Best of our wild blogs: 14 Aug 13

MRT through MacRitchie: young people needed to train as nature guides from The Green Volunteers

Looking for an environmental speaker for your green talks?
from Green Future Solutions

Kusu Island Kramat
from a.t.Bukit Brown. Heritage. Habitat. History.

Butterflies Galore! : Narrow Spark
from Butterflies of Singapore

A Yellow-vented Bulbul chick fell from above
from Bird Ecology Study Group

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More complaints about pigeons after AVA pilot

Woo Sian Boon Today Online 14 Aug 13;

SINGAPORE — The birds in Housing and Development Board heartlands appear to have ruffled more than a few feathers of late.

Not only has the number of pigeon-related complaints to the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) doubled over the past two years, the number of people fined for feeding pigeons in the first six months of this year has also surpassed that in the whole of 2012. As of June, 17 people have been fined, compared to 16 last year. The penalty for those found guilty of feeding pigeons can be up to S$500.

Pigeon-related calls have also increased exponentially over the past three years, with 1,072 cases reported between January and June — almost reaching the 1,415 calls received for the whole of last year. This is compared to the 612 calls the AVA received in 2011, which pertained mainly to animal sightings and nuisances.

Dog-related calls dominated the total number of cases so far this year at 2,346 cases, continuing a trend from the past three years. Calls related to animals such as bats, wild boars and monitor lizards ranked second at 1,270 cases, while cat-related reports came in third at 1,239 cases.

In response to TODAY’s queries, the AVA noted that it had received more animal-related feedback — especially bird-related ones — since the First Responder Protocol was piloted in March last year.

An AVA spokesperson said: “There was no specific agency which oversees all bird-related issues prior to the implementation of the First Responder Protocol. The increase in the number of bird-related feedback could be due to the increasing awareness of AVA’s First Responder role, hence more members of the public are reporting bird nuisance cases to AVA.”

The protocol was piloted by the Public Service Division as part of its efforts to improve service delivery and better manage responses to public feedback.

To ensure that members of the public are not pushed from “pillar to post” when more than one government agency is involved, the AVA was designated as a one-stop agency to receive animal-related calls, with a 24-hour hotline made available last August.

The AVA would then work with relevant agencies such as the Singapore Land Authority, National Environment Agency (NEA), National Parks Board and town councils to conduct surveillance, investigation, enforcement and mediation before coordinating a response to the caller.

For example, when the authority received a call about a bird-nuisance case at Pek Kio Market and Food Centre in April, it worked with the NEA to address the problem, conducting surveillance and monitoring the cleanliness of tables at the food centre.

The AVA also reminded the Moulmein-Kallang Town Council to continue with its pigeon-control efforts.

“Prior to First Responder, the public would possibly contact NEA if birds were observed to be feeding from food leftovers on uncleared plates at food establishments; the town council if pigeons were observed to be congregating at HDB estates; and AVA if pigeon-feeding is observed,” said the spokesperson.

Ms Janet Chia, a manager for the AVA’s Animal Welfare and Control Department focusing on bird issues, said extermination of birds is not a practice the authority engages in.

Instead, it will warn the public not to feed them, engage stakeholders to prune fruit trees in the area to remove food sources or install structures to prevent birds from roosting.

“In ecology, when you manage certain species of animals, it is likely that another species of animals increases in number to fill up the gap if there is still a food source,” she explained.

Besides managing animal nuisance cases, public education is also important, said Ms Chia.

“What you don’t know, you don’t learn to love. So we educate, we share (with the public) more about the species of birds. For example, with the Asian Koel, I’ll explain how they contribute ecologically to crow management. In general, the public is very receptive ... in accepting them as part of our native wildlife,” she said.

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Indonesia: Hunters turn into sea turtle protectors

Jakarta Post 13 Aug 13;

Kurma Asih literarily means “turtle protector” and in Perancak village these words identify a community group that protects turtle nests, eggs and baby turtles.

“We were once the main supplier of turtles and turtle meat for big customers in Badung regency and Denpasar,” recalled I Nyoman Bagiada.

In the past, many villagers in Perancak worked as turtle poachers. They caught adult turtles, placed them in a temporary pond before trafficking the animals to several black markets both in Bali and beyond. Hundreds, or perhaps thousands of turtles were poached and killed for human consumption.

