Best of our wild blogs: 4 Jun 15

Win a pair of tickets to Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum in our caption contest!
News from Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum

The granite island alive
The Long and Winding Road

Yellow-vented Bulbul chasing a Plantain Squirrel
Bird Ecology Study Group

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Two new plants species native to Singapore discovered

“Incidentally, the two new Hanguana plant species have red and white berries, our national colours. At SG50, they are nature’s timely gift to us,” says National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan in a blogpost.
Channel NewsAsia 4 Jun 15;

SINGAPORE: Two new species of plants native to the Republic – Hanguana rubinea and Hanguana triangulata - have been discovered by researchers at the Singapore Botanic Gardens, announced National Parks Board (NParks) on Thursday (Jun 4).

Hanguana is the only genus in the small plant family Hanguanaceae, and its species are flowering herbs which are often confined to the understorey of primary forests. The two new species are not only native to Singapore, but can only be found here, said NParks.

“The Hanguana species has not been studied extensively previously,” explained NParks. “The genus Hanguana (Hanguanaceae – Commelinales) was until recently believed to be represented in Singapore by a single species, Hanguana malayana.

“The discovery of the Hanguana rubinea and Hanguana triangulata is unique in that there were at least 25 existing herbarium records of Hanguana at the Singapore Botanic Gardens Herbarium, some of them dating more than 100 years old. However, all previous herbarium records of this group of plants collected from Singapore were mistakenly identified as Hanguana malayana, a common misconception due to the lack of study of the genus Hanguana.”

Following more research, NParks has now established that there are at least six species from the Hanguanaceae family in Singapore.

“Finding any new species in heavily urbanised Singapore is almost a small miracle, in part because of our land area and also because Singapore’s flora has been so densely researched in Southeast Asia,” said the taxonomist behind the discovery Jana Leong-Skornickova.

“Yet, the discovery of these new Hanguana species shows that tropical floras, including that of Singapore, are richer and more complex than we generally presumed.”

Minister of National Development Khaw Boon Wan said in his blog on Thursday that these new discoveries “testify to the importance of biodiversity research”, as “it allows us to better understand our local flora and fauna”.

“Incidentally, the two new Hanguana plant species have red and white berries, our national colours. At SG50, they are nature’s timely gift to us,” he added.

Khaw also said that visitors to Bukit Timah or MacRitchie would have passed the plants multiple times without realising it, as they are sometimes situated close to walking paths.

- CNA/ek

Two species of plants new to science discovered in Singapore
Today Online 4 Jun 15;

SINGAPORE — Two new species of plants, which are new to science and can only be found in Singapore, have been discovered here by researchers at the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

The discovery of the Hanguana rubinea and Hanguana triangulata is unique, said the National Parks Board (Nparks) in a press release today (June 3).

This is because there were at least 25 herbarium records of Hanguana at the Singapore Botanic Gardens Herbarium — some dating more than 100 years old — but all previous records were mistakenly identified as Hanguana malayana due to lack of study of the genus Hanguana, said NParks.

“With field surveys conducted at our nature reserves and areas and through the study of fresh as well as existing herbarium material, researchers from NParks have established that there are at least six species from the Hanguanaceae family in Singapore,” added NParks.

The Hanguana rubinea is named for its ruby-red, dark pink fruits that produce yellow juice when disturbed. It has been found to grow in four locations here: Bukit Timah, Mandai, MacRitchie and Seletar. The species is considered critically endangered at the national and global levels due to its endemic status.

The Hanguana triangulata is named for the sharply triangular shape of the stigma, which is the female part of the flower. It can only be found in two locations, Bukit Timah and Seletar. It has very low numbers of adult individuals, and is considered critically endangered at the national and global levels due to its endemic status.

Last year, NParks and staff from the National University of Singapore independently discovered another species of Hanguana, the Hanguana neglecta — a small primary forest herb with black berries native to Singapore and extending to Johor, Peninsular Malaysia. It is considered locally endangered and globally vulnerable. Immediate conservation and propagation works are ongoing for the Hanguana plant family.

Said taxonomist Jana Leong-Skornickova, who is behind the new discovery: “Finding any new species in heavily urbanised Singapore is almost a small miracle, in part because of our land area and also because Singapore’s flora has been so densely researched in South-east Asia.

