Fish Expedition Day 2 - Hantu

Day 2 of the Singapore Marine Fishes Expedition 2019 starts at 4am! With a small team heading out to Pulau Hantu to survey the intertidal on a very low tide.

We find a wide variety of fishes! Later at the lab, the real work on the fish library goes on throughout the day. I also sneak in a quick look at Hantu - the coral reefs seem fine, although seagrasses are not doing well.

Although it lies just opposite the petrochemical plants on Pulau Bukom, there are living reefs on Pulau Hantu. It is teeming with fishes.

Here's some of the corals I saw along the way as we surveyed for fishes. Most were doing well. There were also a lot of very large Spangled flatworms on the shore.

I saw several cute Pygmy squids, one had caught a shrimp. There were also many octopuses large and small.

Most of the Tape seagrasses I came across were cropped short. I only saw a few clumps with longer leaves.

There is one wild monkey on the island. He came to greet us at sunrise. We don't encourage him or feed him, so eventually, he left us alone.

Here's the intertidal team (in daylight!) as we arrive back at the Marina. We rush off to the lab to hand over the fishes to the experts.

Back at the lab, experts assisted by volunteers are hard at work processing the finds of the dive team from yesterday, also from Pulau Hantu.

This is a chance to get a glimpse of the meticulous treatment of the specimens so that they will continue to contribute to science for many years to come, as part of the Singapore fish library.

Throughout the day, scientists will examine and identify the specimens, often having to use powerful microscopes to see tiny identifying features. The specimens are then expertly prepared for photography by pinning out the fins and other features that identify the fishes. They are then photographed by experts. This has to be done in a timely manner so that the colours and patterns of the fishes can be captured for the fish library for future reference by scientists.

Later during the day, the dive team headed out to the waters around Pulau Semakau. Tomorrow is another early morning start for the intertidal team. We are excited!

More about the Singapore Marine Fishes Expedition 2019 with daily and other updates are posted here.