Best of our wild blogs: 28 Jul 13

An invitation to join us at the 2013 Mandai Mangrove and Mudflat Workshop! from Mandai Mangrove and Mudflat

Big rain on Big Sisters Island
from wild shores of singapore

Sea turtles nesting in Singapore
from Pulau Hantu

Frogfish at Pulau Hantu!
from Pulau Hantu

My first Chek Jawa intertidal survey trip
from Peiyan.Photography

Chek Jawa coral rubble survey after 4 years
from Chek Jawa Mortality and Recruitment Project

Night Walk At Macritchie Reservoir (26 Jul 2013)
from Beetles@SG BLOG and Short Recce Trip To Bukit Brown Cemetery (27 Jul 2013)

Sharing a birthday with the Royal Baby
from thelongtails

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Singapore to share new haze monitoring system with KL and Jakarta

Feng Zengkun Straits Times 28 Jul 13;

Singapore will share its new haze monitoring system with Malaysia and Indonesia for their experts to review and for feedback as part of a trial.

The move is aimed at helping all three countries decide on how best to use the system as part of a joint effort to identify and punish those responsible for the haze. But this only if the governments agree to share digitised land-use and concession maps.

The trial was agreed upon when the three countries met in Jakarta last Friday, ahead of the Asean Summit in Brunei in October.

The session was the first trilateral meeting between senior officials from the three countries on the haze, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) yesterday in a statement.

The Singapore delegation, which includes officials from the MFA, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, National Environment Agency and the Attorney-General's Chambers, was led by Permanent Secretary of the Foreign Ministry, Mr Chee Wee Kiong.

At the meeting, Mr Chee renewed Singapore's offer to help Indonesia put out its fires, including an aircraft for cloud-seeding operations to artificially create rain.

He also provided high-resolution satellite pictures of the hot spots there.

Indonesia, on its part, said it was willing to share meteorological data through the World Meteorological Organisation, as well as data on air quality with the Asean Sub-Committee on Meteorological and Geophysics and the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre.

Senior officials from all three countries also agreed to update their foreign ministers on their discussion at the sidelines of the Asean Foreign Ministers' Retreat in Thailand next month.

Separately, Second Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Grace Fu said yesterday that the haze was unlikely to return to Singapore in the next few days.

Speaking to the media on the sidelines of a community event in Jurong, Ms Fu noted that Singapore has been helped by favourable wind directions and recent rain in Indonesia, where raging fires caused record levels of pollution here last month.

The number of hot spots in Sumatra, for example, rose to more than 250 at the start of last week but has fallen to fewer than 25 in the past few days.

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Monkey complaints up, so culling rises too

But high number of kills alarms animal activists who prefer containment strategy
Feng Zengkun Straits Times 28 Jul 13;

Almost 360 macaques were killed by the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) in the first half of this year, more than the combined total for the past two years and estimated to be one-fifth of the total population of not more than 2,000.

The AVA told The Sunday Times it had euthanised 357 monkeys from January to last month, compared with 204 in 2010, 151 in 2011 and 127 last year.

The animals were culled in response to complaints, which it is getting more of, said the AVA. Last year, it received 920 complaints about the "monkey nuisance", up from 730 in 2011.

External contractors are hired, or traps lent to residents to capture the monkeys, which are then released elsewhere or killed.

But the high number culled this year has shocked a macaque researcher and an animal welfare group, which is calling for a containment strategy that uses other methods.

"Culling one-fifth of the population seems like we're trying to exterminate the monkeys, not manage the conflicts between them and people," said chief executive of the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres) Louis Ng.

He said his group is in the midst of "very positive" discussions with the AVA on other ways to manage the conflicts.

For instance, smooth walls at least 3m high or electric fences would prevent the monkeys from climbing into condominium grounds, said Nanyang Technological University graduate student Amanda Tan, who is studying a troop of Bukit Timah monkeys.

She also recommended more aggressive monkey-proofing of trash bins and common dumpsters.

