Latest Green Jobs in Singapore [31 Dec 2012 - 6 Jan 2013]
from Green Business Times
Ashy tailorbird moment @ Labrador Park - Jan2013
from SGBeachBum
Rose-ringed parakeet eating fruits of Caesalpinia pulcherrima var. flava from Bird Ecology Study Group
Painted Bronzeback
from Monday Morgue
CMBS centre spread in The New Paper
from Raffles Museum News
Channel NewsAsia 7 Jan 13;
SINGAPORE: Safety regulations have been launched for recreational diving, which is becoming more popular, to ensure that enthusiasts are able to enjoy the sport in a safe and responsible manner.
They cover areas such as the roles and responsibilities of participants, best practices for dive masters and diving instructors, as well as safety requirements for diving activities.
The regulations were launched by the Singapore Standards Council and the National Water Safety Council (NWSC) on Monday.
Chairman of the NWSC, Dr Teo Ho Pin, said recreational diving incidents can be prevented with better understanding and rigorous safety requirements.
As part of ongoing efforts to make the sport safer, Singapore Underwater Federation will launch a certification programme called DiveSafer in April 2013 for operators.
Consumers will be encouraged to use the services of operators who are certified.
-CNA/ac
Accreditation of dive operators, safety guidelines for enthusiasts
Kimberly Spykerman Today Online 8 Jan 13;
SINGAPORE - Dive enthusiasts can soon choose their dive operators more wisely. From April, the Singapore Underwater Federation will start the accreditation of dive operators, looking at criteria, such as their diving and medical equipment, as well as the practices of their instructors. The move has been cheered by industry players.
Dive operator Eddy Neo said: "We want a general standard in the industry so that it not only makes dive operators in Singapore aware of what all of us should be doing but also educate the public, those who want to take up diving, to be more aware and give them more knowledge on who they choose to learn diving from."
Although an increasingly popular sport, recreational diving is still unregulated here.
But the Singapore Standards Council and the National Water Safety Council put out a set of safety guidelines yesterday in the hope that it would shore up safety standards.
Among the guidelines in a handbook called the Technical Reference for Recreational Diving are a standardised pre-dive medical screening checklist for participants and recommendations on the standards of medical equipment operators should have.
The guidelines were compiled after studies on international standards for scuba diving and snorkelling.
KIMBERLY SPYKERMAN
Guidelines to keep recreational divers safe
Melody Zaccheus Straits Times 8 Jan 13;
RECREATIONAL divers here now have new guidelines to keep them safe, and most dive operators said they are keen to adopt them.
The guide, introduced by the Singapore Standards Council and the National Water Safety Council (NWSC), outlines the roles and responsibilities of and safety requirements for divers and operators.
For instance, it stipulates that staff-to-diver ratio should be one to five if the divers have done fewer than 10 dives. Previously, such a ratio was never standardised across operators.
The councils said a set of standards will hopefully keep the popular sport's accident rate low and ensure consumers know the safety standards to expect of operators.
NWSC chairman Teo Ho Pin, who launched the guide yesterday, encouraged the diving community to adopt the new standards. "It's in the interest of the various stakeholders to take ownership and to exercise responsibility," he said.
Recreational diving is a dive to a maximum depth of 30m for leisure. The new code does not apply to diving at work, which has its own standards.
Industry players welcomed it, saying it could help address the issue of freelance instructors who cut corners to keep costs low. "It will make sure freelance operators missing a storefront don't skimp on the necessary," said Mr Eddy Neo, 36, owner of Ren Scubaworx.
There are about 80 operators and 30,000 divers here.
A new certification scheme, DiveSafer, to accredit operators based on the new guidelines, will be launched in April.
Singapore Underwater Federation (SUF), the national sports authority for diving and underwater activities, will take charge of certifying and auditing operators, and will list accredited ones on its website.
SUF president Song Shing Hae said the certification programme will better allow the federation to check if operators are complying with standards.
Other certification schemes, such as the Professional Association of Diving Instructors, will still be recognised here.
Diving enthusiast Hansen Ng, 23, an undergraduate, believes the new standards will clear up the murky waters surrounding dubious businesses in operation and make the decision-making process easier.
"It is important operators adhere to guidelines because even the most minute protocols can affect the safety of a diver in such a high-risk sport."