In 1997, WWF International started work with the local community to end the turtle hunting as the massive killing and illegal trafficking of turtles had reduced the marine turtle population in Bali’s waters. However, in 2002 WWF stopped its operation in Perancak Bay leaving the community group to manage its own turtle conservation program.

In Bali, turtles have long been killed for their meat. Green turtle consumption in Bali reached its climax in the late 1970s, when more than 30,000 green turtles were caught each year. In 2002, this had reduced to an estimated 684 turtles every month, WWF reported.

In 2012, Kurma Asih community group obtained support from Pro Fauna Indonesia, an environmental organization, to continue its efforts for turtle conservation.

Through various education and training activities, Kurma Asih is now growing into a dedicated turtle protector group and is calling on local residents to commit to conserving turtles. “We have given special rewards to locals who protect turtle nests and who take care of baby turtles,” Bagiada said.

Initiated by I Wayan Tirta, Kurma Asih has been working hard to convince residents to change their professions from turtle poachers and traders to turtle protectors, an effort which has been very successful.

Jatmiko Wiwiho from Pro Fauna explained that Perancak was the most prolific turtle egg supplier in Bali—a place that badly needed protection from illegal poachers.

“It is hoped that the Perancak villagers can develop a sustainable way of protecting and conserving turtles,” Wiwiho said.

Pro Fauna, he said, had still found illegal turtle trafficking and poaching in Bali. “Turtle meat consumption remains very high in Badung and other parts of Bali,” stated Wiwiho.

The strong commitment of local residents, community groups, governments and the industry were needed to ensure that marine turtles were heavily protected, he said.

— Luh De Suriyani

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Best of our wild blogs: 13 Aug 13

bad birding practice @ pasir ris - 11Aug2013
from sgbeachbum

Aug 18: Hill 1 & 2 Ramble
from a.t.Bukit Brown. Heritage. Habitat. History.

Holesome things
from The annotated budak

Butterflies Galore! : Common Bluebottle
from Butterflies of Singapore

It’s pouring pangolin photos!
from sundapangolin

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Coral bleaching reported at Saipan

DEQ raises concerns on coral bleaching
Saipan Tribune 12 Aug 13;

The Division of Environmental Quality and its Marine Monitoring Program would like to inform the general public that there have been documented and confirmed incidents of coral bleaching at some of the near shore reefs around Saipan. The Division of Environmental Quality and its Marine Monitoring Program would like to inform the general public that there have been documented and confirmed incidents of coral bleaching at some of the near shore reefs around Saipan.

Coral bleaching is a physiological response to a number of stressors including sea water temperature anomalies (hot and cold), irradiance (UV light exposure), desiccation, and pollution. Currently, 14 species are being affected and six of the species are moving into fatal levels of bleaching due to an increase in water temperature.

Corals are animals that live symbiotically with algae called zooxanthellae that provide them with much of their food and energy needs. When the ocean temperature becomes too warm for too long, corals release the zooxanthellae, leaving corals with a brilliant white color, a stark contrast to the typical bright colors of a healthy coral reef. The bleached coral can recover if ocean temperatures return to normal and the algae return, but without the zooxanthellae, the coral often starves to death. Bleached corals are in a fragile state and extra care should be taken when recreating near them. Fishers, divers and snorkelers in particular should pay close attention not to touch or kick the corals.

The best thing the community can do is keep an eye on our reef and practice environmentally-friendly land and marine practices such as carpooling, removing trash correctly, minimizing chemical and fertilizer use, not burning, and boating and fishing responsibly. The community is urged to report any similar events to the natural resource management agencies of the CNMI:

- CNMI Division of Environmental Quality – Marine Monitoring Program: 664-8524

- CNMI Division of Fish and Wildlife: 664-6000

- NMI Coastal Resources Management Office: 664-8300

- NOAA Field Office: 234-0004

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India: Beach tourism, development killing turtles - WWF

Times of India 12 Aug 13;

KOLKATA: Unregulated tourism and development activity along beaches like Mandarmani and Digha in West Bengal is killing turtles including the vulnerable Olive Ridleys, say researchers.

"In Digha intense tourism pressure has resulted in the decline of turtles and based on information revealed by local people, no nesting population of Olive Ridley turtles was observed in the area in the last five to six years," says a latest study by WWF on the status of marine turtles.

East Midnapore's 60-km-long coastline, which has popular tourist beaches like Mandarmani, Digha and Shankarpur, is less than 200 km away from Kolkata.

The coastline extends to Odisha where in Gahirmatha beach and elsewhere lakhs of Olive Ridleys congregate annually for mass nesting.

