sooty-headed bulbuls @ lorong halus - Dec 2013

Came across a bush which seemed to be frequented by sooty-headed bulbuls. There were quite a few of these birds flying about the bush during the 20 mins of observation. Looks like a possible breeding site close by.

sooty-headed bulbul @ lorong halus - Dec 2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Find out more about these birds :-

http://www.ecologyasia.com/verts/birds/bulbuls.htm

http://besgroup.blogspot.sg/2007/01/sighting-of-sooty-headed-bulbuls.html

https://www.nparks.gov.sg/cms/docs/redbook/List-of-alien-species-in-Singapore-2009May.pdf

http://singaporebirds.blogspot.sg/2012/07/bulbuls.html

unknown raptor flypast @ lorong halus - Dec 2013

Was observing a yellow-vented bulbul on a tree stump when the large raptor flying past in the background caught my attention. I had seen this raptor flying past earlier but had not been able to capture an image of it before it disappeared into the nearby treeline.

I'm not sure what raptor this is. Anyone got any guesses?

unknown raptor flypast @ lorong halus - Dec 2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

sleeping python, frightened squirrel @ sungei buloh - 21Dec2013

Was on the way out from the SBWR when another visitor pointed out a coiled up reticulated python sitting snugly on a limb of a tree beside the main path into the reserve. This was my first time seeing a python in the reserve but i have heard that the reserve has seen this and other pythons before including an assortment of other snakes, both venemous (like the rarely seen King Cobra and more often seen Pit Vipers) as well as non-venomous snakes. The reserve does also have other large reptiles such as the Malayan Water Monitor and the Estuarine Crocodile (Uh, No we do not have Komodo dragons at the reserve). 

This python was being harassed by a determined plantain squirrel and its mate. The squirrels were in a rather excited state compared to the snake which just sat still without flinching a scale. The squirrels kept calling out with loud pips and swatting their tails.  All the excitement was lost on the snake which carried on its slumber oblivious to the concerns of the squirrels. 

sleeping python, frightened squirrel @ sungei buloh - 21Dec2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Find out more about these wonderful animals :

http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/vertebrates/snakes/reticulatus.htm

http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/vertebrates/mammals/notatus.htm

white-breasted waterhen & chicks @ Lorong Halus, Singapore - 20Dec2013

The undergrowth was abuzz with chirping as I walked past it and the chirpers soon showed themselves chasing after their parent waterhen as it went about looking for breakfast for its hungry brood of three little jet-black long-legged downy balls.

Two of the chicks seemed to be more dependent on the parent and rarely strayed more than a half a metre from it. The third was however more independent and did not seem to mind being away from the protective wings of the parent bird. The parent bird extended back its wings as if to provide shelter for its brood eventhough the chicks seemed a little big to all fit under the umbrella at the same time.

The parent bird went about picking grass seeds for the chicks which were obviously in a somewhat vertically challenged state.

white-breasted waterhen & chicks @ lorong halus, singapore - 20Dec2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Find out more about the white-breasted waterhen here :

http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/birds/Amaurornis_phoenicurus.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White-breasted_Waterhen

http://singaporebirds.net/npassers_02/white-breasted_waterhen.html(incl. audio link)

http://www.besgroup.org/2011/03/22/call-of-the-white-breasted-waterhen/ (w. video)

http://ibc.lynxeds.com/species/white-breasted-waterhen-amaurornis-phoenicurus

http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Amaurornis-phoenicurus (incl. audio links)

http://www.ecologyasia.com/verts/birds/rails.htm

http://www.oiseaux-birds.com/card-white-breasted-waterhen.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZLv30uzd44 (a nice clip by iHengbok)

cuckoo @ east coast parkway, singapore 24Nov2013

Spotted this bird fly up from the ground nearby to a tree at the edge of the NSRCC Golf Course at the East Coast Parkway. It flew short distances within about 10 to 15 metres to adjacent trees within the space of about 15 minutes whilst i observed it. It seemed to want to stretch out its wings. Probably because of the downpour which the area had then recently experienced.

