Best of our wild blogs: 11 Jan 16

Birdwatching in Bidadari (January 10, 2015)
Rojak Librarian

Records Committee Report 2015-Change of Status
Singapore Bird Group

Changeable Lizard (Calotes versicolor) @ Lim Chu Kang
Monday Morgue

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Tanglin Halt’s feathered wildlife the subject of a show

MAYO MARTIN Today Online 11 Jan 16;

For the past six years, artist Lucy Davis has lived in Wessex Estate right next to the rail tracks, where she would regularly hear or catch a glimpse of a whole host of birds, from violet cuckoos and oriental magpie robins to eagles, kites and blue-crowned hanging parrots.

“The day before yesterday, I had a blue-winged pitta visit our garden,” she recalled during our interview. “This guy flies down from Indochine, rests in Singapore, goes to Indonesia and may even end up in Australia.”

In fact, the area along the former Malaysian railway tracks between Wessex, Alexandra and Tanglin Halt is a kind of bird central for both local and migrant feathered folk — around 105 species have been spotted there, according to a survey done by Davis and her collaborators under the Migrant Ecologies Project, together with the Nature Society Of Singapore Bird Group.

With the impending development plans of the area due to One North, Mediapolis and the proposed Rail Corridor by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, however, the future of the wildlife in the area is now a huge question mark.

The looming changes in the area form the backdrop for the M1 Singapore Fringe Festival multimedia exhibition Railtrack Songmaps. Conceptualised by Davis, and done with the help of artists and scientists, including sound artist Zai Tang, video artist Kee Ya Ting, biologist David Tan, the show aims to paint a layered portrait of Tanglin Halt’s community of people and birds.

“It’s about the relationship between humans and birds in this particular area, with older-generation HDB flats running alongside the railtracks. A number of residents has already had to move out and other blocks are going soon, so there’s the context of threatened nature and culture,” said Davis. “But we didn’t want it to be a ‘sad’ project — it’s more of this treasure trove of possibilities in this area. The experience I hope will be one that is quite ephemeral and magical — just like when a bird comes into your life for a couple of seconds and leaves again.”

Railtrack Songmaps comprises a few elements, such as an interactive touchscreen map where one can pick out from a selection of recorded bird songs. There will also be spectrograms or visual renditions of bird songs and 30 short films of fragments of stories related to birds and interviews with a whole range of people, including Tanglin Halt residents, primary school students, bird trappers and songbird keepers, alongside Davis’ own musings about her experiences living in the area. “We’re bringing them together in this uneasy dance, where the edges of the stories don’t really fit together,” she said.

Another section of the exhibit takes a more “forensic” bent, featuring photographs by Kee Ya Ting who captured birds crashing into buildings around Singapore, including a particularly famous Northern Boobook owl — the first of its kind for Singapore — that crashed into Amnios Building at One North along the rail tracks at Tanglin Halt. The stories of these birds were derived from avian urban casualties research by David Tan of National University of Singapore. “The installation will be a little bit like a crime investigation corner,” Davis added.

For her, the Rail Corridor issue remains a complex one. “On the one hand, this is the first biodiversity corridor through the whole of Singapore and a major victory for the wildlife lobby. But on the other hand, it seems counterintuitive to build over the rail corridor and add fancy cafes, fountains and noisy attractions at nodes like the one planned for Buona Vista. The main attraction of this corridor has to be this entirely unique combination of informal cultural heritage and biodiversity.” She hopes Railtracks Songmaps in some ways will add to the discussion. “I hope it somehow evokes a degree of engagement with the everyday magic of existing nature and culture. We’re hoping that the (different) sorts of stories will resonate with people, and get (them to see that) you don’t need attractions to see attractions. The wildlife is the attraction.”