Muguntan Vanar The Star 7 Jan 13;
KOTA KINABALU: The deadly algae bloom, commonly known as the red tide phenomenon, will peak in the next two months statewide.
Sabah Fisheries Department director Rayner Stuel Galid said that red tide was recorded in November last year and will begin peaking between this month and February before tailing off by June.
“We are conducting daily tests and have found high toxicity in the west coast,” he said, adding that anything above 400 mouse units (MU) was considered dangerous.
Galid advised people to avoid eating oysters, mussels, cockles and any type of clam though other marine products like fish, prawns and crabs were safe for consumption.
He said the red tide has been seen in waters off Papar, Kota Kinabalu and Tuaran in the west coast while they have not received any reports in the east coast.
Two boys, aged 14 and nine, died from paralytic shellfish poisoning after consuming cockles on Jan 1.
The older boy died a day after eating the shellfish while the second boy died on Friday, according to Sabah Health Department director Dr Christina Rundi in a statement.
The boys had collected the cockles from the seafront at Sepanggar about 30km from here and were said to have eaten them raw.
Galid said clams, even when cooked, are still poisonous and should be avoided during the red tide season.
Red tide is a natural phenomenon whereby algae form large colonies which produce harmful effects to marine life. The density of the algae colours the surface of the sea red.
Red tide warning
New Straits Times 7 Jan 13;
HIGHLY TOXIC: Public advised not to consume shellfish for the time being
TWO people have died after consuming shellfish contaminated with the red tide toxin here earlier this week.
State Fisheries director Rayner Stuel Galid, who confirmed the deaths, said the two cases were reported at Sepanggar last Wedensday.
The red tide is an occasional natural phenomenon in Sabah where microorganisms which are naturally living in the sea undergo a population explosion.
Their numbers become so large that they impart a brownish-red colour to the sea.
Rayner said that the latest red tide reading was recorded at 6,000 mouse unit (MU), which indicated very high toxicity.
The department carried out the reading in the waters along the Sepanggar Bay.
"It is harmful to health if toxic shellfish from these waters is consumed," he said yesterday, adding that a reading as low as 400MU was considered dangerous.
The department has detected the red tide in waters here and off Papar, Putatan, Tuaran and Tasik Sitompok in Kuala Penyu.
Rayner said that eating toxic shellfish could cause paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) in humans, which was caused by saxitoxin produced by dinoflagellate, which the shellfish feed on.
"This phenomenon is expected to continue until May.
"The department will continue to monitor the situation and provide information from time to time for the safety of the public.
"We advise the public to refrain from eating shellfish, bivalves and small fish for the time being.
"Deep sea fish, squid and crab can be eaten, but as a precautionary measure, it is important to remove the gills and other internal organs before cooking."
The first PSP case in Sabah was recorded in 1976, when 202 people were reported to suffer illnesses and seven died.
Since then, PSP occurrences had been detected every few years off the west coast of Sabah.
Early symptoms of PSP include tingling of the lips and tongue, which may begin within minutes of eating poisonous shellfish or may take a few hours to develop.
Depending on the amount of toxin a person has ingested, symptoms may progress to the sensation of "pricking of pins and needles" in the skin, loss of sensation in the arms and legs, followed by difficulty in breathing and in more serious cases, nausea.
Warning of shellfish poisoning in Sabah
New Straits Times 7 Jan 13;
KOTA KINABALU: Six people suffered from paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) following the red-tide phenomenon in the state, with two placed in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) on Jan 1.
However, the two succumbed to severe anaphylactic shock in the following days.
The first victim, a 14-year-old boy, died at his home on Jan 2, after being discharged while a 9-year-old boy was pronounced dead in hospital two days later.
State Health director Dr Christina Rundi confirmed that the department received a notification regarding food poisoning cases involving six people on Jan 2.
"All the patients had consumed shellfish contaminated with red-tide toxin around noon on Jan 1. The shellfish were picked up from Sepanggar waters.
"Between 3pm and 6pm, the patients experienced symptoms, such as numbness in the neck, vomiting, dizziness and shortness of breath.
Christina said the department had sent samples of the contaminated shellfish and seawater to the state Fisheries Department where results showed a high presence of PSP toxin.
Deputy Health Minister Datuk Rosnah Abdul Rashid Shirlin advised residents in the state to seek treatment at hospitals immediately if they experienced symptoms such as numbness and breathing difficulty after consuming cockles.