Which cuckoo is this? The Malaysian or the Hodgson's? or an Indian Cuckoo?

cuckoo @ east coast parkway, Singapore 24Nov2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Here are some good reference links for telling apart which cuckoo this bird is...

A link on some cuckoos from Malaysia :-
http://www.malaysianbirds.com/bird-family/cuckoo.htm

The Hawk Cuckoos :-
http://confoley.com/photo-guide-hawk-cuckoos
http://wildbirdsingapore.nss.org.sg/Hodgson's%20Hawk%20Cuckoo.pdf
http://wildbirdsingapore.nss.org.sg/SINAV_Vol_22_No_1_Jan_08%20.pdf

Indian Cuckoos :-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Cuckoo
http://singaporebirds.net/npassers_01/indian_cuckoo.html
http://ibc.lynxeds.com/species/indian-cuckoo-cuculus-micropterus


So which is this bird captured in the video?

Otter @ Changi Creek Mangrove - 17Nov2013

This lone adult otter was spotted cruising up Changi Creek during an evening low tide. It seemed cautious as it swam up the creek occasionally peering around itself. A friend had mentioned that 3 or 4 otters were seen around the creek area about a week or two earlier. The otter dive-swam up the creek and turned into a tributory that led further into the creek. It soon disappeared up the creek. 

Otter @ Changi Creek Mangrove - 17Nov2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

The creek has obviously seen better times. There is a lot of trash all over the sides of the mangrove. There was also a driftnet which could be seen along the right edge of the water and the otter can be seen swimming past it. The driftnet was marked by two plastic bottles used as floats tied to each end of the net. Lots of other trash such as plastic bags and other items could be seen on the muddy banks and stuck on the mangrove trees lining the creek.

The creek also supports two groups of squatters who have taken refuge in the creek. One group use the space below the roadbridge on the left (if one stood facing the airport) side of the creek whilst the other choose to nestle in the thicket of trees on the right side of the creek. These squatters can be seen hanging their driftnets to dry on the mangrove trees and for maintenance. 

Needless to say, these squatters pose a real and serious threat to the safety of the otters. When driftnets are strung across the creek, it is possible that a swimming otter could get entangled in the net and drown. There have been incidents of wading animals getting inadvertently caught in driftnets. See Link 1 (Great-Billed Heron), Link 2 (Crocodile), Link 3 (Horsehoe crabs).

I hope the otter or other animals do not get entangled in the driftnets set up by the squatters.

Find out more about the otters :

http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/vertebrates/mammals/perspicillata.htm

http://blog.nus.edu.sg/sgotters/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smooth-coated_otter

http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/verts/smooth_otter.htm

  

black baza hungry @ bidadari 9Nov2013

This lone black baza came into view as it flew from tree to tree. It was hunting.
Probably for a last meal for the day at about 5.45pm. It had been a cold and wet day as the afternoon rains had been heavy.

As it flew around a tree at about 3 to 4 metres above ground level, it made a sudden change to its flightpath and went towards a nearby clump of leaves. It tussled with something on the leaves and flew away to a bare branch a few metres away.

It had caught something small and started despatching it quickly. I could not make out what it had caught but it could have been a small lizard.

From the video clip, the bird's ability to use its feet to hold its food shows it to be very adept at doing so. It took about 3 minutes to finish its small meal and then flew off around the tree.

black baza hungry @ bidadari 9Nov2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

It took about 3 minutes to finish its small meal and then flew off around the tree.

Read more about this migrant bird species :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Baza

http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=3329

http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Aviceda-leuphotes

http://www.planetofbirds.com/accipitriformes-accipitridae-black-baza-aviceda-leuphotes

http://sgbeachbum.blogspot.sg/2012/02/black-baza-raptor-surprise-lorong-halus.html

Bidadari, a sampler - 15Oct2013

A selection of some of Bidadari's natural residents and seasonal visitors ...

a Bidadari sampler 15Oct2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Last chance to see. Once development of a new housing centre takes place, most, if not all, but a much smaller portion of forest foliage will likely be cleared and the resulting patches of trees and shrubbery will likely not support a similar diversity of birds. The birds will likely find alternative sites. The squirrels and lizards will have to make a run for it. 