Railtrack Songmaps runs from Jan 13 to 24 at Blk 47 Malan Road #01-25, Gillman Barracks. Free admission. For more details about the M1 Singapore Fringe Festival, visit http://www.singaporefringe.com

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Change practices to reduce food waste, urges Masagos

NEO CHAI CHIN Today Online 10 Jan 16;

SINGAPORE — In calling food waste one of the biggest streams of waste here, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Masagos Zulkifli said all stakeholders have a role to play in managing this.

Some practices such as the culture of excess at banquets must change, “without totally changing the way we live as a community in Singapore”, he told reporters after the SGfuture dialogue “Moving Towards a Zero Waste Nation: Food Waste” led by his ministry today (Jan 10).

Reducing food waste is a way for households to save money, and Singaporeans should not take the amount of food available here for granted, he added.

Food waste has gone up by about 50 per cent in the past decade, and nearly 790,000 tonnes were generated in 2014, equivalent to two bowls of food per person per day.

Zero-waste champion Eugene Tay said the Government could study measures such as stopping supermarkets, distributors and retailers from throwing away unused food, and incentivise food donations.

Businesses could allow consumers to choose their meal portions and take away leftovers, as well as accept imperfect food and donate unsold food. Individuals could learn more about composting, said Mr Tay, founder of ZeroWasteSG.

Mr Masagos expressed interest in trying some ideas from the dialogue in Tampines, where he is a Member of Parliament — such as the use of food waste by the town council for compost.

The 33 dialogue participants, who included hotel representatives, youths and environmental groups, noted challenges in redistributing food. Event organisers might know that a certain amount of food would be left over only at the last minute, for instance.

Mr Tay said he is working with some National University of Singapore students to launch an app this year that will alert students of excess food at various club or staff events. The students could then help to finish the food.

Businesses with good practices could be the subject of case studies and have their practices highlighted, participants suggested.

Siliso Beach Resort managing director Kelvin Ng estimated that his company has reduced food waste by about 40 per cent through several measures, such as by offering lunch and dinner a la carte instead of having a buffet. The resort uses earthworms for food composting, which helps fertilise the resort’s vegetable garden.

It also offers help and provides worms for schools that want to start wormeries, said Mr Ng, who learnt about earthworms and composting when he was a teenager studying in Perth.


Singapore needs to rethink food wastage: Masagos
In Singapore, about 790,000 tonnes of food waste was generated in 2014 - equivalent to each person throwing away two bowls of food every day.
Liyana Othman Channel NewsAsia 10 Jan 16;

SINGAPORE: There is a need to rethink how to reduce, reuse and recycle food waste amid an increase over the years, said Minister for Environment and Water Resources Masagos Zulkifli on Sunday (Jan 10).

In 2014, Singapore generated around 790,000 tonnes of food waste, equivalent to two bowls of food per person each day. Only 13 per cent of that amount was recycled.

Over the past 10 years, the amount of food waste Singapore generates has increased by about 48 per cent, and the number is set to increase as the country continues to grow in terms of population and affluence.

Singapore has only one landfill left - Semakau Landfill - and it is expected to run out of space if habits do not change.

"Unfortunately, we do have old cultures that we need to modify to achieve this. As an example, (at) banquets where we produce so much food, and so much variety in the menu, I think, it is quite onerous to finish everything, and indeed, the intent is to ensure that you don't finish everything, to show there's a lot of food provided on the table. So these things need to change, without totally changing the way we live as a community in Singapore."

Mr Masagos was speaking at one of the SGFuture Engagement Series sessions on "A Cleaner, Greener and Smarter Home", as part of efforts to engage with the public and seek their ideas on how to build a liveable and sustainable Singapore.

GETTING THE COMMUNITY INVOLVED

Some of the proposals put forward include teaching communities to make compost out of their food, and getting supermarkets to educate consumers about food management.

For 21-year-old Sumita Thiagarajan, she has already started to raise awareness of how much food is being wasted in Singapore. She started a project called #unhappyplatesg - a Facebook photo album featuring plates of uneaten food.

