colugos. Just like humans colugos are placental mammals yet they raise their young like marsupials such as kangaroos.

I would like to visit the central catchment nature reserve and use the knowledge I have gained from this online talk to see if I can identify some of the creatures around the area to better understand their behavior and appreciate them.

Currently various efforts by different groups of people are going on that are of great positive impact on the wildlife in Singapore and they mostly take on a multi angled approach which included the education of the general public. Treating animals as equals and not like they are put on display for entertainment is an important step in conservation. A little goes a long way and consistent effort is always significant.