How many species can you name?

white-bellied sea eagle fishing @ esplanade 11Oct2013

This adult WBSE flew in rather late at about 6.40 pm to do some fishing and on its second pass over the reservoir, managed to find a good sized fish for dinner. It adjusted its flight, dropping almost straight down with a slight swoop before snatching the fish with one leg. Flying off, it secured its grip with a quick look and started flying in a wide spiral to gain height before finally heading off across the Padang.

white-bellied sea eagle fishing @ esplanade 11Oct2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

(Unavoidable background music recorded with clip)

Read more about this magnificent bird :
http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/birds/Haliaeetus_leucogaster.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White-bellied_Sea_Eagle
http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_579_2005-01-05.html
http://singaporebirds.net/npassers_04/white-bellied_sea_eagle.html
http://www.iucnredlist.org/apps/redlist/details/106003359/0
http://www.nss.org.sg/report/f494524f-1SingaporeRaptorReportJan11.pdf
http://www.besgroup.org/2010/01/09/white-bellied-sea-eagles-catch-sea-snakes/
http://besgroup.blogspot.com/2006/05/white-bellied-fish-eagle-fishing-rat.html
http://besgroup.blogspot.com/2006/09/white-bellied-sea-eagle-not-just.html
http://www.ecologyasia.com/verts/birds/raptors.htm

sofa not so good @ Ubin-Jelutong 28Sep2013

Was out for a coastal cleanup along the first part Ubin's Jelutong shore. I had seen two rather unusual items on the second part of the shore (beyond the sluice gates) some weeks ago and wanted to take a closer look since the tide had not been suitable on the earlier occasion.

#1... a weathered yellow leather sofa.

 (you can see sofa #2 in the background - to the right - in the pic above)

 Turned upside down over a small heap of fishnets.

 a closer look at the discarded fishnets below Sofa #1

#2...another weathered yellow leather sofa

within 3 metres of sofa #1 and in a similar upside down position

(What are the odds of this occuring purely at random?)

Where could these sofas have come from?

Who put them there?

The wandering currents?

or a set of hands from nearby?

Where is the nearest human settlement?

Could the nearest human settlement have dumped these sofas on the shore?

If so, why?

P.s. The nearest peopled 'settlements' are from the offshore fishfarms just about 100-150 meters away. And they obviously do not seem to have a trash collection service despite having been where they are for ... decades.!!!!!?

mama spider creating web @ SBWR - 29Sep2013

Came across this rather bloated orb spider (Nephila antipodiana ?) re-creating a rather large web after heavy rains washed away part of its web. There was a little red male spider clinging on to the mama spider as she went about her business. 

mama spider creating web @ SBWR - 29Sep2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Find out more about orb spiders here :

http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/inverts/nephila.htm

http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/spiders/text/Nephila_maculata.htm

http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/spiders/text/Nephila_antipodiana.htm

smooth-coated otter @ Ubin-OBS 28Sep2013

Was treated to a rare sighting of a lone adult otter at the OBS-Ubin sandy shore adjacent to the the jetty. It nervously trotted up the beach and started to rub its body over the sand cautiously stopping every few seconds to look around. It was on the shore for just under two minutes and trundled back down into the water before disappearing with a dive.  

smooth-coated otter @ Ubin-OBS 28Sep2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Find out more about these otters :

http://blog.nus.edu.sg/sgotters/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smooth-coated_otter

http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/verts/smooth_otter.htm

malayan water monitor holed up @ pasir ris mangrove 14Sep2013

The amazing disappearing magic show by a Malayan Water Monitor was one of the highlights observed during a free nature walk conducted by the Naked Hermit Crabs volunteer guides. 