The monkey problem was highlighted at two separate meetings yesterday. At one, called by the Moulmein Watten Neighbourhood Committee, almost 40 people told representatives from the AVA and National Parks Board (NParks) how monkeys had entered their homes and bedrooms, stolen food, attacked pet dogs, broken lamps and roof-top lightning conductors, ransacked balconies, and pilfered fruit.

"I love animals. I love wildlife on my streets. But I draw the line when my personal or family's safety is threatened and there is danger to our property," said committee chairman Fong Kwok Shiung.

Residents appealed to the authorities to capture the animals more quickly.

An NParks representative said the agency was trying to move the animals' food sources deeper into the nature reserves, away from homes.

Problems with the animals were also among the issues raised at a community meeting between government agencies and about 15 residents of Holland-Bukit Timah GRC and their MP Sim Ann. Several there, however, said they did not want the monkeys to be culled.

Acres said it has hired two full-time staff and trained them to shoo the monkeys away when they approach homes in conflict-prone areas. The staff also encourage residents to keep food out of sight.

"Shooing the monkeys away modifies their behaviour so they will learn that they cannot get into homes so easily, and they may stop trying," he said, but added that this process will take months.

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'Keruing paya' now extinct: Last natural habitat cleared for oil palm

Jaspal Singh New Straits Times 28 Jul 13;

PRICE OF DEVELOPMENT: Last natural habitat in Bikam forest reserve in Perak cleared for oil palm cultivation

BIDOR: WITH its last natural habitat totally wiped out, the Dipterocarpus coriaceus tree species, known locally as keruing paya, is now regarded as extinct in the peninsula.

A finding made by the Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM) on Wednesday found that trees from the species could not be found at their last remaining bastion -- the now de-gazetted Bikam permanent forest reserve near here.

The state government had this year fully de-gazetted what remained of more than 400ha of the forest reserve to make way for the cultivation of oil palm.

A team of FRIM officers, led by forest botany expert Dr Lilian Chua, visited the former forest reserve for a site inspection for the species following a report that was published on July 22 in the New Straits Times.

In that report, Sahabat Alam Malaysia's field officer Meor Razak had expressed his fear that the keruing paya trees were facing threat of extinction following logging and land clearing activities in the area.

The NST reported that 175ha of the forest had been cleared by a timber contractor for an oil palm plantation, while another 175ha was being cleared by a different timber contractor for the same purpose.

The remaining area of the excised forest, believed to be more than 100ha, is expected to be cleared by another timber contractor after October.

Malaysian Nature Society's president Professor Dr Maketab Mohamed said he was informed of the team's finding by FRIM director-general Datuk Dr Abd Latif Mohmod.

"It is indeed a shocking find but this phenomenon did not happen overnight.

"The extinction was caused by the act of the state which de-gazetted forest reserves for oil palm plantations over a long period of time.

"The keruing paya is a species that is exclusive to the southern Perak region.

"It is a highly valued species for timber. The Bikam forest reserve was identified as the last largest natural habitat for the trees.

"But even that habitat is now gone; becoming a victim of exploitation of the forest for oil palm cultivation."

He said internationally, the keruing paya was ranked as a "critically endangered" species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN).

However, with the last keruing paya forest already cleared in Bikam, he pointed out that the same species could be ranked in Peninsular Malaysia as "extinct in the wild" category of IUCN.

When asked if there was a likelihood of obtaining saplings of the species, Dr Maketab said saplings were available at FRIM.

"But these saplings should be planted in their original habitat and not where they don't belong.

"MNS is prepared to undertake planting of the saplings at the same site, that is, the Bikam area.

"We will undertake the exercise provided the state government can provide land to grow the species," he said, adding that MNS would work with FRIM in the replanting exercise.

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Indonesia haze: Activists demand environment minister’s transparency on concession maps

The Jakarta Post 28 Jul 13;

Environment Minister Balthasar Kambuaya’s remark made on July 17 that he would not publish the concession had sparked criticism from environment activists.

The remark Balthasar made was a response to Singapore Minister of Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan, who had asked him to reveal to the public the name of any individuals or companies that had been allowed to exploit Indonesian forests.

