Sign the petition to stop Sheng Siong from getting in sharks!!!

Online petition - Say NO! to selling of any species of sharks in Sheng Siong and other supermarts! Eating them isn't sustainable and smart!

Increase in the Demand of Tiger Parts in 2010

I chanced upon this article when my brother picked up My Paper a week or two ago. Apparently, sale of tiger parts in Singapore and many parts of Asia soared in the year of tiger because people deemed it to be an appropriate gift and not to mention the declination of the population has well increased its value. Thailand, China and India has been named as main sources of supply.

There is no scientific evidence that tiger parts contain medicinal value: the penis is believed to be an aphrodisiac and the tiger bone tonic wine believed to be able to cure rheumatism. The paws and pelts are sold as decorative items. Their claws, teeth and fur are openly sold as jewelry.

Tigers are the largest of all big cats, and also one of the most beautiful animals on this planet. However, they are also among the most threatened and vulnerable species on Earth. All subspecies of tigers are listed as endangered on IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature). There are 9 subspecies of tigers where 3 have already become extinct in the past 70 years. Out of the remaining 6, South China Tiger and the Sumatran Tiger are listed as critically endangered. Current tiger population is possibly at 3,200.

Tigers are one of the most culturally important animal in the world. They are only found in Asia and it is our pride to have them. In many cultures and nations, tigers symbolizes strength, power, and majesty.

Many governments have stepped in to combat poachers by pledging millions of dollars to fund efforts to save tigers in the wild. Reintroduction of tigers into reserve parks were carried out successfully by the Indian government, and thanks to the Russian government on vigorous anti-poaching efforts, the population of Siberian tiger has recovered and stabilized. Although still listed as endangered, the population of the Siberian tiger has rose from 40 in the 1940s to about 400 in the wild currently.

Let's take the opportunity of the year of tiger to learn more about the 'King of the Jungle'. I have always believe that it is only human that we know what we have learned, and we will only love what we know. If we do not respond to the plight of wild tigers, we will witness the loss of one of the world's most irreplaceable natural wonders of our lifetime.

Reena

CC celebrates Earth Hour too! 8.30pm, 27th Mar

We can all take part in this event together by doing what we're best at! That is to play the role model for the visitors whom we speak to once a month about saving energy and hence saving ourselves!

The actual flow of events tomorrow, 27th March 2010:

(taken from http://www.panda.org/who_we_are/wwf_offices/singapore/?191505/SINGAPORE-GEARS-UP-FOR-THE-BIG-SWITCH-OFF-AT-EARTH-HOUR-2010)

Party at the Park

Kicking-off an afternoon of fun will be the ‘Earth Hour Fun Cycle 2010’ tour. Organised by BAIK Singapore, a group of 100 environmental enthusiasts will ride their bicycles in a show of support, starting at the SMU campus green at 5.30pm and along a 6km route to the Esplanade Park.

Activities kick-off at Esplanade Park at 6pm, starting with a free public yoga session led by Yvette Tee, instructor at Kryoga. Come calm your mind and re-connect with nature before the entertainment begins. For those who want to join in, please bring your own mats or blankets – alternatively you can choose to go barefoot on the grass. Those not taking part can visit different stalls or get their faces painted as the WWF Panda.

At 7pm, the Earth Hour Concert will commence and WWF Singapore will also announce the winners of the “My Earth, My Ideas” competition then. An online competition ‘My Earth, My Ideas’ was launched, encouraging Singaporeans to submit their innovative and efficient ideas on how to lessen the negative impact of our actions on the environment in 80 words or less. The contest has received 250 entries with great ideas on how we can all do our bit to save the planet. The best three responses will be announced and winners will walk away with over S$1,000 worth of fabulous prizes between them.

From 7.30pm, participants and passers-by alike can groove to the beats of a great line-up of musical performances at the Earth Hour concert. This year’s concert will be hosted by Jamie Yeo and will include performances by popular local duo Jack & Rai, Illusionists JC Sum and Magic Babe ‘Ning’ and a special appearance by Earth Hour Ambassador Nadya Hutagalung. Alpha Biofuels, a home-grown company specialising in the provision of fuel made from waste cooking oil supplied by 313@Somerset and Four Seasons Hotel, will be supplying sustainable biodiesel to power this outdoor event.

The highlight of the evening of course, is the big switch-off. Grab your picnic basket and get a good spot by the riverside as the skyline plunges into darkness for one hour at 8.30pm. The Maybank Tower will hold a symbolic countdown to the hour as the lights on the building will power down one at a time, before going off for the remainder of the hour.