The discovery shows that tropical floras are “richer and more complex than we generally presumed”, Dr Leong-Skornickova added.

National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan wrote in a blog post: “With the discovery of the Zingiber singapurense (a ginger) last year, we now have three plant species found nowhere else in the world. These discoveries prove that size does not matter when it comes to biodiversity.”

“Incidentally, the two new Hanguana plant species have red and white berries, our national colours. At SG50, they are nature’s timely gift to us,” he said.

New species of plants native to Singapore discovered in Botanic Gardens
Andrew Goh AsiaOne 4 Jun 15;

SINGAPORE - Two new species of plants have been discovered here by researchers at the Botanic Gardens.

The Hanguana rubinea and Hanguana triangulata are new to science and can only be found in Singapore.

They grow in the understorey of primary forests and were first located in the Botanic Gardens.

Their discovery is unique in that there were at least 25 existing records of their family Hanguana at the Botanic Gardens Herbarium, some dating back to more than 100 years.

However, the Hanguana species was not studied extensively and was believed to be represented in Singapore by a single species, Hanguana malayana.

With field surveys conducted at Singapore's nature reserves, and through the study of fresh and existing herbarium material, researchers at the National Parks Board (NParks) have established that there are at least six species from the Hanguanaceae family in Singapore.

Said Jana Leong-Skornickova, the taxonomist behind the new discovery: "Finding any new species in heavily urbanised Singapore is almost a small miracle, in part because of our land area and also because Singapore's flora has been so densely researched in South East Asia.

"Yet, the discovery of these new Hanguana species shows that tropical floras, including that of Singapore, are richer and more complex than we generally presumed.

"Continued effort towards documenting and fully understanding the richness of Singapore's biodiversity is required to ensure that we correctly identify the conservation statuses of the native flora that is present on our island."

With the discovery of Hanguana rubinea and Hanguana triangulata, Singapore now has 3 species of endemic plants whch cannot be found anywhere else.
The third is the Zingiber singapurense, a ginger which grows at the Central Catchment Area Nature Reserve.

The discovery and rediscovery of plant species at Singapore's nature reserves and other nature areas is an indication that Singapore still contains many thriving habitats for biodiversity, said NParks.

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Singapore leads the way in Southeast Asia in lowering emissions: report

Lee U-wen The Business Times AsiaOne 4 Jun 15;

WHEN it comes to achieving cleaner growth, Singapore leads the way in South-east Asia and the rest of the region still has much catching-up to do.

This was one of the key findings of a new economic report, which found that Singapore's transition to an international services hub has caused sustained lower carbon emissions on a per capita basis in the last two decades.

The Economic Insight report, commissioned by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), noted that Singapore was the only South-east Asian country to have made improvements in this area.

The UK-based institute, which represents over 144,000 chartered accountants worldwide, noted that most economies within the region had not reached a stage where the environmental impact of economic activity started to decrease.

Unlike Singapore, which has seen a sustained drop in emissions since 1994, the report stressed that other ASEAN member countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia were only seeing "periodic lower emissions" when their GDP shrank.

ICAEW economic adviser Scott Corfe said that manufacturing activities had a strong effect on emissions, producing more than three times of carbon emissions per US$1,000 of output than service activities.

"Singapore's transition from a low-cost manufacturing base to a high value-added international services hub has resulted in the nation leaving a much smaller environmental footprint than before," he said.

However, Mr Corfe pointed out that Singapore's investment in generating electricity through renewables, as opposed to fossil fuels, remained "an area of improvement".

He said: "While it is estimated that Singapore could produce 10 per cent of its energy from renewables by 2020, it must ensure that much greater focus is placed on renewables than fossil fuels to achieve this."

ICAEW went on to add that, over the last 10 years, while the environmental policy across ASEAN had been placed higher on the agenda, there had been little progress so far.

"Much more is needed to translate policies into reality, including a stronger regulatory environment, political will and funding," the institute said. "While environmental policy in Singapore has been relatively successful, plans in other ASEAN nations such as the Philippines and Thailand have been more modest."