The study, conducted by a team led by Punyasloke Bhadury of the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research in Kolkata, observed that cars and other four-wheelers were being driven along the Mandarmani beach.

Such activity may have resulted in rapid decline of nesting Olive Ridleys which nest on sand, observes the ecologist in the report.

He said that rampant tourism continued to pose a serious threat to turtles which might be nesting along the coastal areas of East Midnapore.

Developmental activity associated with tourism, he pointed out, could also be affecting the nesting population, if any, in Dadanpatrabar.

Beach erosion is another serious threat to occasional nesting populations of Olive Ridleys reported by local inhabitants.

To counter beach erosion, several unplanned steps have To counter beach erosion, several unplanned steps have been taken including casuarina plantations along the coastlines that has affected turtle nesting, the report says. To prevent coastal erosion, sea walls were erected in Junput, Shankarpur and Digha coastlines.

"The construction of dykes and embankments, as evident in the Junput coastal area, could adversely affect turtle migrations and nesting in the region," says the report.

The researchers found olive ridley turtle carcasses in the beaches of Junput, Dadanpatrabar, and Shankarpur during the study in close vicinity to fishing villages.

"Interviews with the fishermen (10-15 fishermen from each village) revealed that a majority of these dead turtles were noticed during gill net trawling activities in the coastal and offshore waters in the Bay of Bengal," they said.

Fisher folk and local villagers told the researchers that olive ridley turtles caught in the fishing nets were extracted for their meat, which was subsequently sold to aquaculture farm owners for use as fish feed.

Marine turtle eggs were also collected for consumption by the fisher folks.

The prevalence of an age-old practice, where local inhabitants consumed blood of marine turtles for medicinal reasons, including that of reducing blood pressure, was revealed by fishermen.

The WWF report suggests that tourists visiting the region should be sensitised more about the marine turtles and a possibility of introducing wildlife tourism, in particular turtle tourism, can be explored.

Such an initiative could generate revenue for turtle conservation and at the same time create job opportunities for the local communities.

The researchers concluded that the future of marine turtles visiting the East Midnapore coastal belt for nesting is bleak unless conservation steps are taken.

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China to spend more to tackle dire pollution

Sui-Lee Wee PlanetArk 12 Aug 13;

China plans to accelerate investment in technology to save energy and tackle the dire pollution blamed for a series of health crises that have generated widespread public anger.

The government has been increasingly alarmed by social unrest caused by environmental disasters and threats to public health, often the result of the country's breakneck industrial expansion and mass migration to new cities.

Smog over northern cities in January generated a public outcry, as did the discovery in March of thousands of rotting pig carcasses in a river that supplies Shanghai's water.

The country's cabinet, the State Council, said on Sunday that environmental protection would be elevated to a "pillar industry" that would receive government support in the form of tax breaks and subsidies.

China is already investing 2.3 trillion yuan ($375 billion) in energy savings and emissions reduction in the five years through 2015, state media have said.

The State Council said the new plan would ensure the environmental protection industry grows by 15 percent annually, generating turnover of 4.5 trillion yuan ($735 billion) by 2015.

Past efforts to build such "pillar industries" have sometimes led to vast overcapacity and trade conflicts, with China's government accused of giving an unfair advantage to local companies.

The State Council said eligible foreign-funded firms would enjoy the same benefits from the environmental protection plan as their Chinese counterparts.

It said it would accelerate research into environmentally friendly vehicles and develop technology and equipment for the control of air, water and soil pollution.

The plan suggests China is accelerating efforts to become a world leader in clean technology. It has already announced a series of steps to curb pollution and reduce carbon emissions.

The central government will direct more of its budget to fund environmental protection industries and encourage eligible companies to issue bonds, it said.

($1 = 6.1230 Chinese yuan)

(Reporting by Sui-Lee Wee; editing by Tom Pfeiffer)

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Best of our wild blogs: 12 Aug 13

Latest Green Jobs in Singapore [5 - 11 Aug 2013]
from Green Business Times

Updates on Security Barrier at Tanjung Rimau, Sentosa
from Peiyan.Photography and wild shores of singapore

Wet recce trip at Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal
from wild shores of singapore

Sherman’s Lagoon’s Jim Toomey talks about Marine Litter in two minutes (w/UNEP)
from News from the International Coastal Cleanup Singapore

Singapore 48th National Day celebration in Bukit Brown
from Rojak Librarian

Feeding behaviour of butterflies
from Bird Ecology Study Group

Blue-speckled Shrimp-goby
from Monday Morgue

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Two underwater sites to be studied for Singapore's power needs

Feng Zengkun Straits Times 12 Aug 13;

SOME homes in Singapore could be powered by the sea in future - if scientists manage to prove that tidal turbines in nearby waters can help meet the country's growing electricity needs.