Meanwhile, the festivities continue on stage with performances by instrumental act Freedom Percussion, Syltra Lee with Aurigami, Nightsound and Juz B. As the city lights dim, another world lights up above us and participants may also choose to take part in another interesting event - star-gazing session organised by the Admiral Garden Astronomy Club.
___________________________________________

Aren't you excited about it as much as I do? Then don't wait anymore, grab your family members and closest friends to share this moment with. Isn't doing something which you like and involving people around you, gearing up support from them the best feeling in the world? I wish we could have plan this earlier and make it a CC event for all of us but I kinda missed this out.. Anyway, if you take this chance to rally support from your family and friends, it will be great as well!!!

Have fun for CC (earthhour) day tmr, CC fam! :D

p/s: Am trying to get some pictures from my friend since he'll be taking photos around the happenings in Sg during EH and perhaps, we could write up a story and post here or publicise to the visitors on my next duty with Rachel at the zoo duty on 28th:D

cheers,
Angel

Ocean acidification may leads to impairment of olfactory senses in marine animals..

Abstract
While ocean acidification is predicted to threaten marine biodiversity, the processes that directly impact species persistence are not well understood. For marine species, early life history stages are inherently vulnerable to predators and an innate ability to detect predators can be critical for survival. However, whether or not acidification inhibits predator detection is unknown. Here, we show that newly hatched larvae of the marine fish Amphiprion percula innately detect predators using olfactory cues and this ability is retained through to settlement. Aquarium-reared larvae, not previously exposed to predators, were able to distinguish between the olfactory cues of predatory and non-predatory species. However, when eggs and larvae were exposed to seawater simulating ocean acidification (pH 7.8 and 1000 p.p.m. CO2) settlement-stage larvae became strongly attracted to the smell of predators and the ability to discriminate between predators and non-predators was lost. Newly hatched larvae were unaffected by CO2 exposure and were still able to distinguish between predatory and non-predatory fish. If this impairment of olfactory preferences in settlement-stage larvae translates to higher mortality as a result of increased predation risk, there could be direct consequences for the replenishment and the sustainability of marine populations.

Full article can be found HERE for those who are doing research or for in-depth studies (not for leisure reading, HAHA)
Dixson, D. L., Munday, P. L., & Jones, G. P., 2009. Ocean acidification disrupts the innate ability of fish to detect predator olfactory cues. Ecology Letters in press doi:10.1111/j.1461-0248.2009.01400.x .

IFAW - Taking care of the animals at Haiti

If you feel the passion burning, just do it! I support their cause in helping the animals there.. be it humans or animals, neither will be forgotten.

cheers,
Angel~

Do Dolphins Sleep?

Have you ever asked yourself do dolphins sleep, or how? To be perfectly honest, I have not. In fact, this question was brought up by a 6-year-old kid to me last month.

We all know that dolphins (and whales) are mammals just like us. They are warm blooded and give birth to live young. In addition, they have similar bone structures.

The biggest difference is their respiratory system that allows them to spend 30 minutes or more without needing to surface for air! Many of us must be thinking they have HUGE lungs! In fact, no, the size of lungs does not determine the amount of oxygen that can be stored. Dolphin lungs contain more air cells and have two layers of capillaries compare to human lungs which has only one layer. This increases the surface area of the lungs and therefore increases the efficiency of gas exchange.

Now, back to the initial question. For mammals on land, breathing is an unconscious effort. Our body takes in air automatically. However for dolphins, it has to be a conscious effort because of their undersea environment. In other words, they have to actively decide when to breathe. It is not feasible to be totally unconscious because they need to wake up in time to breathe. Thus this is a problem because brains of a mammal need to enter into an unconscious state from time to time so that our brains can function correctly.

Scientists have studied and discovered that the solution for dolphins to sleep is to let half of the brain sleep at a time. Therefore, one half of the brain goes to sleep at one time and the other is fully aware of its surroundings. Scientists have also discovered that dolphins are in this state approximately 8 hours a day! This is the exact amount of sleep that we are advised to have as well!

Hence, the dolphins are not completely unconscious but still get the right amount of rest it needs.

How amazingly unique God has created all creatures so that they can adapt and survive in different climates and surroundings. I do think that dolphins are one of the most beautiful animals on Earth. Until today, their 'smile' still melts my heart like butter =)

Reena

Flaring up at Pulau Bukom

Read about 'flaring up at Pulau Bukom' at Wildshores of Singapore website HERE to find out how are the refineries (located near Cyrene reefs, Pulau Hantu and Pulau Semakau) are adversely affecting the coral reefs and life in the waters.