As the global economy moves towards cleaner growth, ICAEW said that ASEAN had to keep pace. It reasoned that a lower environmental impact resulting from the region's development would make it a more desirable place for individuals and firms to move to.

The institute's Economic Insight report is a quarterly forecast for South-east Asia, providing the finance profession with a snapshot of the region's economic performance.

The six-page report also mentioned the recent passing of Singapore's founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, who died on March 23 this year at the age of 91.
"He personally exerted considerable influence over the country's subsequent development, building an open economy with a strong state and heavy emphasis on education, productivity and economic growth," it said.
"Over the next 50 years - a jubilee it celebrates this summer - these policies transformed (Singapore) into one of the richest countries in the world."

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Singapore renews haze assistance package offer to Indonesia

The Government has consistently offered assistance packages to the Indonesian government in the run-up to the traditional dry season from June to October, to complement Indonesia’s efforts in combating possible land and forest fires.
Channel NewsAsia 3 Jun 15;

SINGAPORE: The Republic on Wednesday (Jun 3) announced it is renewing its offer of assistance to Indonesia to combat possible land and forest fires that can result in transboundary haze.

The assistance package offered is the same as last year's and comprises:

One C-130 aircraft for cloud seeding operations;
=Up to two C-130 aircraft to ferry a fire-fighting assistance team from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF);
=A team from SCDF to provide assessment and planning assistance to Indonesian counterparts in their fire-fighting efforts;
=High resolution satellite pictures and hotspot coordinates; and
=One Chinook helicopter with one SCDF water bucket for aerial firefighting.

The Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources said the Government has since 2005 consistently offered assistance packages to the Indonesian government in the run-up to the traditional dry season from June to October, to complement Indonesia’s efforts in combating possible land and forest fires.

The region’s susceptibility to land and forest fires during the traditional dry season increases the probability of transboundary haze. This is a problem which has confronted the southern ASEAN region for decades. Singapore was affected by transboundary haze pollution in September and October last year, the ministry added.

Furthermore, the El Nino phenomenon this year may cause drier weather, which could exacerbate the impact of transboundary haze, it said.

- CNA/kk

Singapore renews haze assistance package to Indonesia as dry season approaches
Today Online 3 Jun 15;

SINGAPORE — As the region enters the traditional dry season, Singapore has renewed its offer to help Indonesia to combat possible land and forest fires which can result in transboundary haze, said the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) today (June 3).

Noting that the region could be affected by the El Nino phenomenon this year, the ministry said: “This could result in drier weather which would exacerbate the impact of transboundary haze caused by land and forest fires.”

Same as last year’s assistance package, Singapore will offer: One C-130 aircraft for cloud seeding operations, up to two C-130 aircraft to ferry a fire-fighting assistance team from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), a team from SCDF to provide assessment and planning assistance to Indonesian counterparts in their fire-fighting efforts, high resolution satellite pictures and hotspot coordinates, as well as one Chinook helicopter with one SCDF water bucket for aerial fire-fighting.

Since 2005, the Government has consistently offered assistance packages to Indonesia to complement its efforts in combating possible land and forest fires, said the MEWR.

The traditional dry season starts this month until October. Singapore was affected by transboundary haze pollution in September and October last year.

Singapore offers aid to Indonesia again to fight haze
AsiaOne 3 Jun 15;

SINGAPORE - Singapore has renewed its offer of assistance to Indonesia to fight land and forest fires that can cause transboundary haze.
The Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) said in a statement today (Jun 3) that the assistance package this year is the same as last year's.

Singapore is offering Indonesia the use of a C-130 aircraft for cloud seeding, the use of up to two C-130 aircraft to ferry a fire-fighting assistance team from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) - which will help Indonesian fire-fighters assess and plan their efforts, the use of a Chinook helicopter with one SCDF water bucket for aerial fire-fighting, and high-resolution satellite images and hotspot coordinates.

MEWR said that Singapore has offered fire-fighting assistance, in the run-up to the traditional dry season from June to October, to Indonesia consistently since 2005.

Haze in Singapore occurs when winds bring in smoke from land and forest fires in Indonesia. Singapore was affected by the haze pollution in September and October last year.