From next month, researchers from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) will survey two sites, one near St John's Island and another near Pulau Sebarok.

The two locations are believed to have strong current speeds of about 1.2m to 3m per second - enough to generate power from turbines placed on seabeds.

Based on estimates by other researchers, the two spots could house enough tidal turbines to power about 6,700 flats here, said project leader Michael Abundo from the Energy Research Institute at NTU.

The project will involve confirming the estimated tidal current speeds. Sensors will also be left on the seabed for a month to collect data, which will allow the scientists to forecast long-term current speeds.

"Wind and solar energy may be affected by the weather, but tidal currents are very predictable. If you have data from one lunar month or 29.5 days, you can forecast the current every hour for the next year," said Dr Abundo.

The two sites were selected after ruling out other areas which had maritime traffic, or were aquaculture zones and marine protected areas.

Results from the survey will be ready by the end of the year, and will be used to fine-tune the turbine designs.

Turbines in other countries have been designed for higher current speeds of about 4m per second. The survey will also include a sonar scan to profile the seabed's slopes, as steep slopes are not suited for most tidal turbines.

This is all part of a larger plan by the institute to map areas where Singapore can tap renewable marine energy. The scientists believe the project is critical because renewable energy from the sea can help quench the country's growing thirst for electricity.

Singapore consumed about 41,730 gigawatt hours of energy in 2011, up about 10 per cent from 2009. About 80 per cent of its fuel mix for electricity generation today comes from natural gas.

The NTU team had previously estimated that tidal currents in several spots south of Singapore could meet 1.5 per cent of the country's electricity needs in 2011.

But there are challenges ahead.

The Energy Market Authority has said that marine renewable energy is limited in Singapore as much of its sea space is used for ports, anchorage and shipping lanes. Most funded projects here are also focused on solar energy.

"Singapore should not disregard any energy option that is tappable," argued Dr Abundo.

"Even if the technology may not yet be widely deployed in Singapore, it could still be used elsewhere in the region, and this would boost Singapore's reputation for renewable energy research and development."

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Dog welfare group hopes poll will stop trapping of strays

David Ee Straits Times 12 Aug 13;

COMPLAINTS about stray dogs barking in the forested area near Bukit Batok Street 24 have led to the authorities preparing to trap them.

But a dog welfare group, indignant that complaints from just a few people may cause many dogs to be trapped and culled, is trying to block the move with a survey of over 300 residents.

The survey by Save Our Street Dogs found that 94 per cent were not bothered by the barking, while 92 per cent were against the dogs being trapped and culled by the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA).

More than 70 per cent did not know what happens to stray dogs after they are caught.

The AVA euthanises most stray dogs it catches. It works with animal welfare groups to re-home suitable ones.

While most residents have seen the strays around, none had been hurt by them, added the survey, believed to be the first in Singapore to gauge people's attitudes towards stray dogs.

In an e-mail, an AVA spokesman said that the agency had received complaints from four residents over the past year.

The AVA has long maintained that stray dogs can threaten public safety when in a pack. Some have been known to chase and attack people.

It did not comment on the survey results nor say when its trapping operation would begin.

The most persistent complainant, who did not respond to queries from The Straits Times, first made his grievances known a year ago. He recently directed these to Minister for National Development Khaw Boon Wan and Jurong GRC MP Halimah Yacob.

The incident came to a head when the AVA decided last month to catch the strays after meetings involving it, Jurong Town Council, the complainant and a volunteer mediator from an animal welfare group failed to find a solution satisfactory to all.

According to the volunteer mediator, who wanted to be known only as Irene, a vote was held at the latest meeting on July 10.

"No one wanted to cull the strays" but the complainant "kept pressing" the AVA on the issue, she said.

Save Our Street Dogs president Siew Tuck Wah told The Straits Times that the survey results bore out what animal welfare groups have long suspected - that "most people do not want to see the (stray) dogs dead".

"There's been talk that the 'silent majority' are ambivalent," said Dr Siew, who backs the idea of a wider, independent survey to understand the population's sentiments towards stray dogs.

