Exploring Ubin's other shores: seagrasses

We explored a new shore at Pulau Ubin on Thursday, and there were some stretches of seagrasses there!
These were full of marine life that we typically see on our northern shores. Such as Biscuit sea stars (Goniodiscaster scaber).

Exploring Ubin's other shores: mangroves & rocks

Kok Sheng has found a promising new shore on Pulau Ubin to explore. We headed out there yesterday.
Although we vowed not to look left or right or stop for any photos along the way, we couldn't help taking a closer look at the many hornbills that suddenly alighted at a fruiting tree.

Will acid oceans doom all marinelife with shells? Perhaps not

Some shell builders, such as crabs, shrimp and lobsters, unexpectedly build more shell when exposed to ocean acidification in a recent study.
The larger of these two pencil urchins was exposed to current CO2 levels; the smaller was exposed to the highest CO2 levels in the study. (Credit: Tom Kleindinst, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

Seven of 18 creatures in the study built more shell when exposed to increased acidification. Organisms displaying such improvement also included calcifying red and green algae, limpets and temperate urchins. Mussels showed no effect.

"What was really interesting was that some of the creatures, the coral, the hard clam and the lobster, for example, didn't seem to care about CO2 until it was higher than about 1,000 parts per million [ppm]." Current atmospheric CO2 levels are about 380 ppm, said one of the authors.

Is this good news? Well, it seems it depends.

Cyrene quickly with TeamSeagrass

Cyrene Reef is as usual, lush with seagrasses, overrun with Knobbly sea stars and dotted with hard and soft corals.
I was out with TeamSeagrass and had a quick look around after we were done monitoring.

Does a captive whale shark bring bad luck to a city?

"Has anyone noticed the correlation between Dubai’s troubles and the capture of the whale shark by Atlantis?" asks a reader in a letter to a UAE daily.

Sammy in his tank at Atlantis, Francois Nel/Gulf News

Algae 'sex tapes' and other micro marvels

I'm already fascinated by the marinelife that we can see with the naked eye, sometimes with a lot of squinting, especially if it's something Chay Hoon found. But there's a whole galaxy of other creatures and features that we can't even see on our own!
Here's some of the winners of the 2009 BioScapes competition. And taking third place is a series of photos of algae doin' it. Fascinating!

Wooden boat sinks off Sentosa

Late Monday night, a wooden boat sank off Sentosa after colliding into another wooden boat. There were no injuries and no leakage or pollution.

Although this accident was reported on the MPA website, an earlier grounding of a container ship off Pulau Sebarok was not carried on the MPA website. It was, however, reported in the media.

Kids can go wild on the shores this December!

There's a bewildering variety of fun activities for kids and the family on the seashores this December! Many are free! I realised this as I was frenziedly compiling activities for wildsingapore happenings.

Chek Jawa during a high tide walk, through the eyes of a child!

Here's some upcoming family seashore specials ...

Very Large Floating Structures may be located near Pulau Jong

The area off Pulau Sebarok is being considered for locating Very Large Floating Structures (VLFS) for storing "oil and petrochemical products".This probably explains the recent soil investigation works there. Pulau Sebarok is our Port's 'petrol station' with major bunkering facilities. It lies just off Pulau Jong, which is among our last untouched Southern Islands.

The Story of Cap & Trade from The Story of Stuff

"Years ago, when I first heard about climate change, I figured someone else would work all that out while I kept plodding away with my work on consumption, pollution and waste. Well, guess what? They didn’t work it out; in fact, the climate situation is far worse today than even recent scientific predictions. And guess what else? It turns out that climate and consumption are actually the same issue." Explains Annie Leonard of the Story of Stuff.

13 Dec (Sun): Screening of "End of the Line"

By popular demand, WWF Singapore brings this exclusive screening.

Where have all the fish gone? See the world’s first major feature documentary film revealing the devastating impact of overfishing on the oceans!

To reserve your ticket: Email rsvp@wwf.sg by 12pm on Friday 11 December include your name, contact number and number of tickets.

6 Dec (Sun): Raffles Museum Open House

A hidden gem, the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research of the National University of Singapore houses more than 500,000 animals and plant specimens that you can get up close with.
Be amazed by urban Singapore’s rich biodiversity and grab this rare experience getting up close to many animal specimens. Learn about different species of animals that inhabited Singapore and the region through games and colouring activities. Children will learn about the different habitats, biodiversity, conservation and environmental awareness.

This Open House is part of the "I love museums" programme. More about RMBR.

Will there be a whale shark at Resorts World Sentosa?

A recent article reports that "the authorities are still looking into whether Resorts World at Sentosa will be allowed to drop a controversial plan to exhibit" whale sharks.
In May 09 , Resorts World announced it was "scrapping its plan to exhibit whale sharks at its upcoming Marine Life Park" because "it believes it may not be able to care for the animals". But as of today, its website still features a photo of the whale shark for its Marine Life Park.