MEWR has said that the region could be affected by the El Nino phenomenon - resulting in drier weather - this year, which could worsen the haze problem.

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Pulp and paper giant stops cutting Indonesia's rainforests

MICHAEL TAYLOR Reuters 3 Jun 15;

One of Asia's biggest pulp and paper firms said on Wednesday it would stop sourcing from natural forests four years earlier than planned, in an effort to reduce deforestation and protect peatlands, a move cautiously welcomed by green groups.

Unlisted Asia Pacific Resources International Limited (APRIL) brought forward a previous commitment to only use supplies from its own plantations by 2019, and will now work with green groups to avoid developing forested peatland, expand conservation areas and resolve social conflicts on its land.

"This is a major step in our 15-year sustainability journey," said APRIL President Praveen Singhavi.

APRIL and other palm, pulp and paper firms have been criticised for not doing enough to stop deforestation and destruction of carbon-rich peatlands in Indonesia.

APRIL owns plantations covering around 480,000 hectares and has now conserved about 320,000 hectares of natural forest area in Indonesia.

"This strengthened commitment by APRIL is an encouraging step along the pathway towards responsible and sustainable production," said WWF Indonesia's Aditya Bayunanda.

Indonesia, home to the world's third-largest tropical forests, has surpassed Brazil in clearing tropical forests with losses accelerating despite a 2011 moratorium meant to protect wildlife and combat climate change.

APRIL is part of the PT Royal Golden Eagle (RGE) group, which will also implement sustainability policies, said company director Anderson Tanoto.

Environmental group Greenpeace welcomed the move and suspended all campaigns against RGE companies.

Criticism of palm and pulp and paper plantations often intensifies mid-year because of Indonesian forest fires and haze that affect its neighbouring countries.

Indonesia apologised to Singapore and Malaysia in mid-2013, when those countries were blanketed with thick smog from forest fires in Indonesia. (Writing by Fergus Jensen; Editing by Michael Perry)

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Malaysia: Protect Semporna Priority Conservation Area Through First Marine Spatial Plan

Bernama 3 Jun 15;

KOTA KINABALU, June 3 (Bernama) -- The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Malaysia today marked a solid partnership with the Sabah Town and Regional Planning Department, an agency in the state's Local Government and Housing Ministry, to implement Malaysia's first marine spatial planning in Semporna.

The effort under the Semporna Marine Spatial Planning (SMSP) was underscored through a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed by the two organisations here today.

WWF Malaysia was represented by its Conservation director Dr Sundari Ramakrishna while Sabah Town and Regional Planning Department by its director, Murshidi Sapie.

It was witnessed by the state Local Government and Housing Ministry permanent secretary Datuk Matius Sator and Sulabayan assemblyman Datuk Dr Jaujan Sambakong.

With the MoU agreement together with the launching of the SMSP, it is a recognition of the SMSP approach and final planning document that would be adopted and incorporated into the state government's regulatory framework.

Sundari said it was envisioned to pull all stakeholders to work together and ensure implementation, enforcement and monitoring activities will begin towards environmental sustainability in the Semporna Priority Conservation Area (PCA).

Meanwhile, Jaujan said he hoped both organisations would design a plan that could be acceptable to everyone, bring prosperity to the area, looks after the marine environment and restore the rich biodiversity.

He also suggested to the WWF Malaysia to set up a marine research centre in Semporna to allow international and local marine researchers to come and share data related to the field, as well as educate people in that area about conservation activities.

-- BERNAMA

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Malaysia: National Biodiversity Council agree to implement proposal to conserve, preserve nature and wildlife

AZURA ABAS AND FAIRUZ MOHD SHAHAR New Straits Times 4 Jun 15;

PUTRAJAYA : The National Biodiversity Council has agreed to implement several proposal to conserve and preserve the nature and wildlife in the country.

Among the proposals that the council has taken into consideration include National Tiger Survey project, conservation of the Sumatran rhinoceros and other endangered wildlife species, coastal fishery resources conservation efforts, conserving and preserving edible wild fruits and tackling the conflict issues between human and monkeys.

