Best of our wild blogs: 17 Jul 11


Pangolin (scaly anteater) carcass at Sixth Avenue today
from Otterman speaks

Harry Potter and the Owls of Singapore
from Celebrating Singapore's BioDiversity!

Rich reefs of Kusu Island
from wild shores of singapore and Singapore Nature

Mud Lobster in Crab hole
from Urban Forest

Other Critters @ USR
from Beauty of Fauna and Flora in Nature

16 Jul (Sat): Sharing about Singapore's seagrasses
from teamseagrass

Nest of the Brown-throated Sunbird
from Bird Ecology Study Group and Janice Kwek’s Olive-backed Sunbirds

110715 Rifle Range Road, Nangka trail
from Singapore Nature

110715 Cyrene Reef
from Singapore Nature

Undergrad opportunity: Forest field assistant required
from The Biodiversity crew @ NUS


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Meet the weekend tomb explorers

Brothers Raymond and Charles Goh visit cemeteries to unearth history
Huang Lijie Straits Times 17 Jul 11;

Weekends spent among dead people may seem a spooky pursuit, but brothers Raymond and Charles Goh have found historical gemstones among tombstones.

The duo are neither mediums nor ghostbusters, but passionate tomb explorers who enjoy unearthing Singapore's history through graves.

One recent case after a three-year search was their discovery of the tomb, in Bukit Brown Cemetery, of Madam Tan Eng Neo, whom Eng Neo Avenue is named after.

For the siblings, finding where the wife of wealthy Chinese businessman Gaw Boon Chan was buried was fulfilling, and not just because it marked the end of their longest quest for a tomb.

Raymond, 47, the older brother, said: 'We want people to know that Bukit Brown Cemetery is where many Singapore pioneers have been buried and to appreciate it, not bulldoze it.'

The 86ha graveyard off Lornie Road was in the news recently after heritage activists petitioned for a rethink of the redevelopment of one of Singapore's oldest remaining burial grounds to meet housing needs.

To keep alive the memory of famous pioneers buried at the cemetery, the brothers conduct regular guided tours of the area. Those who have signed up include students, young professionals and retirees.

The duo also provide a free map which includes the locations of the tombs of more than 30 famous pioneers such as businessman Chew Boon Lay, who has an MRT station, school and housing estate named after him.

The map is on the website of the Asia Paranormal Investigators - www.api.sg - founded in 2005 by Charles to research unexplained phenomena.

The brothers' interest in tombs began in 2006 after Raymond, the regional director of a health-care company, accompanied his father to his grandfather's grave at Choa Chu Kang Cemetery.

'It was my first visit and I had a shock when I saw my name on the tombstone.

'It came to me, out of the blue, that I'm related to this grave,' said the father of three children, aged 10 to 17.

His interest piqued, he began poring over books on tomb culture and visiting cemeteries at the weekend, walking stick in hand to fend off spiders and even snakes to look for unusual tombstones.

Raymond's tomb fever got to Charles, who had some knowledge of the subject through his research on urban myths of haunted graves.

Charles, 43, a construction company safety manager who is married without children, said: 'When Raymond finds an interesting tombstone, he is so excited he cleans it with his towel, then forgets and wipes his face with the cloth.'

They dig into the past of the tombs they find using information engraved on the tombstones, as well as newspaper and land deed archives.

They sometimes spend a few hundred dollars on archive material when researching a tomb but Raymond says their passion 'cannot be measured in money terms'.

They say their families are supportive of their unusual pursuit.

'Only our mother, who is superstitious, urges us not to visit the cemeteries at night or during the Hungry Ghost Festival,' said Raymond. But not being superstitious, the siblings have not heeded her advice.

When historical records that they chance upon reveal the burial of a famous person in a particular cemetery, their search becomes tougher. The hunt for Madam Tan's tomb, for example, was the proverbial needle in a haystack, with 80,000 tombstones at Bukit Brown.

Families eager to trace their roots or find the resting places of their ancestors have approached the brothers for help, and the duo gladly offer to reunite the living and the dead for free.