"I was just trying to raise awareness on food wastage, so together with the photos, I've put together a description about how much food Singaporeans waste. I hope that through the photos and through the descriptions, that friends and people that see it and share it can actually reduce their food intake," said Sumita.

Now, even her friends are sending her pictures of these so-called unhappy plates, to add to the collection.

For Eugene Tay, founder of Zero Waste SG, he is looking at developing an app that can match companies with leftover food to individuals or charities that need it.

"The other thing we're looking at is best practices and case studies from companies - companies who are doing their part to reduce food waste, we try to document these kind of best practices and make it available to their peers in the industry," he said.

About 30 to 40 members of the public, including youths, stakeholders and partners from various associations, industries and non-governmental organisations shared their thoughts and plans on how to cut down on food waste, and move towards a zero-waste nation.

- CNA/xq/dl

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Malaysia: Padi farmers worry lower rainfall will affect harvest

LOSHANA K SHAGAR The Star 11 Jan 16;

PETALING JAYA: The El Nino heatwave is expected to affect local food production, with padi farmers in the north already complaining of 50% less harvest.

Vegetable growers in the lowlands, especially in Johor, have also been warned to look for alternative sources of water.

In Alor Setar, a Kampung Suka Menanti farmer known as Din, 40, said the current heatwave was the worst in his 25 years of farming, adding that the situation was made unbearable due to poor water supply.

Din, who claimed to be among the hundreds of farmers affected, said water level at the river dropped from 2.5m to 1.8m recently.

“The irrigation system supplies the padi field with water from the river, but a recent flood mitigation project has hindered the supply and the scarce rainfall does not help.

“Due to the lack of water, the padi grains have shrivelled in size and we expect the yield this time to be halved,” he said yesterday.

Hamzah Salleh, 62, who farms his padi field in Pantai Johor said the harvest might be late this season due to the lower rainfall since November.

“During normal seasons, padi can be harvested in 90 days, but dry spells may stretch the growth to up to four months and affect our harvest.”

Thirty percent of the country’s rice is imported from countries such as Thailand.

Recently, Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Seri Wilfred Madius Tangau said Peninsular Malaysia along with Limbang and Miri in Sarawak, would be experiencing hot and dry weather until March.

The weather condition is a result of El Nino, which is also expected to reduce rainfall by about 20% to 60% and cause temperatures to rise between 0.5°C and 2°C .

Cameron Highlands Vegetable Growers Association secretary Chay Ee Mong said farmers in the lowlands might have to start looking at alternative water sources to avoid problems in the next few months.

“For Cameron Highlands, the water sources here are enough.

“Even Perak and Selangor farmers can turn to the former mining areas as an alternative,” he said, adding that they would only be facing problems should the dry season last beyond the predicted period.

Deputy Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Tajuddin Abdul Rahman said they did not expect the drop in local production to be alarming as not all source of supply was local.

“If there’s a drop of, say 10%, we will increase imports by 10% to compensate,”he said, adding that they were monitoring the situation.

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Indonesia: Hectares of farm land in Gunung Kidul, Java suffer water shortage

Antara 11 Jan 16;

Gunung Kidul, Yogyakarta (ANTARA News) - Hectares of agricultural land in Gunung Kidul district in Yogyakarta, Central Java, is suffering water shortage as no rain has fallen in the past few weeks.

Farmers have started buying water and also dug wells to get water supply.

Mujinugroho, one of the farmers from Playen village, said here on Sunday he started planting when the rainy season began early in December but rain only fell several days after that.

"Now we buy water to save the rice plants that have started to dry," he said.

He said he had bought water to supply his rice field five times at a cost of Rp46,000 per hour of supplying and "this is not yet maximal."

Muji said the two-month old plants were still good now and but he had to continue to assure they would remain alive.

Edi Prasetya from Pulutan said that no rain had fallen for the past few months causing rain-fed wells for farming and animal husbandry to dry.

"Some of the wells have dried up and the condition is worrying because no rain is coming," he said.