There're also many more NAMED reef sites located in the southern islands such as Terumbu Raya, Terumbu Bemban Besar and reefs at Pulau Jong! There's also a new ethylene cracker complex which is built on reclaimed land AND BURIED THE LIVING REFFS OF Terumbu Bayan.

I've included a map of the Southern islands below so that you can get a clearer picture..


We can tell visitors that the areas in the Southern areas are worth protecting. By allowing them to understand their existence and through sharing knowledge, they will realised that these reefs must be conserved; the southern islands must be preserved and should not be replaced for economic development.. I'm sure there will come a time when Singaporeans need to decide again whether such areas should be kept, so why not let's all do our part now and think for the future?

For people already in the conservation 'army', we can experience for ourselves first the fascination of our own shores and transfer the knowledge and love using our passion for conservation to the rest of the people who have no idea yet. One day I'm sure they will see the light for supporting conservation! Start saving ourselves now for a better tomorrow! :D

cheers,
Angel

On dolphins at RWS

17 February 2010
Will there be dolphins at Resorts World Sentosa? Part 2
Eighteen wild dolphins in the Philippines have yet to be sent to Resorts Worlds Sentosa, reports Today.
Dolphins still depicted on the Resorts World Sentosa website.

The delay is because "the facilities to house them in Singapore are not finished". The Resorts World Sentosa spokesman Robin Goh said "construction of the Marine Life Park is on schedule and is slated for an opening after 2010".

These dolphins from the Solomon Islands were sent to Subic Bay Marine Exploratorium in the Philippines for training in late 2008. The dolphins were supposed to be sent to Singapore by end 2009, but are now still at Subic Bay.

The Singapore Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) has posted the Philippine newspaper report on its Facebook page. Deirdre Moss of the SPCA said the society "objects to the keeping of dolphins in captivity, as they are usually caught/kept for the purpose of training to entertain/amuse the public" and in doing so, they are "also forced to adapt to an alternative lifestyle in a man-made structure".

Mr Goh said animals acquired for its Marine Life Park are in accordance with the Cites agreement. "In the meantime, the dolphins are in good hands and being looked after according to international standards," he added.

In Jun 09, there was a Solomon Star report that "The Philippines-owned CITES science team has just sent a letter to the government of Philippines that the import of the dolphins from Solomons earlier this year is NOT legal under Philippine law."

Many Singaporeans were shocked by the film "The Cove" on dolphin hunting in Japan for meat and the captive dolphin trade. As Salina Ibrahim, a newspaper reader, writes "Singapore is indirectly guilty of contributing to the entertainment market that demands the capture of dolphins in the first place".

Mr Ric O'Barry, in an interview about "The Cove", shares how Singaporeans can make a difference: avoid live dolphin shows. He notes that Singapore has them and that more are in the pipeline. 'Consumers have all the power. Don't buy a ticket,' he says.

Mr Ric O'Barry is a former dolphin trainer who caught and trained the creatures that appeared in the iconic 1960s TV show Flipper. Now an animal-rights activist, he had a change of heart after he realised how miserable the intelligent, emotional animals were in captivity. Today, he works to undo the craze for live dolphin shows he helped spawn decades ago.

taken from from http://wildshores.blogspot.com/2010/02/will-there-be-dolphins-at-resorts-world.html

Do speedy elephants walk or run?

High-speed cameras filmed the elephants as they ran across the hi-tech track

With their awkward, lumbering gait, elephants moving at high speed are not the most graceful of animals - but are they walking or running?

Now scientists believe they have an answer: new research confirms that they do both - at the same time.

By observing elephants moving across a hi-tech track, the team found the hefty creatures run with their front legs but walk with their back legs.

The research is published in the Journal of Experimental Biology.

Earlier research had suggested that elephants perform a strange, part-walk/part-run while travelling at speed.

Elephants have a strange gait when they move quickly

But a team from Belgium, Italy and Thailand was able to investigate this further by using a specially built track that was able to precisely measure the forces exerted with each weighty elephant step.

Professor Norman Heglund, an author of the paper from the Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium, told BBC News: "We had to build the plates - you just can't go down to your local hardware shop and pick up an elephant-sized force plate."

Armed with these, the researchers headed to the Thai Elephant Conservation Centre to study the big beasts, which ranged from an 870kg baby to a four tonne adult.