The lizard was about 1.4m long (maybe a bit longer as it had a very long tail) and had been resting on a branch of a mangrove tree which reached above the viewing platform. It was already about 6.30pm and the lizard must have been basking in the afternoon sun on a safe perch on a high branch. Some kids spotted it on the high branch and their howls of delight must have been too much for the lizard. We need to be quiet in Nature Parks so that the animals do not run and hide which is exactly what this lizard did. The lizard crawled down the branch to a hole in the trunk of the tree. The hole was not much wider than the lizard's head and certainly smaller than the lizard's belly girth. It cautiously looked inside the hole to see if anything else was inside before deciding that all was good. The video clip is self-explanatory....the background dialogue is also interesting. It was certainly amazing to see the entire lizard disappear into the cavity.

water monitor lizard holed up @ pasir ris mangroves 14Sep2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Check out all the mangrove denizens spotted during the walk at the unique Pasir Ris mangroves at this link http://nakedhermitcrabs.blogspot.sg/2013/09/family-fun-exploring-pasir-ris-mangroves.html.

Find out more about the unique Pasir Ris mangroves :

http://www.wildsingapore.com/places/prp.htm

http://mangrove.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/text/1017.htm

http://tidechaser.blogspot.sg/2012/08/pasir-ris-mangrove-boardwalk.html

Find out about wild happenings in Singapore here :

http://wildsingaporehappenings.blogspot.sg/

And here are some fabulous links about the star of this blogpost...the ubiquitous Malayan Water Monitor :

http://varanidae.org/6_1_Ng-and-Mendyk.pdf - read about a water monitor getting eaten by crocodiles at SBWR!

http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/vertebrates/reptilia/salvator.htm

http://iyb2010singapore.blogspot.sg/2010/12/magnificent-monitors.html

http://www.ecologyasia.com/verts/lizards/malayan_water_monitor.htm

http://mangrove.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/text/2115.htm

http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/verts/monitor_lizard.htm

https://www.sbwr.org.sg/Wetlands/text/06-133-1.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_monitor

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/11/21/monitor-lizards-at-the-sungei-buloh-wetland-reserve/

http://www.besgroup.org/2008/10/25/malayan-water-monitor-catching-catfish/

buffy fish owl @ pasir ris mangrove - 14Sep2013

Finally got a few seconds worth of this rarely seen fishing owl in the Pasir Ris Mangrove.

The owl was spotted during a free nature walk conducted by a group of passionate volunteers who call themselves the 'Naked Hermit Crabs'. Find out more about their fabulous free walks! Join them as they show you what gems Singapore's shores and mangroves have! Send them an email at nakedhermitcrabs@gmail.com.

buffy fish owl @ pasir ris mangroves 14Sep2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Check out all the mangrove denizens spotted during the walk at the unique Pasir Ris mangroves at this link http://nakedhermitcrabs.blogspot.sg/2013/09/family-fun-exploring-pasir-ris-mangroves.html.

Find out more about the unique Pasir Ris mangroves :

http://www.wildsingapore.com/places/prp.htm

http://mangrove.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/text/1017.htm

http://tidechaser.blogspot.sg/2012/08/pasir-ris-mangrove-boardwalk.html

Find out about wild happenings in Singapore here :

http://wildsingaporehappenings.blogspot.sg/

Find out more about this fabulous owl :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffy_Fish_Owl

http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/pub/naturewatch/text/a051a.htm

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/05/31/buffy-fish-owl-encounters/

http://www.safeproject.net/animal-sightings/buffy-fish-owl-ketupa-ketupu/

http://www.planetofbirds.com/strigiformes-strigidae-buffy-fish-owl-ketupa-ketupu

http://ibc.lynxeds.com/species/buffy-fish-owl-ketupa-ketupu

http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=2232&m=1

bad birding practice @ pasir ris - 11Aug2013

Visited a small nook at Pasir Ris to see if there was any appearance by the rarely seen Greater Painted Snipe(GPS). However, the disappointment came not only from a no show (which I had been expecting) from this shy bird, but mainly from the wanton use and discard of styrofoam boards on the muddy ground. 

