Terumbu Raya, which lies just off the petrochemical plants on Pulau Bukom is very much alive.
I saw healthy corals, and we saw Giant clams and a Tiger cowrie. The seagrass situation remains unchanged.
I saw a large
Fluted giant clam (about 40cm long) but I'm not sure if it's the same large one that I saw on our last survey here in
Aug 2021. I didn't see any others but the rest of the team saw a small one near our landing point. We also saw a
Tiger cowrie, and many individuals of common nudibranchs.
Richard's photo of the smaller Fluted giant clam seen near our landing point
The reef edge near our usual landing point no longer had a lot of live corals as in the past. I surveyed the area nearer Beting Bemban Besar and saw more live corals and large Barrel sponges. Mostly of the common varieties. But I was glad to see large colonies of less common ones like
Moon coral and
Anchor coral. I didn't see many
Leathery soft corals. But all that I saw seemed to be alright.
There are a few large boulder-shaped coral colonies on the high shore. I didn't see any that were outright bleaching but most had pale upper parts.
It was nice to see the uncommon
Leathery sea anemone was still there. I saw a
Magnificent anemone for the first time on this shore. They are common on nearby shores so it's not surprising. Also abundant were
Frilly sea anemones,
Giant carpet anemones and at the reef edge,
Bubble tip anemones - alas, I couldn't find any anemone fishes. None of the anemones I saw were bleaching.
The seagrass situation is probably similar to what we saw in
Aug 2021. Most of the centre of the flats are bare sand with hardly any seagrass. There were sprinkles of seagrasses toward the seaward edges. Mostly
Spoon seagrass and some
Sickle seagrass and
Serrated ribbon seagrass. There were many patches of cyanobacteria. There were some clumps of
Tape seagrasses most were cropped short, though I did see many with longish leaves (about 20cm).
Thanks to Kelvin Yong for doing a drone survey of the shore.
This submerged reef lies opposite Pulau Hantu and the petrochemical plants on Pulau Bukom, and is next to Pulau Semakau.
The Singapore Blue Plan 2018Pulau 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.
Photos by others on this survey
Richard KuahChe Cheng NeoBenny CheongJonathan TanOthers on this survey: Kelvin Yong, Juria Toramae