Carole Excell of the World Resource Institute said Balthasar’s remark had contradicted Indonesian government’s commitment in practicing Open Government Partnership (OGP).

Within the OGP platform, Indonesia has pledged to provide a map portal which would support efficiency in forestry management and support transparency, accountability and public participation in the environment, natural resources and special data management.

“As we know, the statement is [also] against the spirit of the free information era in Indonesia, as stipulated in Public Information Law,” Carol said.

Echoing Carol, executive director of the Indonesian Center for Environmental Law (ICEL) Henri Subagiyo said that the government has made a commitment to provide good environmental management and therefore was expected to comply with it wholeheartedly.

“Balthasar and Forestry Ministry Zulkifli Hasan [and also other ministers] should act transparently as part of the commitment,” Henri said.(hrl/dic)

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Convention on Biological Diversity launches the Global Taxonomic Initiative

Taxonomy, a dying profession
Business Mirror 27 Jul 13;

TAXONOMY, the science of describing, naming and classifying living things, is dying.

The profession of taxonomy is on the verge of extinction as it cannot compete with high-paying professions. Thus, all over the world, very few students are taking up taxonomy as a course.

The world needs taxonomists to identify and classify species before they can be protected. Recording, studying and inventory of species provide an essential basis for the conservation, development and management of species. What we don’t know, we can’t protect and conserve.

The Asean Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) discusses the relevance of strengthening taxonomy in “Save the Taxonomists, Conserve the Web of Life,” the first in a series of policy briefs on promoting the role of taxonomy in biodiversity conservation.

ACB Executive Director Roberto V. Oliva said the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) stresses the dwindling number of taxonomists as an impediment to biodiversity conservation.

“The CBD launched the Global Taxonomic Initiative in the hope of increasing the number of taxonomists all over the world. ACB recommends that taxonomy be integrated in National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans of countries. Taxonomists should be consulted in planning and decision-making in biodiversity conservation strategies to develop fully informed and strategic decisions in conservation,” Oliva said.

The new Policy Brief on Taxonomy may be downloaded from www.aseanbiodiversity.org/pbs.

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Best of our wild blogs: 27 Jul 13

Sea fan garden with signs of dugong
from wild shores of singapore

Chek Jawa coral rubble survey after 4 years
from wonderful creation

Life History of the Malay Lacewing v2.0
from Butterflies of Singapore

Little Heron Nest
from Bird Ecology Study Group

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Storm-vulnerable Albizia trees to get the chop

Walter Sim Straits Times 27 Jul 13;

THE Albizia, bad boy of trees and scourge of local roads, is getting the axe.

Vulnerable to storms and more prone to falling due to its brittle wood structure and shallow root system, it is being targeted by the authorities in the interest of public safety. The tree is also susceptible to pests and root rot.

The Singapore Land Authority (SLA) and the Housing Board have been working with the National Parks Board (NParks) to cull the tree and replace it with other species like the sea gutta, tembusu and jelutong, which are more weather-resilient and less likely to break. SLA has already culled some 3,000 storm-vulnerable trees, including the Albizia.

"Priority was given to areas assessed to be more critical," an SLA spokesman said in response to queries from The Straits Times. He added that this was especially so near roads and public places.

"Pruning will not be effective in preventing Albizia trees from falling, especially during adverse weather conditions. Removing them remains the best solution."

On Sunday, an Albizia tree growing on state land toppled onto a Bukit Timah property belonging to 94-year-old Pamela Hickley, the former private secretary to Singapore's last British governor. The tree, which fell despite a lack of wind, flattened a portion of a fence and garden.

The SLA said it receives about 70 reports of trees falling a year, mainly on forested state land. But it could not give the total number of Albizia trees on the 14,000ha of state land it oversees. This is because the species spreads naturally and tracking is "not practicable".

If left unchecked, the Albizia, one of the fastest growing species of trees in the world, can reach more than 40m - about 11 storeys. It was first introduced to Singapore in the 1870s.