The National Tiger Survey project has been proposed to be carried out by the Federal Government through the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan), state government and non-governmental organisations, which is expected to help the government to precisely determine the population and habitat of Malayan tigers.

The council has also agreed with the proposal by Sabah state government that both state and federal governments should work together to stop the extinction of Sumatran rhinoceros or Dicerorhinus Sunatrensis through Advanced Reproductive Technology development and also collaborating with Indonesia.

The Department of Fisheries will work with the state government in implementing the coastal fishery sources conservation programme in the Peninsula, which will involve the river, lake and freshwater.

The council has agreed that the state government in the Peninsula should implement the efforts to conserve and preserve the edible wild fruits in the government forest land.

"These efforts should also be expanded to Sabah and Sawarak as both states have fruit species which are important to the fauna and biodiversity preservation," said the council.

In addressing the issues between humans and monkeys especially in the residential areas, Perhilitan has suggested that there should be an enforcement of the by-laws in prohibiting people from feeding the monkeys, which will soon be implemented by the local councils.

The council was chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

Also present was National Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri G. Palanivel.

Conservation a top priority
The Star 5 Jun 15;

PUTRAJAYA: A survey of the tiger population, conservation of the Sumatran rhino and preservation of wild fruit trees are among initiatives aimed at better managing Malaysia’s rich biodiversity.

The Government will also look for ways to reduce conflict between people and monkeys in some areas.

These are part of its commitment to ensure that the people as well as flora and fauna have a rightful place under the Malaysian sun.

These matters and others were discussed during the 2nd National Biodiversity Council meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin yesterday.

The council gave the green light for the First National Tiger Survey to be conducted by the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan).

With the help of state governments and non-governmental organisations, Perhilitan will identify where exactly the tigers roam and in what numbers.

“This collaboration will allow the authorities to better determine the population and habitat of ‘Harimau Malaya’ to implement the National Tiger Conservation and Action Plan,” the council said in a statement.

Several suggestions were also presented on how to deal with the conflict between people and wild monkeys.

Perhilitan suggested that a by-law to forbid people from feeding the animals be enforced.

It was also suggested that the federal and state governments work together on any plans to develop new land areas to minimise the impact on monkey habitats.

As for the rhinos, the council agreed that the Sabah government would use advanced reproductive technology as part of its efforts to save the animals and other wildlife.

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El Nino to disrupt rains, cut Africa, East Asia harvests, scientists say

CHRIS ARSENAULT Reuters 3 Jun 15;

ROME, June 3 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Farmers in Africa and East Asia are expected to suffer crop losses as extreme weather linked to the El Nino phenomenon alters rainfall patterns, scientists told a conference on climate change in Bonn on Wednesday.

The rainy season has been delayed in several African nations, and it is difficult to predict exactly how large the crop losses will be, said Sonja Vermeulen, a University of Copenhagen scientist.

"Peanut farmers in Gambia, for example, have already been hit this year," Vermeulen told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone from Bonn, where the conference took place.

Substantial losses of bean, potato and maize crops are expected in parts of Kenya, said James Kinyangi, senior adviser to the research group Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS).

El Nino is also creating the "perfect conditions" for an outbreak of rust or other plant diseases in some wheat-growing areas of East Africa, Kinyangi said by email.

Parts of China, Indonesia and India are also expected to be seriously affected by El Nino this year, Oscar Rojas, a senior official at the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in an interview on Monday.

"We are monitoring for extreme droughts," Rojas said, adding that it is not yet possible to estimate potential crop losses.

The El Nino phenomenon is based on Pacific Ocean waters becoming unusually warm, and altering global weather patterns. The last El Nino happened in 2009-2010, and it usually lasts about one year.

Global warming can intensify changes created by El Nino, further destabilising farming plans, Vermeulen said.

El Nino is expected to appear more often as the planet warms, increasing crop losses in the future, Rojas said.

The Bonn climate change talks will be followed by a major U.N. meeting at the end of the year in Paris, aimed at reaching a new international agreement on ways to combat global warming.

If left unchecked, the rise in temperatures due to human activity is expected to reduce Africa's maize and bean production by up to 40 percent by 2050, according to CCAFS scientists.

(Reporting By Chris Arsenault; Editing by Tim Pearce

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