- 3 weeks ago
In a small, densely built-up country like Singapore, space is precious, and balancing human needs with wildlife is a constant challenge. How can the city create a home for both people and wildlife?
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00:00So Acres and Endparks, you know, are the
00:29often we're the ones who do the rescues and then for us, you know, our capacity for
00:34rescue is really from within the Mandai area.
00:37So that's kind of like how we share the rescue workload.
00:41So I'll take her out now and then we'll just sort of do like a quick check.
00:46And then in terms of the animal assessments and the rehabilitation, you know, all three
00:50facilities and organisations also share that workload.
00:53For pangolins, it's a bit of a special situation.
00:57So all pangolins actually come to Mandai for assessment.
01:00Yes, that's right.
01:03So this little pangolin came in about two weeks ago.
01:06She was rescued by Acres from a military area.
01:08And she was obviously a very young pangolin, probably around weaning age, found without
01:13mum.
01:14And to be honest, we don't know whether something had happened to the mum and therefore she was
01:17found alone or whether it's just a natural process of the weaning that she's now starting
01:21to basically find her own way in the world.
01:24Overweight?
01:25She's put on a little bit of weight.
01:26Oh.
01:27She's not overweight.
01:28Yeah.
01:29Okay.
01:30So she looks, she looks pretty good and I'll put her back and then we'll, we'll give her
01:34a bit of a feed.
01:35So a pangolin, you know, like meant for release.
01:36So we try and feed her as close to the natural diet as we can.
01:38So what's next for this pangolin?
01:39So she looks really well and the next step will be for release.
01:40So we try and feed her as close to the natural diet as we can.
01:46So what's next for this pangolin?
01:48So she looks really well and the next step will be for release.
01:55So we have here a changeable hawk eagle.
02:17Yes.
02:18It's one of the brown morphs is less commonly seen.
02:21So this one collided with a building yesterday, was picked up by a night rescue and is now
02:27with us.
02:28And I'm going to do a quick check on it to see if it's fit for release or if it has
02:32any injuries.
02:36If a bird does recover, sometimes they don't.
02:39If a bird does recover, then it could be showing improvement anytime from the third day up to
02:45a week.
02:46Sometimes it takes a little bit longer.
02:48But some birds, when they've had permanent dislocations of the spinal vertebrae or they've
02:53had a hematoma that has compressed a nerve and has killed the nerve, then it will not recover.
03:00So there are a few things we check for in collision cases.
03:05We've already seen that it can stand.
03:07But I also need to check the head, if it has any head injuries.
03:11Look at the talons, it's razor sharp.
03:14So I'm done with the brief check, I'm going to now see if he can stand in a balanced way,
03:33as well as fly.
03:46How can we play our part to be more considerate for the wildlife?
03:49First of all, the understanding of how we can live together with wildlife in a city in nature
03:57is very important.
03:58Buildings that are just glass, they're beautiful to look at for humans, but for animals they're
04:03extremely dangerous.
04:04So in the design of our city, I think those kinds of things can be taken into consideration.
04:11Even very simple things like putting a reflective CD hanging on the window, those kinds of things,
04:17as it spins, it can help the bird break up that image of a flat surface.
04:21Can fly.
04:22No problem.
04:23All signs point to release.
04:26He's alert, he is already raring to go.
04:30And I think instead of handling him more, I will put him in the carrier so that it's less stressful.
04:48So welcome to our Centre for Wildlife Rehabitation.
04:51So this is our Centre where we receive animals that are rescued or injured from our environment.
04:58They will be sent over to our Centre for treatment and rehabilitation before release into the wild.
05:06This one's probably like 3 weeks old, 3-4 weeks old.
05:10And it's a case of like...
05:12A member of the public found the civil, and then they called and passed because the civil was without any parent.
05:19But this keeps, I think, within all you think.
05:22Yeah, so sometimes we get babies because the parents, like they might have been disturbed some way,
05:27like maybe a predator or something.
05:29Then they leave the nest and then sometimes they don't come back to the baby.
05:32Or if they also be like the parents and the babies, they're like looking for a new place and then the baby gets lost.
05:38And when it's displaced because it's still a baby, right, it has no means to find its own food.
05:43Yeah.
05:44So that's why our intervention is required.
05:47So we work jointly with our partners from Mandai Wildlife Group as well as Acres.
05:54So I think we see ourselves as part of an ecosystem where our resources are being put together and being shared to tap on each other's specialties.
06:03Giving nature a helping hand is not just about rescuing animals.
06:11It's also about building a strong foundation, the plants that support them.
06:16So we are at Pasar Panjang Nursery.
06:20This is Ampah's only and largest nursery in Singapore.
06:24So we are about 13 hectares large.
06:26Over here, we grow different types of plants.