Energetic exchanges

The Asian elephants were encouraged to move across the track, at speed, by their keepers - or mahouts - who rode on their backs (in the conservation centre, the elephants, which were rescued from the forest industry, are paired with their mahouts for life).

The fastest elephant reached 18km per hour (11mph).

They were also filmed using high-speed cameras.

The force plates were able to withstand an elephant's bulk

By comparing the measurements from the sensitive force-measuring platform with each frame of the footage, the scientists were able to look at every tiny movement that the elephants were making.

This enabled them to calculate the amounts of potential energy (stored energy) and kinetic energy (the energy that is associated movement), that the creatures were using.

Measuring the relationship between potential and kinetic energy is the key to defining whether something is walking or running.

For example, when walking, as an animal raises its foot from the ground and moves it forwards, it is converting the stored energy in its muscles and tendons - the potential energy - into kinetic energy.

As its foot lands, the kinetic energy converts back into potential energy, and then back into kinetic energy as the foot is once again raised, and so on. All the time the creature is walking, the energy is transferred back and forth between potential and kinetic energy.

Scientists looked at the elephant's kinetic and potential energy

But while running, the potential energy and kinetic energy fluctuates simultaneously.

Professor Heglund explains: "The running gait, in most animals, is a bouncing mechanism.

"In this case, the potential and kinetic energy are in phase, they both hit a maximum at the same time and a minimum at the same time, so they cannot be transferred back and forth."

However, the researchers found that fast-moving elephants seem to both run and walk at the same time.

Professor Heglund said: "When an elephant goes at higher and higher speeds, the kinetic and potential energy shift and start to become more in phase.

"But when we looked in detail, we see that the animal appears to be running - bouncing - with the front legs, and walking with the back legs.

"It is as if he is getting up to a transition speed where he wants to transition from a walk to a run, but he cant quite do it. It's like he can't quite get up into second gear."

The team said the elephant's front legs "ran", but its back legs "walked"

As well as confirming high-speed movements, the team also used the pressure plates to find out that elephants were also extremely economical with their movements, especially compared with smaller animals.

The scientists now plan to look at other large animals, such as hippos and rhinos, to find out if they run or walk.

This latest study confirms the findings of other research, published in the journal Nature and the Journal of Experimental Biology, that have previously shown that elephants perform a run-walk hybrid.

However, there are some differences - while this latest paper suggests the front legs run and the back legs walk, the other studies suggested the opposite.

Docents' outing!

Hey CC family and fellow docents!

Details of our first outing is now out! It will be on 7th Feb, this Sunday. We're meeting at 4.30pm at Mind Cafe @ Prinsep Street for some mind-boggling, awesome board games and quality time of bonding! As for dinner, we're heading down to TIMBRE@substation for some really gastronomic pizza (they're famous for this!) and spend a night of great food and great music with some great company!!!

This event is by invitation only (=

cheers,
Angel

ESCONDIDO: Animal park researcher decoding African elephants' 'secret language'

By ANDREA MOSS - amoss@nctimes.com | Posted: January 31, 2010 6:20 pm |

Researchers at the San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park are studying African elephants' calls to each other. The adult females are particularly vocal, making certain types of calls to their "sisters" in the herd while they're pregnant, then a different set of calls to their calves once they're born. (Photo by Jamie Scott Lytle - Staff Photographer)

Watch the video HERE

Loading…

Elephant communication research

The San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park researchers are studying African elephant at the park where they have begun recording the calls and building the first database of pachyderm "speak" in hopes of figuring out what the elephants are "saying" to each other.

They're huge, they walk on four legs, and they stuff food into their mouths with their trunks. Like humans, though, they like to hang out together and "talk."

Someone is watching and listening when they do.

And it didn't take that someone long to discover that female African elephants in a herd at the San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park talk a heck of a lot more than anyone realized.

Dr. Matt Anderson, the park's acting director of behavioral biology, has been recording eight of the elephants' vocalizations for one 24-hour period per week for about 10 weeks, then overlaying the sounds with information about their movements and behavior.

He said last week that the project is already producing big surprises: Female elephants tend to be chatterboxes and their ranking in the herd plays a role in how vocal and active they are.

He said he also discovered that a low rumbling call ---- which researchers thought females used only to tell faraway males they were ready to mate ---- is also used among themselves.

And although it was well known that females form a protective circle around a pregnant mother giving birth, Anderson said no one realized the mother actually tells the group when the baby is coming ---- knowledge that could help keepers prepare for the births of calves.

