Best of our wild blogs: 8 Feb 19

10 Feb: Registration opens for Sisters Islands Intertidal walks in Mar 2019
Celebrating Singapore Shores!

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Burning smell reported over several parts of eastern Singapore including Tampines, Bedok

Tee Zhuo Straits Times 8 Feb 19;

SINGAPORE - A strong burning smell has been reported over several parts of eastern Singapore on Friday morning (Feb 8), including Tampines, Bedok and Pasir Ris.

Mr Jon Lee, 45, who lives in Tampines, likened the smell to the haze or offerings being burnt during the Chinese seventh month.

"I was taking my son to school on the way to work at around 6am, and there was a strong burning smell. At 7am, when I dropped my son off in the East Coast area, it was still there," said Mr Lee, who works in sales.

He told The Straits Times that there was no burning smell when he reached his workplace in the west. He added that his colleague who lives in Bedok also described a similar burning smell.

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Malaysia: Introduced fish disrupts water, habitat quality of river

The fish had the potential to weaken the river- bank structure caused by their burrowing habit during spawning season.
Esther Landau New Straits Times 7 Feb 19;

KUALA LUMPUR: The presence of Amazon Sailfin Catfish or ‘Ikan Bandaraya’ could threaten the native fish species and affect water and habitat quality of the Malaysian rivers and lakes, said Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) School of Environmental and Natural Resources Sciences senior lecturer Dr Abdullah Samat.

Besides that, the fish had the potential to weaken the river- bank structure caused by their burrowing habit during spawning season, he added.

“This kind of fish does disrupt our aquatic ecosystem.”

The fish, from the South American continent, is imported as a ‘janitor’ fish for the aquariums and once they have outlived their purpose or gets too big, it’s thrown away.

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Indonesia: 'Future proofing' forests to protect orangutans

Helen Briggs, BBC News 7 Feb 19

A study has identified key tree species that are resilient to climate change and support critically endangered apes.

Planting them could help future proof rainforests, which are a key habitat for orangutans, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature - IUCN.

Researchers surveyed 250 plants in Indonesia's Kutai National Park.

Over 1,000 orangutans are thought to inhabit the park, as well as other rare animals such as the Malayan sun bear.

"Selecting which species to plant is a significant contribution to restoring the health of this ecosystem," said study co-author Douglas Sheil.

"Of course, the reasons why forest cover was lost in the first place must also be addressed for reforestation efforts to succeed."

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