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  The Straits Times 25 Apr 06
Tekong's treasures
by Chang Ai-Lien

THE military training grounds of Pulau Tekong have proven a sanctuary for Singapore's most elusive wildlife, including several species which have never been recorded here before.

The latest find - a Malayan Porcupine, which has not been seen on the mainland for about 50 years.

Postgraduate student Norman Lim, who had camped out on the island to do research, first caught a glimpse of the prickly rodent on the night of Dec 8 last year, when his torchlight picked up a head surrounded by short spines. But the creature bolted and he needed proof of his rare sighting as well as to confirm what species it belonged to.

So he set up a photographic trap. Motion-sensors wired to his digital camera meant that any creature to step into the area would automatically be photographed. He baited the area with sweet potato and tapioca, and within a week, caught on film wild boars, plantain squirrels, emerald doves, rats and a juvenile pangolin. He managed to get images of the porcupine on Dec 16 and 18.

'It was quite a surprise,' he said. 'This is not pristine rainforest, but the wildlife present shows what a valuable sanctuary the island is.' Mr Lim is studying the scale-covered pangolin on the island as part of his master's project with the National University of Singapore's department of biological sciences. His year of fieldwork is sponsored by the Singapore Zoo and the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society.

The Malayan Porcupine, which weighs around 4 to 5kg, is the only species of porcupine native to the region. The shy nocturnal species is little studied. This is the first time the prickly creature has been spotted on the island, though military personnel on the island have seen a veritable menagerie that includes pangolins, slow lorises and even leopard cats - the miniature felines have all but disappeared from the mainland.

The rarely seen Brown's Flap-legged Gecko and a breeding population of the East Asian Ornate Chorus Frog were also recorded for the first time in Singapore there.

Another treasure found on the north-eastern island - fossil ferns, survivors of the Jurassic age. That is more than 135 million years ago. Beyond its shores, the clear waters serve as playgrounds for dolphins.

Many scientists believe that less than 10 per cent of the animals in South-east Asia are known to science; particularly 'unglamorous' creatures such as flies and mosquitoes.

Singapore has already lost approximately half its animal species, but because of its location in the heart of the tropics, the Republic is still home to a rich variety of species.

Enough to attract scientists from all over the world hoping to unearth new flora and fauna.

Professor Peter Ng, head of the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, said that security areas such as Pulau Tekong and the Nee Soon swamp have helped protect some of Singapore's most threatened animals and plants.

'If we can discover a relatively large creature we haven't seen for 50 years, imagine what else could be out there,' he said.
links
More about Norman Lim
About Norman's pangolin survey on the WildLife Singapore website: you can make a difference, report sightings of pangolins to Norman!
Related articles on Singapore's biodiversity
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