"It's essentially a secret language," he said, adding that the study has also revealed specific types of calls from the mothers to their calves. "It falls very low in the sound spectrum. ... And we're now able to capture it."

Because African elephants are more likely to breed successfully when they are in a natural habitat and stress-free, Anderson said, the information may help researchers understand how environment affects pachyderm hormones and communication, leading to more breeding success.

Natural opportunity

The ability of animals to communicate with one another is well known and, in some cases, well-documented. Cheetahs, gibbon apes and koalas are among the more familiar animals researchers have studied both in the wild and in zoos.

Some elephant "talk" has also been recorded. And Anderson, who has been at the park for nearly six years, has another project going in Botswana, where he is using GPS devices to track the movements of pachyderms in the wild.

He said this is the first time, however, that anyone has recorded the animals over a 24-hour period and correlated the results with information about the elephants' behavior and movements.

The park's natural setting and "wonderful" herd of African elephants present the perfect opportunity for studying their movements and sounds, he said.

Run by the Zoological Society of San Diego, the park is spread over 1,800 acres in the hills east of Escondido. The park was designed to be an endangered animal breeding and research center for the world-renowned San Diego Zoo, which the society also runs. But strong public interest prompted zoo officials to open the park to guests upon its completion in 1972.

Park inhabitants roam large enclosures modeled after the native habitats of the large variety of animals.

Most of the park's African elephants are part of a herd the Zoological Society helped bring to the United States from a Swaziland nature preserve in 2003. Several calves born since then have increased the herd's size to 13.

Potential breeding aid

Anderson and park research coordinator Dr. Lance Miller teamed up for the recording project, which is being paid for with money from several grants, donations and the Zoological Society's research budget.

Miller focused on developing special $2,500 leather collars equipped with a chin microphone, a GPS tracking system and a recording device. Anderson said that although everyone involved expected the animals to be wary of the collars at first, they were more curious than afraid and accepted their new accessories relatively quickly after keepers introduced them.

Before his experiment, Anderson said, it was well known that elephants used a handful of calls and other sounds ---- including the rumble and what he calls "the 'Jungle Book' trumpet call" ---- to communicate.

Many animals also make high- and low-frequency sounds inaudible to the human ear.

Specialized computer software that speeds up the recordings and graphs the vocalizations revealed just how much communication was going on within the elephant herd, Anderson said.

He said he combined the information with the GPS data and detailed observations of the elephants' behavior during the recording sessions to put the sounds into context.

"That tells you what they're saying," Anderson said. "It's very exciting. We thought that they had a certain vocabulary, but we're finding it's much larger than anyone realized."

He said he is cataloging the results in a growing audio "dictionary" of elephant sounds.

Dr. Allison Alberts, chief conservation officer for the San Diego Zoo, said officials there and at similar facilities welcome the new data that the project is producing.

"We are very excited about this intriguing research and its potential to help us better care for elephants in zoos and conserve them in the wild," she said. "It provides important insights into elephant behavior that we otherwise would not be able to gather."

Call staff writer Andrea Moss at 760-739-6654.

A poop-free invention

Introducing the flight suit for your lovely pet birds! now u don't have to worry about their poo and cleaning up!

Wildlife Reserves Singapore Signs Mou With Wildlife Conservation Society

Published 29 Jan 2010, from http://newsblaze.com/story/20100129115218zzzz.nb/topstory.html

Wildlife Reserves Singapore Pte Ltd (WRS), the parent company of Jurong Bird Park, Night Safari and Singapore Zoo, together with its recently established Wildlife Reserves Singapore Conservation Fund (WRSCF) today signed an agreement to collaborate with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), based in New York, and Wildlife Conservation Society Singapore Limited (WCS Singapore) on field conservation and public education to protect biodiversity in the face of global climate change and human encroachment.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between Ms Claire Chiang, Chairperson of both WRS and WRSCF; Mr Ward W. Woods, Chairman of WCS and Dr Steven E. Sanderson, President and CEO of WCS and Chairman of WCS Singapore, in the presence of President S R Nathan, Patron of WRSCF.

This MOU marks the start of a stronger commitment to protect biodiversity, not just in Singapore, but in Asia and around the world. Through the joint commission, representatives from all four parties will co-operate to undertake field conservation projects and share best practices and technical expertise contributing to wildlife conservation. They will also collaborate to promote public education and increase awareness on conservation issues.