06:29We have a range of native species.
06:32And these native species are grown here for biodiversity conservation of our local species.
06:37We also have ornamental exotic species.
06:40So these actually help to brighten and enliven our urban landscapes with flowers, colorful foliage and so and so forth.
06:48I'm aware that there are critically endangered wildlife in Singapore.
06:52But I've never ever heard of critically endangered plants before.
06:55So what kind of plants are critically endangered?
06:57So many of our native species are mostly confined to our nature reserves.
07:02And some of these plants, they are critically endangered because they exist in very low numbers here.
07:09So some of these include some of our orchid species.
07:13They include some of our big rainforest trees as well.
07:16And some of these are even new to science.
07:19This is the orchid.
07:20This?
07:21It's found nowhere else in the world except in Singapore.
07:25If we do not actively conserve our plants,
07:28if they go extinct, they will be extinct worldwide.
07:31So while the primary function of the nursery is actually to grow plants to conserve some of these unique native flora,
07:40these plant species, when they are planted out to our urban landscapes,
07:45and sometimes reintroduce back to our nature reserves to enhance the habitat,
07:49they produce fruits and also other ecosystem services that actually help to benefit both the native fauna and also the environment around.
07:58Much care goes into preserving plant biodiversity,
08:05because every seedling represents a piece of our natural heritage.
08:10Now, I'm going to find out how they're used to support wildlife.
08:15Right now we're at Kiemhok Nature Way, which is part of the Lonnie Nature Corridor.
08:21And when you mention nature ways, are you talking about nature corridors as well?
08:26They are interlinked.
08:28So nature ways are our attempt at introducing the forest structure along our urban roads.
08:35Within a nature corridor, which is at a wider scale, you would find a network of nature ways, park connectors,
08:44that would then help facilitate movement between one core area and another.
08:51So when you look at a natural forest, you will find that there are different layers within it.
08:56You have your canopy layer, which are your tall trees.
08:59And below that, there's normally an understory.
09:03Here you can see that around our height, there will be some shrubs that are around the understory level.
09:09And there's also ground cover.
09:11So at the surface, there also you can see some plants that are growing on the ground.
09:16When it comes to designing the nature way, our colleagues work very carefully to identify and select native plants
09:24that would thrive within the environment.
09:26And there's a lot of thought that actually also goes into selecting species that can support biodiversity.
09:31Alright, Bowie, so why is there a need for nature corridors and nature ways in the first place?
09:37Yeah, so nature corridors and nature ways are both important in providing ecological connectivity.
09:43For one, it allows different pockets of animal populations to be able to move and interbreed,
09:50so that the populations become more resilient to extinction.
09:54Another important role in ecological connectivity is also the ecosystem functions that some of the fauna play.
10:01So for example, birds, a lot of them are fruit dispersals.
10:06When we connect some of these green spaces, whether through nature ways or nature corridors,
10:11it then allows some of these species to play that function and help to disperse or pollinate plants
10:18and ensure that our forests are more resilient.
10:20Okay.
10:24So the next time you're out on your walk, you might want to keep your eyes open
10:27because right beside you might be a nature way.
10:30And if your eyes are sharp enough, you might see more than just trees and plants in there.
10:34Any kind of development is going to affect nature.
10:43That's an unavoidable truth.
10:45But the way we plan and design our spaces can make a big difference.
10:50For Mandai Wildlife Group, this challenge is particularly significant.
10:55This is Mandai Wildlife Bridge.
10:58This bridge connects the buffers that is on both sides of the Mandai Lake Road.
11:03The buffer area is about 45 to 50 metres wide.
11:06Ideally, if we can have 100 metres, that would be even better.
11:10But Singapore is land scarce.
11:12So we have Rainforest Wild Asia on this side and Bird Paradise on the other.
11:18And we sit very close to the Central Catchment Nature Reserve.
11:23If we have built the new parks right to the Central Catchment Nature Reserve,
11:27our impact to the biodiversity there will be great.
11:30So for example, we will have noise and light spilling directly into Central Catchment Nature Reserve.
11:37And the trees along the boundary will also get affected.
11:41They will have drying effect, right, more exposed to the element
11:45and there will be dieback on the tree and trees can also easily fall from the wind.
11:51So the buffer acts like a cushion or a shield between our new parks and the Central Catchment Nature Reserve.
12:02And because our buffers are contiguous with the Nature Reserve,
12:06so we also planted a variety of tree species at different height
12:11and this encourages animals to feel safe to cross the bridge.
12:16So although Rainforest Wild Asia has already been developed,
12:19there still has to be care and concern to the surrounding environment.
12:23Yes, because Mandai sits in a very biodiversity-sensitive site.
12:27Yes.
12:28So our operational activities can also have an impact on our own biodiversity as well as the surrounding ones.