"In the wake of the red-tide phenomenon, they should refrain from consuming shellfish and bivalve shellfish. However, should they crave for such food, they should eat those that were not obtained from waters off Sabah's west coast."
On Saturday, state Fisheries director Rayner Stuel Galid said the latest red-tide reading carried out in waters along Sepanggar Bay was recorded at 6,000 mouse unit (MU).
This indicates high toxicity as reading as low as 400MU is considered dangerous to humans.
Red-tide is an occasional natural phenomenon in Sabah where microorganisms (dinoflagellate) which are naturally living in the sea undergo a population explosion.
Those who consumed toxic shellfish will suffer from PSP, which is caused by saxitoxin produced by dinoflagellate, which the shellfish feed on.
The red-tide phenomenon has been detected in waters here, and off Ppar, Putatan, Tuaran and Kuala Penyu. It is expected to continue until May.
Alister Doyle Reuters Yahoo News 7 Jan 13;
OSLO (Reuters) - Green schemes to fight climate change by producing more bio-fuels could actually worsen a little-known type of air pollution and cause almost 1,400 premature deaths a year in Europe by 2020, a study showed on Sunday.
The report said trees grown to produce wood fuel - seen as a cleaner alternative to oil and coal - released a chemical into the air that, when mixed with other pollutants, could also reduce farmers' crop yields.
"Growing biofuels is thought to be a good thing because it reduces the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere," said Nick Hewitt, who worked on the study with colleagues from England's Lancaster University.
"What we're saying is 'yes, that's great, but biofuels could also have a detrimental effect on air quality'," he added.
The report, in the journal Nature Climate Change, looked into the impact of a European Union scheme to slow climate change by producing more biofuels.
Hewitt told Reuters there would be a similar impact wherever biofuels were produced in large quantities in areas suffering air pollution, including the United States and China.
Poplar, willow or eucalyptus trees, all used as fast-growing sources of renewable wood fuel, emit high levels of the chemical isoprene as they grow, the study said. Isoprene forms toxic ozone when mixed with other air pollutants in sunlight.
"Large-scale production of biofuels in Europe would have small but significant effects on human mortality and crop yields," said Hewitt.
"As far as we know, no one has looked at the air quality of growing biofuel crops before," he added.
The report estimated that ozone from wood-based energy to meet the European Union's 2020 goal would cause nearly 1,400 premature deaths a year, costing society $7.1 billion.
The European plan would also would reduce the annual value of wheat and maize production by $1.5 billion since ozone impairs crop growth, the study added.
LUNG PROBLEMS
Siting new biofuel plantations far away from polluted population centres would help limit ozone formation, the study suggested. Genetic engineering might be used to reduce isoprene emissions, it said.
Ozone can cause lung problems and is blamed for killing about 22,000 people a year in Europe. Overall air pollution, mainly from fossil fuels, causes about 500,000 premature deaths in Europe a year, according to the European Environment Agency.
Sunday's study did not compare the potential damage caused by biofuels to the impact on human health from producing coal, oil or natural gas as part of policies to slow global warming. "We're not in a position to make that comparison," Hewitt said.
He noted that the main reason to shift to biofuels was to cut emissions of carbon dioxide, mainly from fossil fuels, that U.N. studies project will become ever more damaging this century.
The United Nations' World Health Organization estimates global warming has caused more than 140,000 deaths annually worldwide since the 1970s.
The biggest impact was recorded in developing nations where the floods, droughts and other disasters blamed on climate change left millions suffering from diarrhea, malnutrition, malaria and dengue fever.
Burning biofuels is viewed as neutral for climate change because plants soak up carbon when they grow and release it when they burn or rot. Fossil fuels, on the other hand, add carbon to the atmosphere from underground stores millions of years old.
Biofuels are often blamed for causing food price spikes by competing for cropland. Responding to such criticisms, the European Commission said last year it aimed to limit crop-based biofuels - such as from maize or sugar - to five percent of transport fuels.