Wildlife Reserves Singapore.

"At WRS, an unprecedented level of effort has been invested to conserve and protect biodiversity. To strengthen our commitment, WRSCF was established last year, primarily to conserve endangered native wildlife. This MOU represents another important step forward in our ongoing commitment to preserve our ecosystems and precious wildlife species, many of which are already threatened and in dire need of protection," said Ms Chiang.

Established in 1895, the Wildlife Conservation Society has built a strong global conservation network to become the world's most comprehensive conservation organisation. WCS currently manages about 500 conservation projects in more than 60 countries and educates millions of visitors on important issues affecting our planet at the five parks they manage in New York City, including the Bronx Zoo, New York Aquarium, Central Park Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo and Queens Zoo.

Wildlife Reserves Singapore.

"Our new partnership with Wildlife Reserves Singapore represents an important step for WCS and the conservation of wildlife in Asia," said Mr Woods. "WRS' conservation efforts and programmes have won worldwide acclaim. We look forward to spearheading new initiatives together and developing a regional centre of excellence for the protection of Asia's most endangered wildlife."

"We share WCS' clear mission to save wildlife and wild places across the globe. That is why I am so proud to be part of this joint collaboration to bring our conservation programme to the global arena. This partnership will pave the way for future collaborations and open many doors for all four parties to work towards their shared goal of protecting global biodiversity," added Ms Chiang.

With this MOU, the four parties will coordinate efforts to research methodologies and the exchange of multiple sources of knowledge, leading to action plans for conservation, education and key priorities for the management of biodiversity.

Working in Asia since the early 20th century, WCS has partnered with national and regional governments, local communities and other scientific organisations to protect Asia's incredible diversity of wildlife and wild places - to bolster environmental policy, train new generations of environmental stewards, support sustainable livelihoods, and connect protected areas. Some notable WCS projects include: working with the government of Cambodia to establish the Seima Protection Forest, created to protect wildlife and conserve carbon; and an ongoing effort to save tigers across Asia (WCS is committed to increasing tiger populations by 50 percent across 10 landscapes by 2016).

In the areas of conservation and research, WRS parks in Singapore have undertaken multiple projects, which focus on species such as the oriental pied hornbill, pangolin and orangutan, through collaborations with various organisations and institutions. Recent conservation efforts include hosting a regional Asian pangolin conservation workshop. All WRS parks are designated wildlife rescue centres by the governing authority.

About Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS)

Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) is the parent company of award-winning attractions Jurong Bird Park, Night Safari and Singapore Zoo. WRS parks strive to be world-class leisure attractions, providing excellent exhibits of animals and birds presented in their natural environment for the purpose of conservation, education and recreation. In 2009, Jurong Bird Park served 900,000 visitors, the Night Safari, more than 1.1 million visitors and Singapore Zoo welcomed more than 1.6 million visitors.

WRS parks have been conferred the Best Leisure Attraction Experience Award at the Singapore Tourism Awards 18 times. The record achievement affirms WRS parks' status as Singapore's premier leisure venues. Visit www.wrs.com.sg

ABOUT WILDLIFE RESERVES SINGAPORE CONSERVATION FUND (WRSCF)

Wildlife Reserves Singapore Conservation Fund (WRSCF) is a charity and Institution of Public Character, established in 2009 by Wildlife Reserves Singapore, the parent company of Jurong Bird Park, Night Safari and Singapore Zoo. The Fund was set up with the primary purpose of conserving endangered native wildlife. As an independent charity, it is supported by a team of specialists from various related organisations. The Fund's focus will be on native animal conservation efforts and the issue of climate change. Visit www.wrscf.org.sg

ABOUT WILDLIFE CONSERVATION SOCIETY (WCS)

The Wildlife Conservation Society saves wildlife and wild places worldwide. We do so through science, global conservation, education and the management of the world's largest system of urban wildlife parks, led by the flagship Bronx Zoo. Together these activities change attitudes towards nature and help people imagine wildlife and humans living in harmony. WCS is committed to this mission because it is essential to the integrity of life on Earth. Visit www.wcs.org.

Endangered animals get new lease of life in Singapore

By Philip Lim (AFP) – 29/01/2010

SINGAPORE — Sporting spiked hair and silver earrings, Samuel Tay hardly looks like a typical midwife.

The 25-year-old zookeeper beams with quiet pride as he watches over his "babies" -- row upon row of snakes bred for Singapore's popular zoo.