He said other farmers bought water from private suppliers adding he hoped the district government would help to meet the needs of clean water.(*)

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Best of our wild blogs: 10 Jan 16

Night Walk At Upper Seletar Reservoir (08 Jan 2016)
Beetles@SG BLOG

Butterfly of the Month - January 2016
Butterflies of Singapore

Records Committee Report 2015-Rarities
Singapore Bird Group

Records Committee Report 2015-New Additions
Singapore Bird Group

Chingay 2016 will NOT release sky lanterns
wild shores of singapore

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Programme to mentor young environmentalists set to expand

Organised by a few local environmentalists, the Sustainability Mentorship Programme will now run for a longer period, cover a wider scope of green issues as well as take in more participants.

Olivia Siong, Channel NewsAsia 9 Jan 16;

SINGAPORE: A programme to mentor young people passionate about the environment is being expanded, after completing its first run last year.

Organised by a few local environmentalists, the Sustainability Mentorship Programme (SMP) will now run for a longer period, cover a wider scope of green issues as well as take in more participants.

National University of Singapore undergraduate Sankar Ananthanarayanan and fellow enthusiasts formed the Herpetological Society of Singapore (HSS) in April last year. The group has an interest in reptiles and amphibians.

They lead nature walks on a monthly basis to promote conservation. The 21-year-old also took part in the first SMP, which he said helped shaped the way the society is run.


Mr Sankar Ananthanarayanan (centre) leading a nature walk at MacRitchie Reservoir. (Photo: Olivia Siong)

Mr Sankar said: "We learnt a lot about collaboration with other green groups in Singapore. For example, if we are doing a guided walk in a particular area, we don't want to clash with other groups that are already doing guided walks there.

“Instead, why not focus on other parts of Singapore which are not given as much attention? I did learn a lot from some of the mentors about how to interact with the public and how to spread the message, not only offline but also online. So, part of what we do at HSS is regular blogging. There are certain times when the outreach is best. Those are such insights which I did gain from the SMP.”


Mr Sankar Ananthanarayanan (left) pointing out interesting flora and fauna in sight. (Photo: Olivia Siong)

MORE TOPICS WILL BE INCLUDED IN SECOND RUN

This year's programme will target those aged between 19 and 29. The first run was open to those aged 19 to 35.

Once a month, mentors will share their views on a green topic. In the first run, these ranged from nature conservation and environmental law to green businesses. Field trips are also part of the programme.

More topics will be added for the second run, including hot issues like the zero waste movement and circular economy as well as food security.


Participants from the first run of the Sustainability Mentorship Programme last year. (Photo: Eugene Tay)

Environmental consultant Eugene Tay will continue as a mentor, along with three others for the programme's second run. Nature enthusiast Ria Tan, who runs website WildSingapore, will also continue as a mentor.

Urban planner and founder of The Leafmonkey Workshop, November Tan and sustainability manager, Marcus Tay have come onboard as new mentors for the second run of the programme. There were three mentors last year.

Said Mr Tay: “We can have different perspectives from different sectors. We have the private sector people come in so they can share about sustainability and businesses.

“People who are urban planners can also talk about urban planning in Singapore. We need to give the young people a sense of the different environmental issues and how they're interrelated. We also hope to nurture them and give them support, so they can stay on the sustainability cause for the long term."

More people will also get to take part in the programme. There are 20 places available this year, up from 13 last year.

With the greater scope, participants will also be expected to meet with their mentors twice a month, instead of once.

This year’s programme will also be extended from the previous seven months to 10. Participants are expected to complete a group project on top of an individual project.

Registrations are set to close on Jan 24 and the programme is expected to begin in February. Those who are interested can learn more at this website.