NParks, which is also replacing older trees in parks and along roads which are at risk of falling, has advised agencies to "take a more vigilant and proactive approach to replace storm-vulnerable species, in particular, self- sown Albizia trees".

Over the past 10 years, four people have died and 62 injured by falling trees and branches. There were 122 cases of trees being uprooted from January to April this year.

HDB did not provide figures of the number of trees it has cut down in its public estates, but said that its officers regularly conduct inspections to identify those which may pose a danger.

It also explains the danger to residents who may prefer to see the trees stay. In January, a 30m Albizia in a forested area bound by Elias Road and Pasir Ris Drive 3 was cut despite protests from residents, who said that it was home to 900 parakeets.

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First trilateral meeting on transboundary haze in Jakarta

Teo Chia Leen Channel NewsAsia 27 Jul 13;

JAKARTA: The first trilateral meeting on transboundary haze among senior officials of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore has taken place in Jakarta.

Singapore's Foreign Affairs Ministry said its Permanent Secretary Chee Wee Kiong led an inter-agency delegation comprising officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, National Environment Agency and Attorney General's Chambers to the meeting.

During the meeting, Mr Chee noted that the meeting was a follow-up to the agreement by the foreign ministers of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore on the sidelines of the 46th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in Brunei last month.

The meeting was what Minister for Foreign Affairs K Shanmugam had earlier referred to as the Trilateral Cooperative Process. This process is not meant to duplicate existing platforms for environmental cooperation such as the Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee (MSC) on Transboundary Haze Pollution.

It will act as an additional channel for the three countries to complement and enhance their collaboration and work.

At the meeting, the officials received an update on Indonesia's efforts to address the fires that caused the haze, and considered future areas for cooperation.

Singapore and Malaysia acknowledged Indonesia's ongoing efforts to combat the haze, including the mobilisation of national resources to tackle the issue.

The senior officials agreed to provide an update on their discussions to their foreign ministers on the sidelines of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Retreat in Hua Hin from 13-14 August 2013, before the ministers report to the countries' leaders at the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in October 2013.

- CNA/al

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Indonesia: Another Elephant Found Dead in Aceh

Nurdin Hasan Jakarta Globe 26 Jul 13;

Banda Aceh. Another elephant has been found dead in Aceh, the second this month, with reports from local people indicating that the elephant’s tusks have been removed.

“Conflicts between elephants and humans often happen in Blang Tualang and the neighboring village of Pante Labu,” Rabono Wiranata, the head of non-governmental organization Fakta said on Friday. “Some villagers or hunters may have placed poison on the track often used by elephants.”

The adult male elephant was found on Thursday inside an oil palm plantation run by state-owned PTPN I in Blang Tualang village, East Aceh.

Rabono said the elephant was understood to have died four days ago.

He added that local residents had repeatedly complained about a pack of elephants “trespassing” on their plantations and destroying plants, but there had been no serious response from the local authorities.

The head of Aceh’s Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA), Amon Zamora, said he received a report of the death on Thursday night. A team was dispatched to the area on Friday morning.

“But [the team] haven’t returned, so I don’t know yet as to what caused the elephant’s death,” Amon told the Jakarta Globe. “I’ve told the team to report the case to police if the tusks were gone. If they were gone, we would strongly suspect that it’s been murdered.”

The finding came just two weeks after a 30-year-old male elephant was found dead in Ranto Sabon village in the Aceh Jaya district, Its tusks had been severed.

Aceh Jaya Forest Ranger commander Armidi said the elephant died after it was caught in a sharp metal trap placed on a big tree log.

Police and BKSDA Aceh have not been able to find the perpetrators.

The latest finding brought the number of elephant deaths in Aceh to four over the past three months.

On May 9, a 10-year-old male elephant was found dead due to electrocution in Bangkeh village in the Pidie district.

On June 23, a two-year-old elephant died after having been looked after for two months by residents of Blang Pante village in the North Aceh district. The villagers took care of the elephant cub after it was left behind by its pack in a local plantation.

