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& Photos by Gloria Seow, Education Committee Vice Chairperson
We observed the adorable antics of the Bishan Otters from a respectable
distance of three to 10 metres for two solid hours.
Were the
otters going to show? That was the question that weighed worriedly on my mind
on the morning of 24 September 2017. Not only did we have a group of 20 participants
all raring to see the famous Bishan Otters, The Straits Times (ST) journalist
Jose Hong and ST photographer Jonathan Choo were also going to cover the event.
Thanks to
otter enthusiast Bernard Seah, they did. In fact, we were in the excellent
accompany of these Smooth-coated Otters (Lutrogale
perspicillata) for all two hours of our walk. The day before, Bernard had
tracked them down on his e-scooter in the Marina Bay area, trailing them to
their night roost. The next morning at 6.30 am, he was back at the roost but
alas, the otters had somehow vamoosed. Luckily, a security guard had seen the
11 targets moving off. Panicky Bernard was most relieved to locate them again
at 7.10 am, swimming towards Marina South Pier.
Sadly, parts of Singapore’s coastal waters are blighted by plastic litter that
could harm marine life.
With
Bernard’s update, I WhatsApp-ed the group to rendezvous at Marina South Pier at
7.30 am. Bingo! The otters had just finished their coastal swim and were
clambering on land, spot on at Marina South Pier when we arrived. We all had our
personal mobility devices to keep up with the otters, most on bike shares, a
few on e-scooters and one girl even came in skates. Before long, the frisky
otters were on the move again. They crossed the road and trotted the grassy
distance towards Marina Bay Cruise Centre. Bernard led one half of the group to
follow them while I stayed behind for the late comers. By the time the late
half caught up, the otters had plunged back into the sea for some breakfast. We
were thrilled to observe them chomping on fish, much like how we eat our
burgers, using opposable ‘thumbs’ on their front paws and sharp claws to grasp
their still-wriggling catch.
As
unpredictable as otters go, they then scrambled up the breakwater en masse and rolled
on the grass to dry off. Even though these otters are used to humans, they maintained
their wariness. When some over-enthusiastic photographers happened to block
their randomly-chosen path, the lead otters approached in a crouched crawl,
making warning noises for us humans to back off. As far as possible, we
observed them from a respectable distance of three to 10 metres without setting
off any otterly alarm.
Then the
otters reversed direction for a long swim back to Marina Barrage, efficiently
hugging the coastline the entire way. As air-breathing mammals, theirs was an
undulating swim similar to dolphins, using their muscular tails and supple
bodies to move underwater and up for gulps of air. Along the way, some hauled
themselves up on land for a quick poop, which left behind dirty green spraints.
Halfway through, all 11 otters took a break with a group rub on the sandy
ground. Here, Bernard pointed out the heavily-pregnant matriarch that was expected
to ‘pop’ anytime. The mama otter typically locates a holt (usually dug out of
earth) to have her litter and nurse them until they are strong enough to emerge.
Participants learnt that babies are not natural swimmers. They have to acquire the
skill soon enough as sadly, drownings are common. (PS: The Bishan mama had
seven babies on 5 October but only six made it past the first week since appearing
in public on 26 November. The earlier three documented batches of babies also
had similar statistics, with one otter succumbing each time.)
A Smooth-coated Otter eating a live Midas Cichlid.
As the
otters resumed their swim, we tracked them on land with our bicycles and
e-scooters. They passed fishermen with lines and hooks that could easily snag
them. We were there to greet them as they emerged dripping wet at Marina
Barrage. The cuties then strolled through the grounds, attracting lots of
attention. Then it was time for second breakfast in the calm waters of Marina
Reservoir. One of them caught a bright orange fish which Bernard identified as
the gold morph of the introduced Midas Cichlid (Amphilophus citrinellus). We witnessed a young one begging his
fish-chomping elder for scraps with pitiful yelps and circling to no avail. Others
were content splashing about. Even as they spread themselves out to hunt and play,
these otters remained in constant contact with their high-pitched yips and
yelps. We left them there, thoroughly charmed by their adorable antics and hope
that they will continue to thrive in Singapore.
The walk was covered by The Straits Times with
Facebook posts, online and print articles, as well as a video. Read the main
article here: http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/watching-learning-about-bishan-otters
1 comment:
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