- CNA/xk

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Right behaviours, attitudes and values will lead to cleaner environment: Masagos

Mr Masagos was speaking at a dialogue session, where participants offered their ideas on how Singaporeans can strive towards keeping the environment clean, green and sustainable.
Nadia Jansen Hassan Channel NewsAsia 9 Jan 16;

SINGAPORE: The Republic should aim to build a culture where Singaporeans not only desire a clean environment but also own the behaviours, attitudes and values that would allow them to achieve it, Environment and Water Resources Minister Masagos Zulkifli said on Saturday (Jan 9).

He added: "If we can get that done, we can certainly get a few people who have the right behavior to encourage others to also have the right behavior."

Mr Masagos was speaking at a dialogue session, where close to 40 participants offered their ideas on how Singaporeans can strive towards keeping the environment clean, green and sustainable.

A common theme that emerged was how to encourage citizens to take more responsibility in keeping the country litter-free. One suggestion was for more cleaning drives to be held within the various communities.

The session took place at The Future of Us exhibition at Gardens by the Bay, and was part of the SGfuture Engagement Series. The series is meant to give Singaporeans a platform to share their views, aspirations and ideas for the country's future, and will go on until March.

At the event, Mr Masagos also said a "whole of government" approach is needed for Singapore to bring down carbon emissions. He added that the Government will work with the different ministries and research community to achieve the goal.

In December, Singapore had pledged its commitment to reduce emissions at the global climate talks in Paris.

Said Mr Masagos: "It's a very complicated piece of work because we also do not want to affect peoples' livelihood … so much so that they are inconvenienced by such changes.

"At the end of the day, I hope this is something everybody wants to come forward, modify their behavior and consumption, to contribute towards a better global climate."

The next two sessions, on food waste recycling and the future of hawker centres, will be held on Jan 10.

- CNA/xk


Have 'no-cleaners week' so people can get hands dirty?
Danson Cheong, Straits Times AsiaOne 10 Jan 16;

Mr Ng, an MP for Nee Soon GRC, helping to clean up his ward last Friday. He called the work "physically exhausting" and said small pieces of litter add up to a big pile of rubbish.

Participants come up with suggestions at public forum on keeping Singapore clean.

Stop issuing plastic bags at supermarkets. Get residents to clean up the corridors outside their homes. And have a "no-cleaners week" each month so ordinary Singaporeans can get their hands dirty.

These were some of the suggestions made yesterday at a public forum organised by the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources on keeping Singapore clean. Mr Masagos Zulkifli, who heads the ministry, facilitated the discussions.

He said residents must be personally involved in keeping the country clean, and this spirit of civic consciousness had to become a social norm if Singapore were to progress from being a cleaned city to one that is simply clean.

"This involvement must come from the heart, from belief; it must come from culture," said Mr Masagos, adding that this can simply involve residents cleaning up their HDB corridors instead of waiting for cleaners.

Yesterday's forum was part of the larger SGfuture discussions - a series of public dialogues on the country's future that was launched last November and will run until the middle of this year.

Two discussions were held at the Future Of Us exhibition at Gardens by the Bay yesterday, attended by about 40 participants each, and centred on the theme "A Cleaner, Greener and Smarter Home".

Civil servant Chris Koh, 43, pointed out that people learnt in schools to return food trays but forget this good habit when they start working. "In order to change mindsets, perhaps we need more education for adults," said Ms Koh.

Others, such as facilities and maintenance manager Low Kok Peng, said Singaporeans kept homes that were spick and span - but started littering the moment they stepped outside.

"We should get neighbours to tell each other not to litter and clean up," said the 58 year-old, who wanted Singaporeans to get their hands dirty and not wait for cleaners.

Meanwhile, Mr Louis Ng, an MP for Nee Soon GRC, spent last Friday working with a broom and dustpan alongside cleaners in his ward. Mr Ng, who called the work "physically exhausting" in a Facebook post on the same day, said small pieces of litter add up to a big pile of rubbish.

"If everyone plays their part, puts the cigarette butt in the bin, throws the rubbish in the bin... it will make it better for all," he said.

Public Hygiene Council chairman Edward D'Silva said problems such as clogged drains and pest infestations had their roots in the simple act of littering.