12:34So all our camera traps, the coordinates, are already marked.
12:47Okay, so this is where we are standing right now.
12:49Yeah.
12:50So as you move, the GPS will also move.
12:53So all you have to do is to follow the pink.
12:55The pink line?
12:56Yeah.
12:57Whatever is it easy?
12:58Yeah, so you can hold it and then you can lead the way.
13:01How much?
13:02Lead the way.
13:04So Gauri, how is the data from these camera traps being used?
13:08Okay, so all this data, right, like they play like a big role.
13:11So firstly, we get a better understanding of their behaviour.
13:15So imagine if you were to walk into a forest,
13:17you won't really be able to see somebody or a mouse you're eating
13:20because they will detect you first and then they will faster run away.
13:23Yes.
13:24So camera traps, we can see.
13:25For example, right, we have seen them chomping on this like particular leaf called the African tulip.
13:30So just now I mentioned the African tulip flowers, right?
13:34Yes.
13:35The orange ones that you see on the ground.
13:37Oh, those are the African tulip flowers.
13:39Aha.
13:41So what we do is that we have retained a few of these trees.
13:45So some of them were actually removed because they were near the fence.
13:48And then there was a risk of them falling.
13:50But the ones that are further inside, they will retain so that the deer,
13:54they still get food source and it's a bit more shaded.
13:57So as you can see, this data helps us like plan when it comes to our ecological restoration
14:02and the wildlife connectivity enhancement that we know what we should retain
14:06or what we can plant more and all these plants.
14:09Oh, this is a lot harder than it looks actually.
14:17Yup.
14:18So the cameras are supposed to look like very camouflaged.
14:21So this is it.
14:22So anytime we reach a camera, we want to check the battery level of the camera.
14:28This is the battery level.
14:29Yeah.
14:30This is the battery level.
14:31Yeah.
14:32And this is how many pictures it took in one month.
14:36I mean, like you can see the battery is still full.
14:39So we actually don't need to change the batteries.
14:41However, the most important thing that I need is the SD card, which is right here.
14:45Okay.
14:46We also use camera traps to monitor like the recovery progress.
14:51We see how dense the vegetation gets and then as the vegetation becomes more dense,
14:56what kind of species it attracts.
14:59So like the Mandai Wildlife Bridge, initially when it opened,
15:03there were like no pangolin sightings for example.
15:06But after a few years, once the canopy like establishes, right?
15:10So it looks like an actual forest.
15:12Yes.
15:13Then pangolins were sighted on the bridge itself.
15:15So this is a really good indication that the bridge is serving its purpose.
15:36So what we had this morning was actually a Sunda Kolugo, which is a native species.
15:41So the Kolugo was found in a drain and you know, this species is completely arboreal.
15:45So they should be living in the trees.
15:47She wasn't injured, but her nails were actually blunt.
15:50Therefore, she couldn't climb out of the drain and that's why she was rescued.
15:54They're meant to have really long, sharp nails.
16:05To be able to one, cling to the trees, climb up the trees and then glide and land and hold on to the next tree,
16:12they need nails that are like grappling hooks.
16:15And so essentially a Kolugo with either blunt nails or very, very short nails,
16:20that potentially is a death sentence.
16:24So this morning we actually reshaped and resharpened the nails to prepare her for release.
16:31So Kolugo rescues are most commonly associated with some kind of habitat disturbance.
16:38Actually, we didn't have many Kolugos rescued and admitted for many years,
16:43but in the last few years we've had, you know, definitely seen an increase.
16:46And I think that's just associated with the, you know, development going around all across the country.
16:50And so I think probably what happened was, you know,
16:52she probably tried to glide across the drain and somehow didn't make it across and then fell in.
16:59So what's going to happen to the Kolugo after this?
17:02So she's currently recovering from anesthesia.
17:05We've managed to get the nails nice and sharp and hooked for most of them.
17:08So we're just trying to make sure that she's able to have full control of her body and her mind.
17:13Also giving her a bit of time to eat some food and really just trying to boost her as much as we can before we release her back into the wild.
17:20The ultimate goal for rescue and rehabilitation is really to release these animals back into the wild.
17:30You know, so we want to keep them as wild as we can.
17:33We don't want them to become too habituated, you know, too used to people.
17:36And so we're very careful with how we house them, how we interact with them, even though they may be under treatment.
17:43So Dr. Charlene is just about to release the Kolugo.
17:56She's going to try to open up the cage and let the Kolugo climb up on its own.
18:00So let's see what goes on from now.
18:03I've swim with a manta rays under the sea.
18:21I came face to face with a wild boar behind my block.
18:24But today the opportunity to see a Kolugo being treated, fed,
18:30and then being released out back into the wild.
18:34I don't think anything can get wilder than this.
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