Our Crazy Rich Shores: Pulau Hantu

Despite being located close to petrochemical plants on Pulau Bukom, there are amazing rich reefs on Pulau Hantu! As well as seagrass meadows and mangroves too!

As part of the cluster around Pulau Semakau, Pulau Hantu has been recommended by the Singapore Blue Plan 2018 for Immediate Conservation Priority.


Although best known as a dive site, there are rich reefs on Pulau Hantu's intertidal too. No need to swim, no need to dive to have a glimpse of them during super low spring tide!

The original reef flats surrounding Pulau Hantu Besar and Pulau Hantu Kecil have been reclaimed and seawalls built to create artificial swimming lagoons. But seagrasses and some corals have crept back into these lagoons.

There are even some mangrove trees growing here. Some are quite large, and young mangroves continue to settle on the shore.

In fact, a wide variety of mangrove trees have even settled on the artificial seawalls at Pulau Hantu! (More about how corals, seagrasses and mangrove trees have regenerated on artificial shores in Singapore.)

Here's a glimpse at some of the rich marine ecosystems that you can see at Pulau Hantu.

Next to Pulau Hantu is a tiny reef flat called Terumbu Hantu, It has many corals and is rich in reef life too. Here's a glimpse at some of them.

Among the amazing marine life at Terumbu Hantu, are these happy anemonefishes!

Visiting Pulau Hantu

You can join volunteers of the Hantu Bloggers who conduct regular guided dives at Pulau Hantu. Check out their flickr album for photos of the awesome encounters diving Pulau Hantu. Here's their album of a dive in March 2018.

Unfortunately, Pulau Hantu is currently closed to intertidal visits due to the presence of asbestos. Once it reopens though, you need to charter your own transport to visit. You can charter via Singapore Island Cruise or check with any of the boat operators at West Coast Pier.

The Singapore Blue Plan 2018

Pulau Semakau and nearby islands and submerged reefs have been recommended by the Singapore Blue Plan 2018 for Immediate Conservation Priority.

The Blue Plan recommends the intertidal and subtidal marine areas of Pulau Semakau and adjacent Pulau Hantu, and Pulau Jong to be designated Marine Reserve.

The Blue Plan highlights that Pulau Semakau and its associated patch reefs comprise many ecosystems: coral reefs, mangrove areas, intertidal sandflats, seagrass meadows, and coral reefs. The subtidal area of Pulau Jong is larger than the terrestrial area. Pulau Hantu is a popular dive site has seen increasing interest in the past decade due to biodiversity awareness. If protection is accorded to these three islands, zonation plans for use can be implemented to manage tourism and human impacts.

DOWNLOAD the Plan, SUPPORT the Plan! More on the Singapore Blue Plan 2018 site.

Links

• Intertidal surveys of  Pulau Hantu.
• Diving with the Hantu Bloggers.

This article is written for Celebrating Singapore Shores as part of International Year of the Reef 2018.