"It is the cause of a lot of the downstream problems that we have," he said during the discussions.

Mr Masagos said there was space for the community to play an active role on this issue - instead of waiting for the authorities to clamp down on litterbugs.

"We certainly need to work more with schools, to think how we can make what we do in schools perpetuate when we go out into the community," said Mr Masagos.

"Maybe 50 years from now, there will be a culture for Singaporeans to not just want a clean environment, but have attitudes and behaviours that keep the environment clean."

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NEA expects spike in dengue cases this year

Salma Khalik, Straits Times AsiaOne 9 Jan 16;

The battle against dengue could turn grim this year.

Not only is the number of infections expected to be large, but the cases are also expected to spike earlier than in previous years, the National Environment Agency (NEA) warned.

This is due to the confluence of three factors: Large numbers of infections in what is usually the low season, increases in the mosquito population and a change in the dominant viral strain.

The agency said on its website: "We are starting off the year with an unusually high base of dengue cases; 459 cases were reported in the final week of 2015."

This was the highest for the year. Between Sunday and 3.30pm on Thursday (latest availabe figures), there were 345 cases, signalling another week of high infections. Since 2013, Den-1 had been the dominant virus spread by the Aedes mosquito, accounting for more than half the infections. But now, more than two-thirds are due to the Den-2 strain, which marks a significant shift.

NEA said that, from historical trends, such changes in dengue strain "signal (a) possible spike in dengue cases".

On top of that, it added: "We have also seen a further increase in the Aedes mosquito population due to the slightly warmer than usual year-end weather."

It concluded: "The number of dengue cases in 2016 is expected to be high, with cases spiking earlier than in previous years."

Yesterday, Mr Masagos Zulkifli, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, visited Singa- pore's biggest dengue cluster, where 195 people have been infected. It is in his constituency of Tampines GRC.

He said NEA found 86 breeding sites in the cluster. Of these, 60 were in homes, and only one at a construction site.

Of the 195 cases in the cluster, 81 are foreigners working at the Downtown Line 3 construction site, and the rest are residents. Some of the problem areas include Tampines Avenue 4 with 82 cases, and Tampines Street 91 with 24.

In his Facebook post, Mr Masagos said: "We found adult mosquitoes and larvae in some of the Gravitraps, indicating a high level of mosquito activity, despite three rounds of home inspections and destruction of breeding habitats.

"We need to prevent mosquito breeding. But NEA officers and town councils cannot achieve this alone."

More than 11,200 people were diagnosed with dengue last year, with four dying as a result.

NEA officers carried out more than 1.4 million inspections last year and found 15,000 breeding spots.

The agency issued more than 900 notices to construction sites to attend court, with over 100 prosecutions for repeat offenders.

It also issued more than 100 stop-work orders to construction sites.

It advised people living in active dengue clusters - there are 115 now - to use repellents to reduce their risk of getting the virus.

- See more at: http://yourhealth.asiaone.com/content/nea-expects-spike-dengue-cases-year#sthash.zyOjmvnI.dpuf

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Malaysia: 87 magpies rescued and bird smuggling ring crippled

The Star 10 Jan 16;

KUALA LUMPUR: A syndicate specialising in smuggling exotic and protected species of birds was crippled with the arrests of three gang members.

A total of 87 live “burung murai batu” (magpies) hidden in eight makeshift plastic cages were rescued during a pre-dawn raid at a house in Kampung Tanjung Gahai, Bukit Betong near Kuala Lipis.

Personnel from the Wildlife Crime Unit of the Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) also found several jungle fowl, parakeets and parrots kept in cages in the house.

Perhilitan enforcement division director Hasnan Yusop said acting on a tip-off and week-long surveillance, his officers raided the premises at about 6.45am on Friday.