I had previously seen photographers use these boards to stand their tripods on them or even sit their chairs on the boards whilst waiting for the GPS to show but I had assumed that the photographers would know better than to simply abandon the boards on the ground once their watch was over. 

As can be seen in the photo, some bit of the boards had broken off and littered the muddy ground. The smaller bits of styrofoam will likely remain in the ground for a very very long time (forever by human lifetime references) and I hope the GPS or some other animal would not inadvertently consume the muddied styrofoam granules peppering the muddy ground.

The two photographers on the right who have been masked out are doing the RIGHT thing as pictured by using boots and being unafraid of the mud. The styrofoam boards to the left were probably left by other photographer(s) doing the WRONG thing.

Perhaps it is time for bird photographers to pay more attention to how they go about their art and to take a critically reflective attitude towards some basic dos and don'ts. Peer pressure by other photographers should also be practised to encourage the baddies to practise good common sense. It would be a shame if the GPS or some other animal suffered fatally from ingesting the undigestable styrofoam bits.

The bird photography community will know who the lazy photographers are and what little value to accord to their images....all of them. Professionalism does count.

I hope I maintain a decent standard of good practice as well.

It should not be too difficult.  

deadfish III @ northwestern singapore - July2013

It appears that the local fishfarms are deliberately dumping deadfish into local waters. There may have been a 'depleted oxygen' incident affecting the Northwestern waters off Lim Chu Kang.

This 'dry weather-no rain-low oxygen' explanation favours the fish farmers but it of course (perhaps the fish farmers are simply overstocking their pens?) does not explain why the other fish in the area (like those free swimming in the Sungei Buloh Reserve) did not seem to be affected. If they had, there would have been many many more dead fish seen floating.

The story seems to be that proper disposal of dead fish was organised and that none of the affected fishfarms had dumped fish 'over the side'. Instead all dead fish were collected and transported to the Lim Chu Kang jetty for proper disposal.

Sadly this explanation does not fit what was seen in the waters around Lim Chu Kang and the SBWR. 

It may be that the local fishfarms did not throw away dead fish. However, it looks like they released dying fish into the surrounding waters. Why wait for the soon-to-be-dead fish to die? Mercy release? This now unpopular quasi-religious practice never did involve the release of dying animals, did it? 

What's even worse is finding obvious signs that dead fish were 'released' despite the denials.

Here are pics from the northwestern coast showing fish meal bags (the usual container for fish meal as supplied to aquaculture establishments in Singapore) stuffed with dead fish. Now this makes the denials smell ... fishy. Who would place live but dying fish in such bags and leave them adrift to reach the shore? So dead (or maybe including dying) fish were in fact placed in bags and set adrift and away releasing the farmers from certain environmental obligations and responsibilities.

If visiting ships in port have to pay for a trash collection service where trash is collected from them, then our local fish farms should also pay for similar trash collection. It should not be left to the local fish farms to bring their trash to a determined trash point on the shore. We know that expectation is a failure now isn't it?

Whilst some fish farmers may comply, there are others who clearly do not. These recalcitrant farmers take advantage of the cover of darkness to dump their waste anywhere they feel like it. And there is more than dead fish generated by these off-shore farms. 

The workers living on these floating farms generate waste as well...both human as well as general household waste. (General waste includes, inter alia, styrofoam, plastic bags, empty fish meal bags, bottles, lightbulbs, lubricating oils and grease for machinery, etc.) Where does all this go if the trash collection points are not used. (If you want to know more about Singapore's coastal trash, visit http://coastalcleanup.nus.edu.sg/.)

There desperately needs to be a more formal system of trash collection from licensed fish farms.

Given the poor track record as shown through this incident,  perhaps it is time for Parliament to legislate standards and practices at fish farms and this could include compulsory fee-based trash collection to leave no doubt as to what really happens to the trash generated 24x7x365.

Or we could all just continue pretending that there is no problem and that both our fish farms and our waters are perfectly fine. 