"These are my kids. Why do I need kids when I have so many already?" he told AFP, gesturing to tanks where newborn reptiles, including some from highly endangered species, receive tender loving care.

From jaguars and chimpanzees to Komodo dragons and manatees, heavily urbanised Singapore is gaining a reputation as a successful nursery for some of the world's rarest animals.

With a breeding programme for 315 species, around one in six of which are threatened, the Singapore Zoo is seeing a steady stream of locally born additions to its collection, currently numbering more than 2,500 animals.

Tay, a zoologist by training, is one of Singapore's frontline warriors in the battle against animal extinction, and visitors from around the world help fund the campaign.

The Singapore Zoo and its attached Night Safari, dedicated to nocturnal animals, each welcomes more than a million visitors a year.

Last year, 142 animals were born in the zoo, 32 of which were threatened species, officials said.

Experts from Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS), the operator of the city-state's zoo, night safari and bird park, do not rely on Mother Nature for results.

"We are very pragmatic, in the sense that if we need to make things happen, we will go all out to make things happen," said the group's assistant director of zoology Biswajit Guha.

The latest star of the programme is a baby Komodo dragon hatched in December -- the first born in an Asian zoo outside the giant lizard's native Indonesia.

The hatchling was the culmination of three years of effort by zookeepers watching over every step of its parents' courtship and mating to make sure everything went as planned, said Tay.

"It's always supervised contact, we never leave them alone together," he said.

This interventionist approach is extended to other creatures at Singapore's wildlife attractions, including the Jurong Bird Park, another major tourist draw.

"We don't take a wait-and-see approach. We will give it a certain amount of time for the animals to decide for themselves if they do want to mate, but if things don't go right, then we usually come in," Guha said.

Aside from making enclosures look and feel like native habitats, cutting-edge technology and scientific methods are deployed to make sure animals mate with the best possible partners at the most opportune time.

They include matching viable females with genetically superior males using semen analysis and monitoring the females' fertility cycles through regular ultrasound tests -- something that not all zoos can afford to do.

"Diagnostic facilities are not cheap," noted senior veterinarian Abraham Mathew. "You need the manpower and you need the expertise to do this. All zoos actually want to do this type of work, but whether they can do it or not would depend on their management," he said.

A mobile ultrasound machine used by the zoo costs around 20,000 Singapore dollars (14,200 US) and includes an expensive probe that allows veterinarians to accurately check female animals' fertility out in the field.

Such resources have helped make the city state a breeding hub for threatened animals, said Guha.

Zoo staff hope a pair of pandas to be loaned by China will produce offspring in the coming years.

"For us, captive populations form an insurance population, so it is our objective to make sure that there are sustainable numbers in captivity," Guha said.

CC updates! :D

Hey guys, it's me again, updating this precious cc family blog(: There has been quite a buzz going on in CC recently, so here are some updates!

1) some of the 09 Docents from various stations have decided to seek permission from the zoo management to include sharks and tigers conservation into CC station for the whole of the CNY period (till Feb end). To know more about tigers conservation and facts, you can visit HERE for more information.. We're still collating information and waiting for the management's response!
For those who are very passionate and have the time to join us in this conservation projects (not restricted to CC docents only), please join us! Click HERE to leave us a message on the wall OR simply speak to us on our tagboard (scroll down, at the right hand column) :D

2) please join "Wildlife Reserves Singapore" on Facebook! It's quite an efficient platform to learn about more about the animals you love! Click HERE to join! If you love animals and your docents job, here's the best place to get the updates of things which most visitors will not know (from behind the scenes!!!) :D

3) PP station has some newborn primate babies and some of them are endangered species in the WORLD! Pictures follow..Lion-tail macaque (above) - the most endangered macaque in the world. Don't they look like lions with their mane-stuff around the faces?

Black and white Columbus monkey

The baby is pure white in colour! As they grow older, they will turn into black and white, just like their mum and dad in the pictures!!

Family

Black Howler Monkey (female). The female is yellow to light brown in colour for their hair. As for male, theirs is black in colour. See the picture below for the baby!


Baby black howler monkey is also light brown in colour! Wonders which colour it will turn into when it grows up!

*pics courtesy of Tristan Huang from PP (09 Docents). Thank you Tristan for your willingness to share your pictures and knowledge! (=

cheers,
Angel

Endangered and elusive Tsushima leopard cat captured in Nagasaki, Japan

press here for a closer look!