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Indonesia: Endemic species face extinction due to hunting, breeding problems

Ruslan Sangadji, The Jakarta Post 9 Jan 16;

The management of Lore Lindu National Park (TNLL) in Central Sulawesi say its regular observations over the past few years have found that the populations of at least four animal species endemic to the region are in decline as a result of reproduction difficulties and poaching.

Speaking to The Jakarta Post on Thursday, TNLL head Sudayatna said numbers of mountain anoa, low-plain anoa, babirusa and tarsius within the park area had substantially dropped.

“Several years ago, our field officers could easily spot anoa or babirusa gathered in herds of 15 to 20. Over the past year, however, they could only find a single herd of no more than 11 anoa and babirusa,” Sudayatna said.

Another species that his men noticed have been declining in number is the tarsius.

“Unlike the maleo bird, the populations of anoa, babirusa and tarsius continue to decline as we currently have no breeding program for them,” Sudyatna said.

According to him, babirusa and anoa could not be bred like the maleo, which has been bred successfully in captivity.

The center is only able to build watering holes for the anoa and babirusa to help them survive the threat of extinction.

Sudayatna described the babirusa and anoa as very wild animal species surviving in vast areas, so when his center had sufficient funds, it would build watering holes and provide food to both animal species so they would feel at home there. “It’s the only thing we can do to save them and help them multiply,” he said.

The 189,000-square-kilometer TNLL is located around 60 kilometers south of the provincial capital of Palu.

It is home to endemic Sulawesi flora and fauna as well as beautiful natural panorama, as it sits along the Wallace Line and part of the Asian and Australian continental shelves. The TNLL is the biggest mammal habitat in Sulawesi.

The anoa, babirusa, deer, monkey ghost, kakaktonkea monkey, kuskus marsupial, tarsius and Sulawesi musang civet, the biggest meat-eating mammal, live in the park.

TNLL is also home to at least five squirrel species and 31 of 38 rat species, including endemic species.

It also includes at least 55 bat species and more than 230 bird species, including the maleo, two Senggang, julang and kengkareng bird species endemic to Sulawesi.

Thousands of exotic and beautiful insect species can also be found around TNLL. The brightly colored butterflies flying around the park or along footpaths and streams regularly attract visitors.

Biology researcher Mohammad Yasin, who has been studying the region’s endemic species, said that his research over the past three years had confirmed that babirusa and anoa also inhabited the neighboring Togean National Park in Tojo Una-Una regency.

Yasin estimated that there were currently 200 babirusa in Togean. The size of the babirusa population in Togean, he added, remained stable compared to that in TNLL as people in the Muslim-majority region were not allowed by their religious teachings to consume meat from babirusa, a type of pig.

“This is different compared to TNLL, whose most residents living near the park are Christians who are allowed to consume the meat,” he said.

Sudyatna emphasized the role of the local community in protecting the forest and its endemic species.

“They have to stop poaching the protected animals. This is important as the TNLL is not just a state or provincial asset, but also the lungs of the world,” he said.

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Indonesia: W. Sumatra faces peak of floods, landslides

The Jakarta Post 9 Jan 16;

PADANG: Floods and landslides have hit a number of areas in West Sumatra over the past few days, damaging houses and forcing affected people to flee.

Heavy rains on Thursday led to overflowing rivers in the province, while cliffs along roadsides experienced landslides. Among the worst-hit regions was Sawahlunto, where residents have been affected by the overflowing Batang Ombilin and Batang Maloputan rivers.

The West Sumatra Disaster Mitigation Agency’s (BPBD) logistics and emergency division head, R. Pagar Negara, said landslides along riverbanks had damaged more than 20 houses as well as affecting roads in five locations.

The floods, meanwhile, have inundated 76 hectares of rice fields, claiming the lives of five cows and over 75 other livestock as well as damaging a bridge “Until Friday afternoon, affected people were still cleaning up their houses,” Pagar said on Friday.

In Sijunjung regency, flooding on Thursday inundated over 400 houses and destroyed 123 ha of rice fields, while landslides destroyed three houses.

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