Singapore starts comprehensive marine biodiversity survey

Mustafa Shafawi Channel NewsAsia 7 Dec 10;

SINGAPORE: Singapore is undertaking its first comprehensive survey to take stock of the republic's marine ecosystem, species diversity and distribution.

The survey will be led by the National Parks Board (NParks) in partnership with experts from tertiary institutions, non-governmental organisations and individual enthusiasts. It's expected to be completed by December 2013.

Work on the survey has already started.

NParks said sites with coastal and marine habitats around Singapore have been identified and mapped, using satellite images.

They are further validated through the ongoing biodiversity surveys conducted at these sites, including Chek Jawa, Cyrene Reefs and Pulau Semakau.

More than 80 volunteers have come forward to register their interest and support.

They will be participating in various aspects of the survey, including photography, outdoor field sampling and collection, and specimen processing.

NParks is working with the National University of Singapore (NUS) to train the volunteers.

Several organisations have also come on board.

Shell companies in Singapore have donated S$500,000 to the NUS for conservation activities, of which S$300,000 will go towards bringing in scientific experts for this survey.

The Care-for-Nature Trust Fund has pledged S$250,000 to finance equipment required for the survey.

NParks is keen for more public and private sector support.

It said Singapore has many marine treasures waiting to be documented.

In the last two years, a species of sponge new to science was discovered in Singapore's shallow waters.

-CNA/wk

Study on Singapore marine life
First extensive Singapore survey
Straits Times 7 Dec 10;

SINGAPORE will soon undertake its first comprehensive survey to take stock of the country's marine ecosystem, species diversity and distribution.

National Parks Board (NParks) said that work on the survey had already begun, with coastal and marine habitat sites around Singapore like Chek Jawa, Cyrene Reefs and Pulau Semakau already identified and mapped through satellite imagery.

NParks added that more than 80 volunteers, co-managed by NParks and volunteer Ria Tan, had come forward to register their interest and support.

These volunteers will be participating in various aspects of the survey, such as photography, outdoor field sampling and collection, and specimen processing.

Several organisations also voiced their support for the survey, with Shell Companies in Singapore donating $500,000 to the National University of Singapore for conservation activities, of which $300,000 will go towards bringing in scientific experts for the survey.

In addition to this, the Care-for-Nature Trust Fund has pledged $250,000 to finance equipment needed for the survey.

The survey is expected to be completed by December 2013.

Corporations keen to support the project can contact NParks' Garden City Fund at garden_city_fund@nparks.gov.sg.

More links
Members of the public who are keen to volunteer their time can find out more about the programme on the Mega Marine Survey blog and register their interest in this form.

Singapore to conduct biodiversity survey on marine ecosystem
S Mustafa Today Online 8 Dec 10;

SINGAPORE - The Republic is undertaking its first comprehensive survey to take stock of its marine ecosystem, species diversity and distribution.

It will be led by the National Parks Board (NParks) in partnership with experts from tertiary institutions, non-government organisations and individual enthusiasts. It is expected to be completed by December 2013.

NParks said sites with coastal and marine habitats around Singapore have been identified and mapped, using satellite images.

They are further validated through the ongoing biodiversity surveys conducted at these sites, including Chek Jawa, Cyrene Reefs and Pulau Semakau.

More than 80 volunteers have come forward to help. They will be participating in various aspects of the survey, including photography, outdoor field sampling and collection, and specimen processing.

Several organisations have also come on board. Shell Companies in Singapore has donated $500,000 to the National University of Singapore for conservation activities, of which $300,000 will go towards bringing in scientific experts for this survey.

The Care-for-Nature Trust Fund has pledged $250,000 to finance equipment required for the survey.

NParks is keen for more public and private sector support.

Singapore, it noted, has many marine treasures waiting to be documented. In the past two years, a species of sponge new to science was discovered in Singapore's waters.

3-year marine life census under way
It is hoped that the database will help preserve biodiversity amid development
Amresh Gunasingham Straits Times 10 Dec 10;

SINGAPORE may be a little red dot, but its waters are home to 250 species of corals - or a third of the known species in the world.

Tracking such marine richness is the goal of a project taking place over the next three years, involving government officials, researchers and members of the public.

They will cover known hot spots such as Chek Jawa, Pulau Semakau and Cyrene Reef to draw up a comprehensive list of the organisms.

The authorities hope such a database will help preserve biodiversity in the face of development pressures in land-scarce Singapore.

Past studies, conducted ad-hoc, show that Singapore is rich in marine wildlife.

For example, there are 100 known species of intertidal sponges.

NParks is working with researchers from the Tropical Marine Science Institute at the National University of Singapore and recruiting volunteers.

Together, they will check out the coastlines, snapping photographs and taking field samples, which will be studied by scientists in the lab for listing in the database.

The team will be able to use satellite maps to identify the marine habitats around the island.

News of the Comprehensive Marine Biodiversity Survey, which will be funded by an initial $300,000 grant from oil company Shell, was disclosed earlier this year.

But it was only on Thursday last week that the first expedition got under way, with a team visiting the mudflats at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve.

Scientists together with 18 volunteers dug up the mud to unearth a variety of ribbon worms, flatworms, peanut worms, bristleworms, horseshoe crabs and the moray eel, which is not known to be common to the area.

The next exercise is expected to take place next month.