Demand for ivory has soared in recent years, primarily due to increased demand from China, where it is highly valued for its use in crafting ornaments. Elephant tusks sell for several hundred dollars per kilogram.

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Best of our wild blogs: 26 Jul 13

Triple Terumbus for Giant Clams
from wild shores of singapore

Transformation of the Mirror Spider
from Macro Photography in Singapore

Down Memory Lane - Singleton
from Butterflies of Singapore

Kopsia arborea
from The Total Vascular Flora of Singapore Online

How YouTube has put the world's only poisonous primates at risk from Mongabay.com news by Jeremy Hance

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Malaysia: Penang chokes under haze

Hafiz Marzukhi and Edmund Goh The Star 26 Jul 13;

GEORGE TOWN: Air quality continued to worsen in Penang due to the haze while neighbouring Kedah, Perlis and Perak saw slight improvement.

The Air Pollutant Index (API) registered at the Department of Environment (DOE) monitoring station in Seberang Jaya showed an unhealthy level of 102 at 1pm before improving to 100 two hours later.

At the stations in Prai and Uni­­versiti Sains Malaysia, the readings were moderate at 94 and 88, respectively, as at 3pm.

This was an increase compared to Wednesday when it was 83 (Prai), 78 (Seberang Jaya) and 79 (USM) at 5pm.

Visibility levels in Bayan Lepas and Prai were at 6km at 3pm while in Butterworth, it was at 5km.

Meanwhile, most stations in Perak recorded only slight improvement in the reading.

According to the DOE, the highest reading of 98 came from the SK Jalan Pegoh station in Ipoh as of 2pm.

The Seri Manjung station recorded a reading of 93, an improvement from its Wednesday reading of 123.

The reading for Kampung Air Putih in Taiping was 78, while the Jalan Tasek station in Ipoh and Tanjung Malim station were 68 and 65, respectively.

In Kedah, the haze situation was relatively better with an API reading of 51 recorded at the Alor Setar station and 73 at the Batu Arang station in Sungai Petani.

In Perlis, the air quality was considered good as the reading was at 44.

Penang air quality near 'unhealthy'
New Straits Times 26 Jul 13;

GEORGE TOWN: Penang was shrouded in haze yesterday morning as the Air Pollutant Index (API) readings in the state hit the highest in the past week.

From 6am to 10am, the readings in Prai, Seberang Jaya and Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) hit above 80, close to the "unhealthy" level of between 100 and 200.

At USM, the API was at 81, 84 and 83 at 8am, 9am and 10am respectively, while in Prai, the readings were at 84, 86, 88, 90 and 92, increasing steadily from 6am to 10am.

The API readings were the highest in Seberang Jaya at 90, 93, 95, 97 and 98.

Visibility was poor, with motorists on the Penang Bridge hardly able to see the island or mainland.

State Department of Environment director Datuk Hassan Mat said the state had one of the worst API readings in the country yesterday morning.

He said it was difficult to predict whether the air quality would worsen, but hoped for rain to clear the air.

"The current situation is not as bad as that in June, when the API readings reached the 'unhealthy' level at one point."

Hassan said the causes of the haze were hot spots in Sumatra, Indonesia, and the wind blowing across the Straits of Malacca and moving northwards.

"We can only hope that rain will come, so that the air quality will improve and return to normal.

"For now, we advise the public to limit outdoor activities, wear face masks and refrain from carrying out burning activities."

The API readings at other stations nationwide recorded "moderate" and "healthy" readings, except for one station in SK Jalan Pegoh in Ipoh, Perak, which recorded an "unhealthy" reading of 104 at 3pm yesterday.

Seri Manjung, Perak, which recorded an "unhealthy" reading on Wednesday, improved to a "moderate" reading of 93 yesterday.

Overall, 14 stations recorded "healthy" readings and 36 recorded "moderate" readings, compared with Wednesday's 12 "healthy" readings and 39 "moderate" readings.

API levels of between 0 and 50 are rated as good, 51 to 100 as moderate, 100 to 200 as unhealthy, 200 to 300 as very unhealthy and more than 300 as hazardous.

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