Those they have helped include the descendents of businessman Ang Seah Im, after whom Seah Im Road, near VivoCity, is named. The pioneer's tomb is located in Bukit Brown.

Raymond said: 'I feel sad and pained when I see tombs that are not taken care of by descendants. The dead should not be abandoned.'


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Malaysia: Move to save terrapins

Farik Zolkepli The Star 17 Jul 11;

SETIU: WWF Malaysia is concerned over the habit of people eating turtle eggs in the state.

The foundation's Terengganu Turtle Conservation team leader Rahayu Zulkifli said the cooperation of the people as well as tourists was essential in order to remove terrapin eggs from the menu.

She said WWF Malaysia was alarmed that certain tourist guides still promoted the eating of terrapin eggs.

“I was informed that the guides would casually remind tourists not to miss the chance to eat the eggs while they are in Terengganu,” she told The Star yesterday.

Rahayu said her team of researchers, volunteers as well as forest rangers were working hard to save the painted terrapin or tuntung, which has been classified as critically endangered.

“If the demand for the eggs diminishes, then we can ensure the terrapin population is saved,” she added.

Rahayu said if the advice not to eat turtle eggs was not heeded, the painted terrapins could share the same fate as the famous leatherback turtles of Rantau Abang.

“In the past, leatherback turtles were commonly sighted there.

“In the 1950s, the number of turtles nests was about 10,000, but the number decreased to less than 10 in 2010.

“No sighting has been recorded so far this year,” she said, adding that WWF Malaysia feared the turtles might have become extinct.

Rahayu also said the Setiu Wetlands was now considered the last global frontier for painted terrapins.

“In 1993, a total of 200 nests were discovered, but that went down to 67 last year,” she added.

She said WWF Malaysia had made efforts in its conservation work since 2009 to save the painted terrapins.

Among them were the egg buy-back scheme, whereby the foundation buys terrapins eggs from licensed egg collectors, and the creation of awareness programmes for the locals, especially in Kampung Mangkok and Kampung Penarik.


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Indonesian Ministry employs 5,000 preachers to preserve forests

The Jakarta Post 17 Jul 11;

The Forestry Ministry will dispatch 5,000 Muslim preachers in its latest move to campaign against forest destruction, citing the rampant case of illegal logging involving local communities.

“Our forests don’t go up in flames on their own, but are intentionally burned because there is this tradition of burning the land after harvest and before planting, which has now also affected forest areas,” Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan said Sunday in Yogyakarta.

He was speaking during the national working meeting of the propagation assembly of the central executive board of Indonesia’s second-largest Muslim organization, Muhammadiyah.

The minister called on the Muslim scholars to support the campaign against forest burning, as well as to promote forest preservation and reforestation efforts.

The 5,000 Muslim preachers are being recruited from a number of Muslim organizations. They will be given relevant trainings and will be paid about Rp 2 million (US$234) per month.

The program is set to begin later this year and last throughout 2012.

Muhammadiyah propagation assembly committee head Agus Sukoco said 95 Muhammadiyah preachers were ready to participate in the program, tempointeraktif.com reported.

The Forestry Ministry will dispatch 5,000 Muslim preachers in its latest move to campaign against forest destruction, citing the rampant case of illegal logging involving local communities.

“Our forests don’t go up in flames on their own, but are intentionally burned because there is this tradition of burning the land after harvest and before planting, which has now also affected forest areas,” Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan said Sunday in Yogyakarta.

He was speaking during the national working meeting of the propagation assembly of the central executive board of Indonesia’s second-largest Muslim organization, Muhammadiyah.

The minister called on the Muslim scholars to support the campaign against forest burning, as well as to promote forest preservation and reforestation efforts.

The 5,000 Muslim preachers are being recruited from a number of Muslim organizations. They will be given relevant trainings and will be paid about Rp 2 million (US$234) per month.

The program is set to begin later this year and last throughout 2012.

Muhammadiyah propagation assembly committee head Agus Sukoco said 95 Muhammadiyah preachers were ready to participate in the program, tempointeraktif.com reported.


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