(Editing by Andrew Heavens)
2013 - Free Chek Jawa Boardwalk trips on the 1st Saturday of each month
from Adventures with the Naked Hermit Crabs
Life History of the Common Grass Yellow
from Butterflies of Singapore
peregrine falcon @ labrador park = 05Jan2013
from sgbeachbum
Record 265 species spotted during first-ever S'pore Big Year, a year-long bird-spotting race
Grace Chua Straits Times 6 Jan 13;
As 2012 waned, a motley group of birders with cameras, binoculars and field scopes craned their necks at a tiny dot circling in the sky.
They alternated between an excited buzz and reverential silence.
Could the circling dot be a rufous-bellied hawk- eagle, a rare winter visitor to Singapore? No - it was merely a more common osprey.
Four of the birders at Kranji Marsh were taking part in the first-ever Singapore Big Year, a year-long bird race to spot the most species in a single year.
The day before, one of them - veteran birder Lim Kim Chuah - had struck gold, in a manner of speaking.
The 50-year-old had spotted a yellow-vented flowerpecker, a shy brown forest bird identified by a flash of yellow beneath the tail, at the top of Bukit Timah Hill.
It was the 262nd species he had spotted in the year.
More than 370 species of birds either live in Singapore or pass through on their way to parts south or north. This is perhaps more bird species than there are serious birdwatchers.
A Big Year is a numbers game, an informal practice started in the 1930s when American birdwatchers began crisscrossing their country in search of new species.
By the end of last year, eight of the 15 Big Year participants had surpassed the previous one-year Singapore record of 247 different bird species.
Mr Lim's elder brother Kim Seng, an outdoor education lecturer at a polytechnic, set that record in 2005 on a solo Big Year.
"When we got a lot of people together we actually found more birds," said the 53-year-old of his record being broken.
Different birds arrive on the island at different times of the year, and prefer different habitats - so it helps to have a group that knows where and when to spot them.
A rule of the game is that you cannot just hear the bird - you have to see it or it does not count.
But it is all self-reported, based on an honour system. "Don't bluff yourself, (because) nobody's going to care whether you do," said Mr Alfred Chia, a 52-year-old marketing manager.
Two of the Big Year birders, however, had set themselves even harder challenges.
Biotechnology firm owner Francis Yap, 43, had to photograph every bird or it does not count, while private tutor Andrew Chow, 52, insisted on sketching them.
The year began with a hike through the Central Catchment Area, and the hunt was on.
The 12 men and three women who took part went to great lengths, driving to Choa Chu Kang to hunt for a Siberian stonechat spotted at a canal and plunging into the wilds of Seletar in search of a dumpy migratory waterbird known as Baillon's crake.
They also made sacrifices. Once, Mr Chia had just arrived at a church wedding luncheon, given his hongbao and had yet to take a single bite when he got word of a green-backed flycatcher sighting.
Ms Yong Yik Shih, 41, legal counsel for a small trading firm, warned over coffee with this reporter: "If I get an alert right now, I'm off!"
In the end, Mr Lim Kim Seng topped the list again, with 265 bird species.
The Lim brothers, two of five siblings, got their birding start growing up in a Sembawang kampung and competing with each other.
Mr Yap, who picked up photography nine years ago when his daughter was born, has been snapping photos of birds for about two years.
The families of serious birders are tolerant, sometimes even encouraging. "It's important that you chase your own dreams," said Mr Yap's wife, Madam Lim Mui Soon, 39. "Plus, it gets him outdoors."
The children show the occasional interest.
Mr Yap's nine-year-old daughter is "quite observant", said her mother, and likes nature, though she is not inclined to join the more rugged hikes.
But Mr Lim Kim Chuah's 16-year-old daughter prefers to chase a more rarefied breed: the K-pop star.
Unlike their counterparts elsewhere who are highly competitive about their spots, Big Year birders here are uncommonly generous: they share sightings via Facebook, text message and WhatsApp.
"If you are too competitive it can be just a numbers game," Mr Lim Kim Seng said.
Instead, the birders are also interested in bird ecology and behaviour, documenting the rare-bird sightings, population distribution and whether certain birds were arriving earlier or later than usual.
In any case, last year's record may be hard to surpass. "It's more challenging as Singapore becomes more urbanised," he added.
For instance, the former Bidadari Cemetery - home to rare birds like the Japanese paradise flycatcher - is slated for development into a Housing Board estate.
Bird populations have also changed over the years. "Ten to 15 years ago the Asian koel was a rare sight," Mr Lim said.