Of course, there are many sources of pollution in our waters and the locally licensed fish farms are but one. Will any face prosecutions for this series of dumplings? Probably not.... but why not?


links to related posts :
http://sgbeachbum.blogspot.com/2013/06/deadfish-northwestern-singapore-coast.html
http://sgbeachbum.blogspot.com/2013/07/deadfish-ii-northwestern-singapore.html
http://wildshores.blogspot.sg/2013/07/fish-farms-dumping-dead-fishes.html

deadfish II @ northwestern Singapore @ SBWR - 01July2013

http://sgbeachbum.blogspot.com/2013/06/deadfish-northwestern-singapore-coast.html
Clips from the Mangrove Boardwalk to the right of the SBWR Visitor Centre on 1 July 2013.

deadfish I @SBWR 01July2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.


deadfish II @SBWR 01July2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

deadfish III @SBWR 01July2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Related links :
http://sgbeachbum.blogspot.com/2013/06/deadfish-northwestern-singapore-coast.html
http://wildshores.blogspot.sg/2013/07/fish-farms-dumping-dead-fishes.html

deadfish @ northwestern Singapore coast off SBWR & LCK - 29Jun2013

Visited SBWR this afternoon and was surprised to see many many floaters - fish - all dead and stinky. They seemed likely to be milkfish and mullet. These are commonly farmed at the off-shore fish farms located off Lim Chu Kang and the SBWR. I did not see any dead giant mudskippers, archer fish or sea bass or needlefish, but there was one dead and bloated catfish near the main bridge at Sungei Buloh. Perhaps that had been scavenging on the dead milkfish or mullet. 

The scene at Lim Chu Kang beach (beside the AVA jetty)...

The whole beach was strewn with dead fish (and not forgetting copious amounts of styrofoam and other rubbish). 

I had a friend from Denmark visiting Singapore whom i had dragged along to visit SBWR and he was (with jaw dropping silence) shocked to see the condition of the Lim Chu Kang mangrove and beach and the items left behind by squatting fisherfolk temporarily resident along the beach.

Meanwhile at SBWR ... the reserve was being pervaded by the certain pungent smell of decomposing fish. Lots of them. 

These pics are from the Mangrove Boardwalk area. Apparently, the dead fish started appearing on Friday and SBWR staff had cleared what they could reach but there was just too many dead fish coming in from the coast with each incoming tide. 

Many dead fish got stuck on the rocky bunds and also on trees once the tide receded. The hot afternoon air wafted the rotting stench easily and it was impossible to escape the pungent smell (even with an N95 mask which obviously was not designed to stop smells).

including some fish stuck on trees ...

The Lim Chu Kang jetty has two dumpsters, one for biological waste and another for general waste. It is obvious that the fish farm(s) responsible for the dumping are not using these waste collection containers. 

Could the crocs, monitor lizards, otters and other scavengers in the area face possible poisoning from whatever killed the fish (despite their strong stomachs). 

There could be quite a few possible causes ...

an E-coli outbreak?

chemical poisoning?

algal bloom?

depleted oxygen?

(Update 03July2013 : apparently, it was low oxygen levels which caused the deaths)

Failing good reason for the dumping(can there be any?), the farms responsible should be prosecuted.

Dumping puts the surrounding environment (and other farms) at risk. 

It pollutes the water making it unsafe for all.

some links about dead fish incidents and fish farming in Singapore waters :

http://wildshores.blogspot.sg/2012/03/thousands-of-dead-fishes-at-sungei-api.html

http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Singapore/Story/A1Story20120320-334670.html

http://wildsingaporenews.blogspot.sg/2012/03/dead-fish-found-in-another-river.html

http://wildshores.blogspot.sg/2010/01/dead-fish-zone-hits-pulau-ubin.html

http://wildshores.blogspot.sg/2009/12/why-are-there-so-many-dead-fish-on.html

http://wondercreation.blogspot.sg/2009/12/dead-fish-on-pasir-ris-shore.html

http://wildshores.blogspot.sg/2009/02/coastal-fish-farms-where-does-fish.html

Find out more about farmed milkfish and mullet : 