According to NParks, around 80 members of the public have signed on as volunteers, following an outreach effort earlier this year.

One of them, Ms Ria Tan, who regularly blogs about environment issues, said of her fellow volunteers: 'They come from all walks of life, from seasoned green supporters to first-time volunteers. This is a great opportunity to learn about nature in urban Singapore.'

Professor Leo Tan, chairman of the Garden City Fund, a charity registered with NParks, said getting more volunteers and private-sector funding will be done in the months ahead.

'We are encouraged by the support received for the survey so far,' he added.

The launch of the study here comes not long after the release of the first worldwide census of marine life undertaken by a group of international scientists to track the state of biodiversity out at sea.

The ambitious project, which was launched a decade ago, involved 2,700 scientists from 80 countries.

It was released at the World Conference of Marine Biodiversity in Valencia in October.

From among the millions of specimens they collected, the scientists estimated that there are 230,000 varieties of marine species.

They also found more than 6,000 potentially new species.

Marine biodiversity survey on track
NParks website 07 Dec 2010

Singapore, 7 December 2010: Singapore has many marine treasures waiting to be documented. Some of these have yet to be discovered and are waiting to be found. For example, did you know that there are mud lobsters in our mangroves and that half the number of seagrass species in the Indo-Pacific region can be found within Singapore's waters? In the last two years, a species of sponge new to science was discovered in Singapore's shallow waters. These are just some amazing plant and animal life that will soon be recorded under Singapore's first Comprehensive Marine Biodiversity Survey.

Led by the National Parks Board (NParks), and partnering experts from tertiary institutions, non-governmental organisations and individual enthusiasts, the survey will take stock of Singapore's marine ecosystem, species diversity and distribution over three years. The survey is targeted to be completed by December 2013.

Prof Leo Tan, Chairman of Garden City Fund said, "We are highly encouraged and grateful for the good multi-party support that the survey has received, from volunteers and corporations. As this national project will benefit everybody, we would like to invite more public and private sector support for the survey."

Organisations supporting the survey include Shell Companies in Singapore and the Care-for-Nature Trust Fund. Shell Companies in Singapore has donated S$500,000 to the National University of Singapore (NUS) for conservation activities, of which S$300,000 will go towards bringing in scientific experts for this survey. The Care-for-Nature Trust Fund has pledged S$250,000 to finance equipment required for the survey.

"We are as proud of the rich marine biodiversity found around our shores as our long and deep heritage in Singapore", said Mr Lee Tzu Yang, Chairman, Shell Companies in Singapore. "Shell has enjoyed 120 successful years in Singapore, and we are proud to support this national survey to help protect and sustain our natural environment for all generations to enjoy."

Work on the survey has already commenced. Sites with coastal and marine habitats around Singapore have been identified and mapped, using satellite images. They are further validated through the ongoing biodiversity surveys conducted at these sites, including Chek Jawa, Cyrene Reefs and Pulau Semakau.

More than 80 volunteers, co-managed by NParks and volunteer Ms Ria Tan, have come forward to register their interest and support. They will be participating in various aspects of the survey, such as photography, outdoor field sampling and collection, specimen processing, database support and organising outreach programmes. NParks is working with NUS to train the volunteers.

Ms Ria Tan said, "I am very encouraged by the enthusiastic response from the public to help with the survey. The volunteers come from all walks of life. They range from seasoned green supporters to first timers. This is a great opportunity for all in Singapore to come together, and learn and share about nature in urban Singapore."

Noting the importance of collective action in environmental conservation, Mr Richard Hale, Chairman of the Management Committee for the Care-For-Nature Trust Fund said, "It takes many hands to protect the environment upon which our prosperity depends on, and the Care-for-Nature Trust Fund is proud to be a part of this survey. We certainly hope that the survey will promote greater awareness of the rich biodiversity in Singapore and the need to conserve our environment, as this is precisely what the Care-for-Nature Trust Fund is all about."

Comprehensive Marine Biodiversity Survey Of Singapore
NParks website 7 Dec 10;
Background - Why the survey

Singapore is one of the busiest ports in the world. Yet we have very rich marine biodiversity. Singapore's waters harbour some 250 species of hard corals, or a third of the world's hard coral species. Half the number of seagrass species in the Indo-Pacific region can be found within Singapore�s waters. More than 100 species of inter-tidal sponges have been recorded and many more are likely to be observed in the survey.

We have achieved this through delicately balancing development and biodiversity conservation, which is something that we will need to continue doing given our limited space and resources.

In order for Singapore to remain a sustainable coastal city as we continue to urbanise, we need to better integrate the management of our coastal and marine environments. The start to this is to know comprehensively and understand our marine biodiversity, what we have, where they are and how best to conserve them.

What is the Comprehensive Marine Biodiversity Survey

The Comprehensive Marine Biodiversity Survey (CMBS) will take stock of Singapore's marine ecosystem and species diversity, species distribution and abundance over three years from end 2010 to end 2013.

The survey, led by the National Parks Board (NParks), will bring together the larger community of experts from tertiary institutions, non-governmental organisations and individual enthusiasts.

Shell Companies in Singapore has donated S$500,000 to the National University of Singapore for conservation activities, of which S$300,000 will go towards bringing in scientific experts for this survey. The Care-for-Nature Trust Fund has sponsored S$250,000 to the Garden City Fund, which will finance equipment required for the survey.