Last year, a writer to The Straits Times Forum Page complained that the bird's distinctive "ko-well, ko-well" call disrupted his sleep every morning.
The birders are already plotting the next Big Year, possibly next year, although some are taking a break.
The day after the new year began, Ms Yong posted on Facebook: "Now that the Big Year has ended, and rest has come to many of us, I'm curious how many birds you folks have seen since the start of 2013, 39 hours ago.
"I have seen a grand total of ONE."
She had left the house only to go to work last Wednesday, she said.
One man is fighting to save a seriously endangered species of turtle off Prachuap Khiri Khan Bangkok Post 5 Jan 13;
Majestic in the water with a highly desired shell of striking colours and patterns, the hawksbill turtle with its sharp curving beak has roamed the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea for eons, surviving all that nature's predators can throw at it.
Today, it is just hanging on and needs a helping hand to save it from extinction. And one arm of support comes from an unlikely source - a former fisherman who was once among the worst offenders in the decline of the ancient creatures.
Like other turtles, the female hawksbill climbs ashore to lay between 90 and 140 eggs before returning to the sea. The female can lay eggs several times in a single season.
Some eggs never make it to the stage of hatching - they are eaten by birds and humans. Hatchlings, which are about 4cm long, also fall prey to larger animals before they can make it to the sea.
Fully-grown turtles are exploited for their colourful and elaborately designed shells.
Other risk factors include nesting sites being encroached upon by human activity and deterioration of coral reefs, their primary food source. Blast fishing and net fishing are other hazards. In all, it is estimated that only one in 1,000 survives to reproduce.
That's why Preeda Charoenpak, owner of Ban Maprao Koh Thalu resort in Prachuap Khiri Khan's Bang Saphan Noi district, decided he had to give the hawksbill turtles a head start after they began to land on Koh Thalu to nest.
He runs the country's largest privately run hatchery and nursery for hawksbill turtles.
Mr Preeda's first encounter with the hawksbill was in July 2010. Initially, he did not see the turtles, just their tracks.
Mr Preeda contacted provincial fishery authorities and academics to survey the beach on Koh Thalu.
"About 500m south of the resort, we found turtle tracks along the beach. From those tracks, we knew the mothers had laid their eggs," he said.
The trail led to a nest where they found 163 eggs. Mr Preeda decided to relocate the eggs into a container for better protection from predators until they hatched 45-50 days later.
Another nest with 133 eggs was found nearby and this clutch was sent to Chumphon's Marine and Coastal Resources Research Centre.
Other hawksbill turtles have come ashore to nest since then. In early 2011, Mr Preeda decided to set up a sea turtle hatchery and nursery with assistance from the Royal Thai Navy which runs the Sea Turtle Conservation Centre in Sattahip, Chon Buri.
Though it is costly, Mr Preeda believes it is worth the price.
"We just help them to survive and then release them back into nature where they will grow and breed," he said.
"It gives me pleasure seeing the small creatures hatch. They are put in nursery ponds to keep them safe from predators.
"If we don't help them they have just a 10% chance of survival - or less. With our help their chance of survival increases to 90%," he said.
Mr Preeda has a bigger plan - to set up what he has tentatively called the "Thai Sea Rehabilitation" foundation to make long-term plans for marine resource management with proper budgeting. It will address marine resources management as a whole.
He is in the process of applying to register the foundation.
That hawksbill turtles have picked Koh Thalu as a sanctuary is not by chance.
Koh Thalu and its surrounding sea covering more than 150,000 rai are declared off-limits to fishing of all types all year round.
Mr Preeda's years of efforts in restoring coral reefs and raising environmental awareness are paying off.
A former fisherman in Phetchaburi's Ban Laem and Bang Ta Boon, he once owned more than 20 fishing trawlers.
He thought of quitting the business when it was hit hard by depleted fish stocks.
In 1978 he went to Koh Thalu and knew it was time to leave fishing behind. He sold the trawlers and used the money to buy 300 rai of land to start up Ban Maprao Koh Thalu Resort.
Over the years, he began to undo the damage his fishing trawlers had done to nature through a campaign to stop blast fishing and the use of certain fishing gear destructive to the marine system.
He also experimented growing coral reef by using broken pieces of live coral and attaching it to dead reefs.
Offshoots of coral on the dead reefs began to grow and branched out into fully grown reefs.