"But this tells us that most Singaporeans are actually compassionate, that the majority are willing to work towards a solution rather than culling."

A wider sterilisation effort would be an effective and more humane long-term solution, as animal groups have said before.

In her 13 years living opposite the forested area, resident Irene Ong, 39, said she had never seen the dogs "disturb" anyone. "I was pretty upset when I heard that the dogs were going to be trapped. If you leave them alone, they'll leave you alone."

Meanwhile, Minister for Law and Foreign Affairs K. Shanmugam, an animal rights advocate, posted an adoption appeal on his Facebook page last Saturday on behalf of an abandoned mongrel.

It has been nicknamed the "Tampines Hachiko" for waiting for its owner at the park connector where it was abandoned. In the 1920s, a dog named Hachiko became a national icon in Japan after it kept showing up at a train station to wait for its owner, nine years after the man's death.

Additional reporting by Audrey Tan

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Malaysia: Johor Sultan backs big waterfront project

Yee Xiang Yun The Star 12 Aug 13;

JOHOR BARU: Johor Ruler Sultan Ibrahim ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar believes that the mega Country Garden Danga Bay property project will be a success.

The Sultan assured investors that the project would receive fruitful returns.

“Based on my own observation, I am sure that with the expertise and ability of the company’s employees, the project will be implemented well,” he said at the launch of the project and its clubhouse and sales gallery at Danga Bay yesterday.

“The show units will also be a landmark, decorated with beautiful and attractive landscape as well as fitted with five-star facilities.”

Sultan Ibrahim thanked Country Garden Holdings Ltd, one of China’s top 10 property developers, for choosing Johor as its first overseas market for the project.

He also encouraged more foreigners to invest in property development in Johor as it would boost the state’s economy and create more job opportunities for Johoreans.

Country Garden Holdings founder and chairman Yeung Kwok Keung said that the multi-billion integrated development was aimed at providing “five-star standard living and building high-quality products to suit the client’s needs”.

“I hope that the project will encourage more enterprises from China to invest in Malaysia to contribute to better bilateral ties between the two countries,” he added.

Country Garden Danga Bay Sdn Bhd will develop the project after purchasing a 23.06ha seafront land eight months ago from Iskandar Waterfront Holdings Sdn Bhd for RM900mil.

The project will include 9,000 condominium units and commercial development such as a shopping mall and a commercial boulevard with a gross development value of RM18bil.

It is slated to be completed in three phases and to be launched simultaneously by 2017.

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Malaysia: 'Catching rampaging elephants takes time'

T.N. Alagesh New Straits Times 12 Aug 13;

NOT EASY: It takes planning to carry out task, says Pahang Perhilitan

KUANTAN: The Pahang Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) has brushed aside claims that it was dragging its feet in capturing elephants that had destroyed oil palm plantations and fruit trees in villages here over the past several months.

State Perhilitan director Khairiah Mohd Shariff said the department had acted swiftly after receiving reports from villagers by deploying rangers to check on the elephant sightings at the villages or forests.

She said the two methods used by the department was by chasing the elephants further into the jungle into its original habitat or by conducting translocation, a last step to ensure the elephants did not return to disturb the villagers.

"Perhilitan will usually seek help from the state Elite Elephant Capture Unit in Lanchang, which will send rangers to track the animals.

"We have to be careful with the ground conditions where the operation is carried out and study the landscape in the surrounding areas before moving in to capture the elephants.

"For example, when the elephants gather near a river, our rangers cannot just shoot them without proper consideration, as they may fall into the river and drown."

She said Perhilitan had responded to the villagers' complaints as the elephant attacks were described as harmful and posed a threat to humans.

A Perhilitan ranger said it was impossible for the department to trace and capture the elephants in a short span of time as it required planning.

"Some villagers expect the department to tranquilise the elephants and complete the task overnight but what they fail to understand is that it could lead to untoward incidents.

"Capturing an elephant is not an easy task.

"Rangers will have to track down the elephants and before firing the tranquiliser dart guns, they need to check on the landscape and weather as this could make the operation tricky.

"If the location is surrounded by trees, then the rangers will have to lure the elephant to a certain distance before they can bring it down.

"Sometimes, a path has to be cleared in the forest to allow a lorry, which will later transport the animal, to come closer," he said, adding that it takes between five and 10 days to complete the translocation operation.

Recently, some villagers had complained that they suffered heavy losses after several hectares of plantations were destroyed by elephants.

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