Millet Enriquez Channel NewsAsia 21 Apr 11;
SINGAPORE: The public will now have a chance to view some of the recent plant and animal discoveries in Singapore through an exhibition at HortPark Gallery starting today.
The National Parks Board (NParks) and the National University of Singapore's Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research (RMBR) have put together an exhibition that features "A decade of biodiversity conservation and discoveries in Singapore."
About 500 species of plants and animals are said to be new to Singapore, of which, more than 100 species are also new to science, NParks said in a joint news release with the NUS.
Some of these discoveries will be featured in the free exhibition which will run from April 21 to May 2 from 7am to 10pm.
"Singapore has showed that a city need not be an enemy of nature and biodiversity. It demonstrates that achieving economic prosperity need not be at the expense of care for the environment," said Professor Tommy Koh, Ambassador-at-Large, Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
NParks CEO, Mr Poon Hong Yuen said that through the exhibition, the organizers hope the public will become more aware and have better appreciation of the rich flora and fauna in Singapore.
After its run at HortPark Gallery, the exhibition will move to the libraries, City Square Mall and Wisma Atria throughout the year.
The exhibition is part of the activities lined up by NPArks to commemorate the United Nations' International Year of Forests this year.
Among these are the launch of a book featuring dragonflies discovered in Singapore and a one-stop integrated portal on plants and animals.
NParks said the public can access information on over 2,500 plant and 1,000 animal species here via the portal http://florafaunaweb.nparks.gov.sg.
Nparks said it is also organising a special contest where the public can share their photographs and experiences of their visits at the parks and nature reserves, or about their favourite tree, plant or forest animal.
Five winners will be selected every month until the end of the year.
- CNA/cc
500 species of plants and animals new to Singapore found
AsiaOne 21 Apr 11;
SINGAPORE - The National Parks Board and National University of Singapore's Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research have put together an exhibition to celebrate and showcase the finding or rediscovery of new species of flora and fauna in Singapore.
Themed "A decade of biodiversity conservation and discoveries in Singapore", the exhibition which is held in HortPark Gallery will feature specimens of plants and animals that are found in Singapore, such as green tree snails and long-legged flies to orchids.
Others, such as the Giant Clam, Pangolin, Jade Tree Snail and a locally-endangered plant called the Red Flowered Black mangrove will also be on display.
Launched yesterday by Professor Tommy Koh, Ambassador-At-Large, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Special Advisor, Institute of Policy Studies and the Patron of the Nature Society of Singapore, he said: “Singapore has showed that a city need not be an enemy of nature and biodiversity. It demonstrates that achieving economic
prosperity need not be at the expense of care for the environment."
The exhibition also features a new record of a rare damselfly which was discovered as part of a two-year dragonfly conservation project started in 2008. This amazing discovery has led to the production of a book on Singapore’s dragonflies. This is the first of a series of books that documents Singapore’s discoveries.
Also unveiled today is NParks’ new one-stop integrated portal on plants and animals in Singapore - Flora&FaunaWeb. The public can now access and search for information on more than 2,500 plant and 1,000 animal species in Singapore through the portal at http://florafaunaweb.nparks.gov.sg.
The exhibition is free for the public and is on display at the HortPark Gallery from 21 April to 2 May 2011, from 7.00am to 10.00pm. It will subsequently rove to the
libraries, City Square Mall and Wisma Atria throughout the year.
Found: 500 species of plants and animals new to Singapore (Singapore celebrates a decade of biodiversity conservation and discoveries)
NParks media release 21 Apr 11;
Singapore, 21 April 2011 - From green tree snails to long-legged flies to orchids, these are just some of the new species of flora and fauna which were found for the first time or rediscovered in Singapore in the last decade.
Found in our forests, as well as intertidal and subtidal habitats, about 500 species of plants and animals are new to Singapore, with more than 100 species also new to science. These findings underscore Singapore's commitment to biodiversity conservation in creating a unique urban ecosystem where biodiversity can thrive within our environment.
"A decade of biodiversity conservation and discoveries in Singapore" Exhibition
To showcase these amazing flora and fauna discoveries, the National Parks Board (NParks) and National University of Singapore's Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research (RMBR) have put together an exhibition at the HortPark Gallery. Themed 'A decade of biodiversity conservation and discoveries in Singapore', the exhibition was launched today by Professor Tommy Koh, Ambassador-At-Large, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Special Advisor, Institute of Policy Studies and the Patron of the Nature Society of Singapore.
"Urbanisation is generally viewed as a threat to biodiversity. However, we cannot stop the process of urbanisation", said Professor Tommy Koh. "Singapore has showed that a city need not be an enemy of nature and biodiversity. It demonstrates that achieving economic prosperity need not be at the expense of care for the environment. It also shows that a small, densely populated city can still be clean, green and nature-loving, can play a positive role in the conservation of biodiversity and our campaign to reduce the loss of biodiversity."
Specimens of other plants and animals found in Singapore, such as the Giant Clam, Pangolin, Jade Tree Snail and a locally-endangered plant called the Red Flowered Black mangrove will also be on display at the exhibition.
NParks Chief Executive Officer, Mr Poon Hong Yuen said, "We are proud and excited to put this exhibition together with the Raffles Museum to showcase our natural heritage. We hope that through this exhibition, the public will be more aware and can better appreciate the rich flora and fauna that we have here."
Professor Peter Ng, Director of RMBR said, "Most people think Singapore is too small and too urbanised to have anything of biodiversity-significance. There is no point harping too much in the past and bemoan how much we have lost. Instead we have to understand and conserve what we still have and be proud of our natural heritage. And that is still a lot more to do."
The discoveries were made possible through the concerted efforts of the community who were committed in conserving our natural heritage. They include corporations, nature groups, researchers, graduate students and nature enthusiasts.
Dragonfly Book
The exhibition also features a new record of a rare damselfly which was discovered as part of a two-year dragonfly conservation project started in 2008. This amazing discovery has led to the production of a book on Singapore�s dragonflies, which was unveiled today. This is the first of a series of books that documents Singapore's discoveries.
Flora&FaunaWeb
Also unveiled today is NParks' new one-stop integrated portal on plants and animals in Singapore - Flora&FaunaWeb. The public can now access and search for information on more than 2,500 plant and 1,000 animal species in Singapore through the portal at http://florafaunaweb.nparks.gov.sg
Celebrating the International Year of Forests 2011
The launch of the exhibition, dragonfly book, and the Flora&FaunaWeb are held in celebration of the United Nations' International Year of Forests this year. NParks has also lined up a series of activities throughout the year to raise public awareness of our forests and trees (Refer to Annex C: Factsheet on the International Year of Forests 2011). NParks is also organising a special contest for members of the public to share the photographs, as well as their experiences of their visits to our parks and nature reserves, or about their favourite tree, plant or forest animal. Five meaningful submissions will stand to win prizes every month till the end of 2011.
The exhibition was made possible with the contributions of main partner, PICO Art and supporting partners, City Square Mall, National Library Board, Sony South East Asia and Wisma Atria. The exhibition is free for the public and is on display at the HortPark Gallery from 21 April to 2 May 2011, from 7.00am to 10.00pm. It will subsequently rove to the libraries, City Square Mall and Wisma Atria throughout the year.