Paopipat Charoenpak, 28, manager of Ban Maprao Koh Thalu Resort, is Mr Preeda's son and right-hand man.
He has helped his father run a sustainable fishing project which bans some fishing gear harmful to marine life in an area designated for conservation. The project is welcomed and supported by locals.
He said he and his father are seeking to make Koh Thalu a conservation and rehabilitation area for rare aquatic species. The resort has enlisted help from various agencies including the Marine Biological Centre which has launched a project to track female sea turtles using satellite technology.
Kongkiat Kittiwattanawong, head of the Marine Endangered Species Unit at the Phuket Marine Biological Centre, said the idea is to collect information about their migratory patterns. A few have been fitted with a tracking device. One of them is named Mae Piang by the resort.
Whether more turtles are tagged and the project expanded depends on the results of the experiment, he said.
"Basically we want to know where they go after laying eggs and if they will return to nest again," Dr Kongkiat said.
Boonlert Phuekthong, 40, a hatchery worker trained by the Royal Thai Navy, said about 18 mother turtles nest on Koh Thalu.
A female turtle lays about 90-140 eggs per nest and hatching is expected after 60 days. Hatchlings are not fed in the first two days and after that they are fed twice daily with minced fish and seaweed.
Chief Petty Officer 1st Class Chalee Chinyawiroj, a naval officer, said the hawksbill turtle, eretmochelys imbricata, is one of seven rare sea turtles found in tropical waters.
The hawksbill turtles laying eggs on Koh Thalu is a sign of its pristine environment.
Mr Preeda's resort has 20 hatchery and nursery ponds with 1,024 turtles and 1,200 eggs.
"In Thai society, the turtle is synonymous with longevity. What we have been doing is to make sure that sea turtles will continue to roam the sea for millions of years," he said.
The Economic Times 4 Jan 13;
CHENNAI: The nesting season for Olive Ridley turtles along the city coast has started on a tragic note. At least 30 dead turtles have been washed ashore between Neelankarai and Napier Bridge in the past fortnight, with as many as 11 being found on the night of December 28 by Student Sea Turtle Conservation Network (SSTCN) volunteers on the Marina. "All of them were on the 500-metre stretch between the high-mast lights at Pattinapakkam and the place where the Adyar meets the sea," said R Nishanth, a volunteer.
Conservationists, however, say it could be a sign that more are on their way to the city. "In 2012, we found 80 dead turtles in the entire season and 120 nests, one of the lowest," said SSTCN coordinator V Arun. About 10,000 hatchlings were released.
In 2011, 120 dead turtles washed ashore. "The same year, we had 183 nests, releasing around 14,000 hatchlings," said Arun.
It is estimated that only one in a thousand eggs reaches adulthood. "We can only make sure these hatch. Once they are in the sea, there is nothing much we can do," said Akila Balu of SSTCN.
The death of so many turtles along the Chennai coast is considered significant as the Olive Ridleys swim along the Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh coasts to Odisha, one of the three mass-nesting sites in the globe, where they nest on the beaches of Gahirmatha, Rushikulya and at the mouth of the Devi river. According to a study by B C Choudhury and Bivash Pandav for their book 'Marine turtles of the Indian continent,' the Olive Ridleys come from the Gulf of Mannar and even from Sri Lanka.
Along the way, many turtles are accidentally scooped up by trawl nets and dragged along the sea floor. "By the time the fishermen haul up the net four hours later, the turtle is either dead or comatose. It is then discarded overboard and washes ashore," said Shekar Dattatri, wildlife film maker and conservationist. Gill nets are stretched across the sea, just under the surface, and can be up to 3km long. Turtles get entangled in these and are very difficult to disentangle. Therefore fishermen cut off their flippers. Without flippers, a turtle will drown, he added.
Aglow
from The annotated budak and Straight and blue
十一月双溪布洛华语导游 Madarin guide walk@SBWR November(XXXV)
from PurpleMangrove
Adrian Lim My Paper AsiaOne 4 Jan 13;
SINGAPORE - The dolphin which died when it was transported from the Philippines to Resorts World Sentosa's Marine Life Park on Nov 22 "succumbed to an acute bacterial infection", the resort said in a blog post yesterday.
Revealing the findings of a final pathology report, the resort said no evidence could be found to pinpoint the source of the infection.
