Terumbu Raya in the face of Sudong reclamation

We return to Terumbu Raya East for the first time in 4 years! Although it lies just off the petrochemical plants on Pulau Bukom it is still very much alive. With sprinkles of corals and seagrasses.

The rest of the team saw sharks, sea turtles and other special finds. I will update with their sightings later.

A restricted East Coast Park site continues to thrive

Corals have settled on a 2.5km long seawall at East Coast Park stretching to Marina Bay! Seagrass meadows carpet the lagoon behind the seawall, while mangroves settled on the breakwaters. This shore was hit by by mass coral bleaching and the 400tonne Pasir Panjang oil spill in 2024.

Fortunately, we already noticed recovery in Nov 2025, which seems to be continuing today. Well formed corals were seen at the seawall, lush seagrass meadows on the artificial lagoon and mangroves growing on the seawall were doing well. Thanks for permission from agencies to survey this shore.

Beting Bronok still alive

Our annual survey to this reefy northern flat is bitter-sweet. Like visiting our favourite grandma and watching her painfully, slowly fade away. I feel privileged to have seen her at her best.

Despite the ongoing reclamation works on Pulau Tekong nearby, and flaring at Penggerang Johor, it remains alive. Seagrasses remain abundant as much of the shore has become very soft and silty. The small patch rich with delicate colourful animals is still there although faltering a bit. The rest of the team spot special sea stars, sea horses, moray eel and many other interesting marine life. I will update with their finds later.

Two East Coast sites in one super low tide

On a very early super low tide, a small team surveyed Bedok Jetty AND East Coast Park Sailing Centre. These shores were impacted by the 2024 Pasir Panjang oil spill. It was a relief to see that they remain very much alive.

I returned to a small sand bar in front of a canal for the first time since 2009! And found seagrasses and special snails. I will update with the team observations, as usual, they make all the special finds.

The entire Serapong surveyed!

One of the best reefs nearer the mainland is found on the undisturbed shore off Serapong Golf Course at Sentosa. These shores were impacted but clearly survived the mass coral bleaching and 400tonne Pasir Panjang oil spill in 2024 and the 23 tonne diesel leak opposite Sentosa Serapong in 2025.

Special thanks to Leanne from SDC, we got a second look this year to check up on the entire Serapong shore from the causeway bridge to the eastern beacon. In the dark as the tide started at 3am and ended before sunrise! I did the eastern stretch and the corals seem mostly okay. I will update later with the rest of the team's special finds and what they saw on the western stretch.

Citizen science project on seahorses and pipefishes in Singapore

Over the next two years, a citizen science project hopes to learn more about our seahorses and pipefishes. Singapore is home to three species of seahorses – the spotted seahorse, tiger tail seahorse and Japanese seahorse – as well as 19 pipefish species. There are plans for workshops for the public, to teach volunteers how to identify seahorses and photograph them. 

The data will give researchers a sense of species loss and whether it is happening in tandem with the country’s coastal development. It is led by senior research fellow Neo Mei Lin from the National University of Singapore’s Tropical Marine Science Institute, in collaboration with Adam Lim, director of Save Our Seahorses Malaysia.