http://www.thefishfarmer.com/product/our

http://realseafoodmilkfish.wordpress.com/

http://realseafoodmullet.wordpress.com/

http://www.spc.int/aquaculture/index.php?option=com_commodities&view=commodity&id=12&Itemid=58

http://www.asiaone.com/Business/News/SME%2BCentral/Story/A1Story20090130-118141.html

http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/guidebooks/marinefish/text/222.htm

eagleantics @ marina bay - June 2013

Was about Parliamant House when i noticed two adult white-bellied sea eagles atop High Street Centre. One took off towards Fort Canning whilst the other stayed put on the 'finger'. Nice of the architects to make such a perch for the area's resident eagles. The views must be stunning (on days without the haze).

Going up Fort Canning, i missed locating the WBSE or the two fledged juveniles. This was the first time i was not able to locate any of the birds in any of the usual perch points. Walking back towards the Southern part of Fort Canning, the two adult birds were atop the finger again. This time, they started their trademark territorial cackling. It could be heard clearly across the distance. Perhaps they were calling to the juveniles to join them.

One of the adults took off towards Marina Bay followed shortly by the other. Time for some last minute fishing. A quick walk over to the Marina promenade proved fruitful. One of the adults came flying in low past the floating platform clutching a large fish in its talons. It flew above the bandstand and decided to circle around. It kept doing this whilst gaining height with each upward spiral before finally continuing its flight path across the Padang. It settled atop High Street Centre. Meanwhile, the other adult WBSE came by also gripping a fish. This one just powered straight on across the top of the Esplanade durians across the Padang. I lost sight of it and it must have taken a different route perhaps back to Fort Canning.

eagleantics @ marina bay - June 2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

animal snippets @ chek jawa - Jun2013

here is a selection of snippets from a visit to Chek Jawa...

the clip includes:

white-collared kingfisher

olive-winged bulbul

carpenter bee

goby

haddon's carpet anemone

grey heron (with fish)

white bellied sea eagle

animal snippets @ chek jawa - June2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

white-bellied sea eagle escapes a murder of crows @ SBWR - May 2013

The white-belied sea eagle, Singapore's largest resident bird, was enjoying a sunny morning on a bare branch at one end of Pulau Buloh across from Platform 1 at SBWR. It was soon joined by a single crow but within minutes, there were quite a few more crows crowding the surrounding branches. 

As the crows grew in number, they started leapfrogging between the nearby branches constantly repositioning themselves around the eagle which was many times their size. It seemed as if there was intelligence behind the repositioning like a chess game being played on the chequerboard of branches.

The eagle was becoming increasingly concerned with the attention by the ever increasing crows. Soon, it was time for the crows to show the eagle who was boss of that corner of Pulau Buloh.

The eagle quickly decided to take flight after a crow brushed up too close against its wing. Time to escape a murder. It was immediately chased by some of the other crows which had ben waiting on the nearby branches. The eagle flew off to a less crow-ed (pun intended) part of the reserve.

white-bellied sea eagle and a murder of crows @ SBWR May2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Here are some links about crows :

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/11/crow-intelligence-mind_n_2457181.html

http://www.cracked.com/article_19042_6-terrifying-ways-crows-are-way-smarter-than-you-think.html

http://nusavifauna.wordpress.com/category/crows/

http://nusavifauna.wordpress.com/2012/07/26/large-billed-crow/

http://www.besgroup.org/2006/10/23/a-house-crow-went-fishing/

http://www.besgroup.org/2006/04/20/the-house-crow-and-the-bat/

http://www.besgroup.org/2009/07/13/house-crow-caching-meat/

http://habitatnews.nus.edu.sg/pub/naturewatch/text/a094b.htm

http://blog.nus.edu.sg/lsm2251student/2010/04/14/the-bully-in-singapore/

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/01/070108-crows.html

http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/3802688?uid=3738992&uid=2&uid=4&sid=21102330702267

http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/3802944?uid=3738992&uid=2&uid=4&sid=21102330702267

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/08/world/asia/08singapore.html