Thorough medical examinations done before the dolphin, called Wen Wen, and others were transported showed that they were all healthy.
Wen Wen, a male dolphin about 10 years old, was one of 11 Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins flown from Subic Bay in a three-hour flight.
Less than an hour before the plane landed in Singapore, it "died suddenly", said a Marine Life Park spokesman that day.
Another batch of 14 dolphins had arrived here on Nov 19.
The Agri-food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore gave approval for the 24 dolphins to be released from quarantine on Dec 24.
Resorts World Sentosa added yesterday that "based on the close observation and medical status of our dolphins, and the successful completion of the quarantine assessment, we believe the infection was an isolated incident".
The resort did not reveal a date when the public would be able to see the animals, but said it would be in the "very near future, through progressive stages of introduction".
The dolphins are expected to be part of an interactive programme at Marine Life Park.
Since they were acquired in 2008 and 2009, the wild- caught dolphins have been a source of controversy between the resort and animal-welfare groups, which have called for them to be released back to the wild.
Twenty-seven dolphins were initially acquired, but two died in Langkawi in October 2010, reportedly due to a water-borne bacterial infection.
Mr Louis Ng, executive director of Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres), said it does not add up how Wen Wen, who was found to be healthy before the flight, got the infection and died in a few hours.
He said Acres is still waiting for the resort to reply to an invitation to a public debate it plans to hold later this month regarding the dolphins.
Tests show dolphin died from bacterial infection: RWS
Ng Kai Ling Straits Times 4 Jan 13;
A DOLPHIN that died in transit to Singapore last November was killed by an acute bacterial infection of unknown origin, said Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) on its blog yesterday.
It said the remaining 24 Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins bound for its marine attraction had been approved by the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) for release from quarantine on Christmas Eve.
Dolphin Wen Wen was among a batch of 11 being flown from the Philippines to Singapore on Nov22, but it died en route. The first 14 had arrived three days earlier.
RWS issued a statement about the death on the same day.
It said on its Marine Life Park blog that the final pathology report indicated the male dolphin, estimated to be 10 years old, a prime age for the species, had succumbed to infection.
"The laboratory tests yielded evidence that infection was bacterial in nature, but there was no evidence of the causative bacteria," said a company spokesman.
The tests were conducted by the University of Illinois' College of Veterinary Medicine in the United States and the AVA in Singapore.
RWS added that there was "no evidence of the origins of the infection", but that all the dolphins had been cleared for export.
They were caught in the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific, and had been kept at a facility in Subic Bay in the Philippines since 2008 while the Marine Life Park was being constructed.
"Based on close observation and the medical status of our dolphins, and the successful completion of the quarantine assessment, we believe the infection was an isolated incident," RWS said.
Dolphin experts said it would be difficult to ascertain where or how Wen Wen had caught the bacteria, but it is rare for dolphins to die in transit.
Biologist Elizabeth Taylor of the National University of Singapore's Tropical Marine Science Institute said bacteria can be found everywhere in the environment, but not all lead to sickness or death. She said it was not likely that the dolphin had caught the bug on the plane. "I would think that this company would take the best precautions to keep the animals healthy," she said.
Ms Courtney Vail, the campaigns manager at the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, said research shows that transporting dolphins produces a change in stress hormone levels similar to what occurs in humans during stressful situations.
"It is well-established that chronic stress can lead to immuno-suppression and susceptibility to disease," she added.
The dolphins are not yet on show at the 8ha Marine Life Park, which opened on Nov 22.
Animal rights groups are calling for the rehabilitation and release of the dolphins back to the wild.
Dolphin 'died of bacterial infection'
All animals were healthy prior to move and infection is an isolated incident, says RWS
Today Online 4 Jan 13;
SINGAPORE - Wen Wen, the male dolphin that died en route to Resorts World Sentosa's (RWS) Marine Life Park, was killed by an acute bacterial infection, according to results of laboratory tests carried out here and in the United States.
However, the origins of the infection could not be determined, RWS said in a post on the oceanarium's blog yesterday.
"The final pathology report indicates that Wen Wen succumbed to an acute bacterial infection. There was, however, no evidence on the origins of the infection," RWS said.
It concluded that the infection was "an isolated incident" and reiterated that the dolphin, as well as the 24 others transported here in November last year, were given a clean bill of health prior to the flight from the Philippines.
