NSS Kids’ Fun with Nature at Sungei Buloh

By Gloria Seow, Education Committee Vice Chairperson

Photos by Gloria Seow & Timothy Pwee

Sungei Buloh has become a place to see more than just birds. In our morning jaunt on 28 January 2018 led by 15-year old Raghav Narayanswamy, many of the wetland’s denizens and stopover migrants presented themselves in quick succession.

 Raghav pointing out the traditional spread of migratory waders on the mudflats.

At the Main Bridge, the white plumage of Little and Intermediate Egrets (Egretta garzetta and Ardea intermedia) stood out even from afar. They clustered in small mixed flocks in distant mangrove trees. A solitary White-breasted Waterhen (Amaurornis phoenicurus) foraged noiselessly along the water edge. Then a parent spotted what had been lying in plain sight all along – a baby Saltwater Crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) sunning itself on a rock. Kids were mightily roused, taking turns to gawk at the half-metre long juvenile through the scope. More significantly, this sighting likely indicates that the crocodiles of Sungei Buloh are breeding, a good sign surely.

Next up, we visited the Main Hide. Here, we enjoyed the traditional spread of migratory waders present in good numbers on the mudflats. Raghav pointed out the Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus), Common Greenshank (Tringa nebularia) and Common Sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos). We heard the familiar calls of the Common Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) and Asian Koel (Eudynamys scolopaceus). We even had two Long-tailed Macaques (Macaca fascicularis) parading up and down the nearest bund, perhaps hunting for crabs that make up part of their diet. Right on cue, Auntie Gloria spotted a couple of Tree-Climbing Crabs (Episesarma spp) clinging onto the mangrove trees next to the Main Hide.

Our sighting of a half-metre long juvenile crocodile likely indicates that these reptiles are breeding in Sungei Buloh.

All the crocodiles in Sungei Buloh are Saltwater Crocodiles, the largest species in the world.

Our attention turned to the Saltwater Crocodiles once again. One was found submerged in the brackish water about five metres from us, with only its eyes and nostrils showing. Another displayed itself in full glory – a sub-adult with powerful-looking jaws and tail – parked on an elevated bank about 25 metres from the sluice gate nearest the Main Hide. Three crocodiles all located within a 50-metre radius was indeed more than we could ask for.

 A confiding and pretty Common Emerald Dove.

We then proceeded in the direction of the wooden platform overlooking the Johor Straits. Kids were great at finding for themselves the highly-visible Golden Orb-web Spider (Nephila pilipes) and Kerengga Ants (Oecophylla smaragdina) swarming and devouring a dead beetle. Along the way, Auntie Gloria detected some motion along the water edge which turned out to be a most charming and confiding Common Emerald Dove (Chalcophaps indica). This bird is rather uncommon as it inhabits both mangrove and forest habitats. Typically, most birds are either found in the forest or mangrove but hardly in both. We followed this pretty ground dove as it foraged briskly amongst the aerial roots, moving parallel to our path.

At the platform, we added one of Singapore’s biggest birds – the Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea) – to our growing list. Distressingly, we also saw the rapid progress of the build-up of Danga Bay, a massive high-rise condominium on the Malaysian side of the Johor Straits. There were also a number of floating fish farms in this stretch of sea.

 Our star find was a Shore Pit Viper.

Then one parent reported that she had found a Shore Pit Viper (Cryptelytrops purpureomaculatus) some distance away. We were chuffed to relocate the pièce de résistance of our trip – a one-metre long black beauty coiled around a mangrove trunk in a classic viper ambush position – head faced downwards ready to strike any prey that comes by. Before we said our goodbyes, Uncle Timothy and Auntie Lena showed us Sungei Buloh’s friendly Lesser Dog-faced Fruit Bat (Cynopterus brachyotis) colony. We were pleased to count 47 individuals. Many of these bats could be seen nursing grown babies warmly wrapped within each mama’s wings.