Gd news! (:

Night Safari expecting birth of rare baby pangolin

Wed, Jan 13, 2010 my paper

A BABY pangolin - a nocturnal mammal covered in scales, and which is also known as the scaly anteater - is expected to be born at the Night Safari as early as March this year. In a routine check on one of its four pangolins called Nita, zookeepers at the Night Safari found out that it was pregnant. They had seen it mating with its mate, Kepong, last October. The gestation period for pangolins is estimated to last five months. Mr Kumar Pillai, the Night Safari's assistant director of zoology, said: "In the wild, pangolins are becoming increasingly rare. This pregnancy is a wonderful testament to the dedication of our staff, who have been working tirelessly to ensure that this native species thrives under our care." The Night Safari introduced the pangolin habitat last February. Pangolins are delicate creatures that are notoriously difficult to keep in captivity, mainly because their diet consists solely of ants and termites, the Night Safari said yesterday.

Guess which animals are they? (:

want to see the baby of the biggest breed of bear in the world? you can see it HERE =DD

want to see the only animal which you don't have to sneak up upon when u observe it upclose and find out why it doesn't react fast? you can see it HERE =DD

want to see one of the most favorite animal in SZG in their natural habitat and find out why they were once almost driven to extinction in the Amazon? you can see it HERE =DD

enjoy!

love,
angel

Colugo's classification

Quoted from Norman Lim's Colugo book:

Flying Lemurs are classified in the order Dermoptera, from the Greek words derma, meaning "skin", and ptera, meaning "wing", thus "skin-wing". This is one of the smallest of all the 26 mammalian orders. There is only one family in Dermoptera, that is Cynocephalidae, from the Greek words cyno meaning" dog", and cephalus meaning "head", hence "dog-head".

Lately, results from morphological studies and molecular studies have often yielded differing views on the relationship of flying lemurs with other extant mammals. Of great interest to geneticists is the recent discovery that the genomic composition of the mitochondria in dermopterans is highly similar to that of simian primates (suborder Anthropoidea; which includes humans), making them our likely distant relatives. Professor Ulfur Amason of Lund University, Sweden went on record declaring that: "We (human beings) are more closely related to flying lemurs than we are to half-apes."

When the Colugo was excluded from the primate order, one reason was that it has a small-brain, large ventricle syndrome, something that it shares with other non-primates like the Koala of Australia (Phascolarctoscinereus) and the Three-toed Sloth of the Neotropics (Bradypustridactylus). This, however, could be due to other factors that these animals share, i.e. mainly an exclusive diet of leaves that exposes them to high levels of ph yo toxins. In other words, the toxins in the Colugo's diet might cause developmental disturbances that give it a small brain and conceal its true relationship to primates. So, while the original classification by Linnaeus was later rejected, he might in fact have been right all along in placing the Colugo among the primates!

(click image to enlarge)

So........ in summary, Colugo is a mammal in the order Dermoptera!

Cheers,
Rachel

First post!

Any one up and ready for the coming safarizoo run? visit http://www.safarizoorun.com.sg/default.html

Registration deadline has been extended to 24th Jan 2010 (= The price is a little bit steep though. .I'm wondering whether we can volunteer our services for this run!

Here is a list of all the marathons in Singapore for 2010, FYI:http://sgrunners.com/blog/2010-race-calendar/

*
well, here are some of my favourite videos from ted.com and BBC Earth channel on youtube and please remember to cast your vote! Enjoy! :D

E.O. Wilson on saving life on Earth

Attenborough: Is it a Bird? Is it a plane? Is it a flying squirrel? - BBC Earth

Let's get down to doing it!!!

Hello everyone, welcome to CC family's blog! It's very new now however, hopefully by June 2010, it will become a useful and comprehensive website for us to share interesting videos and interesting facts which we have found on our own free time about the animals we care about.. especially those CC specimens! Basically, there are no rules on using this site! You can share about ANYTHING u like under the sun(:

This site will tentatively be maintained by Angeline and Kevin (NIC), hence if you have interesting videos and facts please add onto this site! The username and password has already been sent to CC Yahoo Group (YG). In addition, we also have a common email address (in order to do up this blog)! It's cc.zoofamily@gmail.com. You can find the address, birthdays, emails and hp numbers of all the CC people (still in the progress of updating). This email will be useful when you want to send email to only CC people.

One last thing! Please see poll at the right hand side.. It's for our CNY steamboat gathering! :D Please do vote for your most desired date ya? (: I'm sorry as I can't make it on 6th Feb for dinner, hence I didn't include it inside the poll..

The next post will be coming up shortly!!!