"Medical examinations prior to the transport, including full haematology and chemistry profiles as well as cytology and body examinations, indicated that all animals were healthy prior to the move," RWS said.
"Based on the close observation and medical status of our dolphins, and the successful completion of the quarantine assessment, we believe the infection was an isolated incident."
The dolphin died mid-flight on Nov 22, a day after Marine Life Park was opened to the public.
RWS' acquisitions of 27 dolphins from the Solomon Islands in 2008 and 2009 for its Marine Life Park had stirred some to call for the animals to be rehabilitated into the wild.
The calls intensified when Wen Wen became the third dolphin to have died, after two dolphins died in 2010, also from bacterial infections, while they were in a holding area in Langkawi, Malaysia.
The remaining 24 dolphins could be available for public viewing "in the very near future" after the park said it had received the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore's approval for them to be released from quarantine.
"Our dolphins are healthy and have adjusted well to their new home through the diligent care of our marine mammal staff and veterinary professionals," it said.
"We look forward to letting the dolphins meet the public in the very near future through progressive stages of introduction."
Marine Life Park dolphins released from quarantine
Saifulbahri Ismail Channel NewsAsia 3 Jan 13;
SINGAPORE: The dolphins at Resorts World Sentosa's Marine Life Park have been released from quarantine and are expected to meet the public soon.
The park said the 24 dolphins have received the Agri-food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore's (AVA) approval for their release.
It added the mammals have adjusted well to their new home through the care of its staff and veterinary professionals.
The park looks forward to let the dolphins meet the public through progressive stages of introduction.
It also gave updates on the laboratory tests on the male dolphin that died on the flight to Singapore from the Philippines.
The final pathology report indicated that Wen Wen had succumbed to an acute bacterial infection.
There was, however, no evidence on the origins of the infection.
Medical examinations prior to the transport indicated that all animals were healthy prior to the move.
The park believes the infection was an isolated incident.
Recently, the park attracted controversy for its import of dolphins.
- CNA/xq
The Star 4 Jan 13;
KOTA KINABALU: The injured dolphin that was rescued on Boxing Day has died, despite the best care from animal lovers here.
Sabah Wildlife Department senior veterinarian Dr Sen Nathan said the animal was found to have severe lung injuries.
An immediate post-mortem on the dolphin on Monday showed that the lung injuries it suffered were caused by massive infection and a very high parasitic load, he added.
The spinner dolphin or Stenella longirostris died while being treated at Universiti Malaysia Sabah's Borneo Marine Research Institute (BRMI).
BRMI director Prof Dr Saleem Mustafa said the 70kg dolphin was estimated to be about seven years old.
Wildlife experts did their best to save the creature that was found stranded in waters off the northern Kudat district.
Dr Saleem had been cautious about the dolphin's prognosis following its rescue by the Wildlife Department's Wildlife Rescue Unit (WRU) on Dec 26.
He had said that there was a possibility the dolphin had consumed contaminated organisms.
Wildlife experts could not tell whether the dolphin belonged to the resident population in Sabah or that it had migrated from other areas.
Stranded dolphin dies
Olivia Miwl New Straits Times 4 Jan 13;
INTERNAL INJURIES: Mammal could not be saved despite efforts
KOTA KINABALU: THE dolphin which was found stranded on Pulau Gandang in Tuaran near here on Dec 26 has died on New Year's Eve at the Borneo Marine Research Institute of Universiti Malaysia Sabah.
The institute's director, Prof Dr Saleem Mustafa, said despite efforts to keep it alive, the mammal could not be saved.
Earlier, the seven-year-old spinner dolphin of the Stenella longirostris species was reported to have been stabilised and was able to eat and spray water from its blowhole.
"There were signs of bacterial infection on its fin and inflammation on the lateral side of itsbody.
"The Sabah Wildlife Department veterinarians had administered antibiotics to the dolphin, while scientists from our institute had isolated the bacteria and conducted a detailed study on the bacteria's nature."
Saleem said despite the dolphin's improvement, the institute was sceptical that the mammal was going to survive.
"We are now waiting for a post-mortem report from Sabah Wildlife Department personnel who treated the dolphin."
The department's senior veterinarian, Dr Sen Nathan, said the possible cause of death was internal injuries.
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