NHC @ Chek Jawa Boardwalk on 8 Sep 2007

Twenty-third discovery posting:

Question: What does it take to be a nature lover?

Answer: A gung ho spirit!

Although this morning's island-wide rain really had me worried for moments if the walk today was still going to be conducted or not. All worries were dispelled when i saw the other Crabbies (Naked Hermit Crabs) all ready to leave for Chek Jawa (CJ). =)

As i waited alone (the other crabbies went off to CJ first) for the participants from NIE to arrive, phonecalls and SMS-es continued to pour through my phone, the sky continued to pour with rain..hahaha.

Two commonly asked questions
"Is the event still on?"
"Where is the meeting place?"

So after a single mad man rush of collecting money and checking who's here and not, everyone finally managed to board the boat to Ubin.

A group shot for the blog and my 'swimming' camera's first meaningful photo (picture below) while on the boat to Ubin.
Drizzles of rain continued to fall from the sky as we left the Changi Jetty (picture below).
I was suppose to guide the thunder crabs today, but then as our groups was a bit small, so i decided why not combine the group of thunder and vinegar crabs, actually i was also feeling a bit lazy after all the rush at the jetty earlier =P. Have to say thanks to Ron for doing most of the guiding. =)

Anyway, here's OJT PeiHao doing an explanation for first 'discovery', the sea nutmeg tree (picture below).
We couldn't manage to find any red fruits for the tree today, so here's a photo from my collection (picture below).
Discovery Note:
1. It was once thought that this tree could no longer be found in Singapore, however it was discovered to be living in Chek Jawa.
2. The bright red pulp of the fruit attracts large birds such as the Oriental pied-hornbills (picture below), that eat and disperse them.

Side Note:
We did not spot any Oriental pied-hornbills, but i'm going to put it as the second 'discovery' as this is the iconic bird of Ubin.
Discovery Note:
1. The Oriental pied-hornbills on Pulau Ubin are the only truly wild hornbills found on Singapore.
2. The hornbill's trademark is its large, long bill. The bill, however, is not as heavy as it appears. 3. It is not made of solid bone but of a honeycombed tissue.
4. Their call is harsh and penetrating and has been described as a loud, staccato cackling; or a yak-yak-yak; and even as the cackling of a witch on a broomstick!
5. The Oriental pied-hornbill plays an important role in the health of the forest as it disperses seeds that are too big for smaller birds to eat.

Third 'discovery' is Pulau Sekudu aka Frog island (picture below), have to say thanks to the participants in my group for correcting how to say the name of this island, as i kept getting it wrong.. hahaha Discovery Note:
1. There is a legend saying that the frog island was formed by a XXXX (it's a no brainer, right?).
2. For the exact story, please come for the CJ boardwalks conducted by NHC =P

A number of mudskippers out in action today, was it due to the tide? I wonder. Anyway, this is the fourth 'discovery', a mudskipper (picture below).
Discovery Note:
1. Mudskippers are amphibious animals and they are fishes! So they are able to breathe on land and underwater.
2. Underwater, mudskippers breathe through gills like other fishes. On land, mudskippers use their enlarged gill chambers to retain water which aids them in breathing on land. Something like a scuba diver’s air tank, only that this ‘tank’ is filled with water.
3. Mudskippers can also tolerate high levels of toxic substances such as cyanide.

Besides interesting animals and plants which we can 'discover' along the CJ boarwalk, there are also other wonderful sights which are worthy of camera shots. Here's one (picture below). As we walked into the mangrove forest, fifth 'discovery' was pointed out, the seashore pandan (picture below).Discovery Note:
1. This is also called the Seashore Screwpine.
2. It is a formidable plant to encounter as it has dense clusters of long, stiff leaves armed with three rows of short spines.
3. The compound fruit resembles a pineapple and are dispersed by water.
4. Like many other screwpines, the leaves are used to make mats and baskets.

And of course, mangrove trees were 'discovered' in the mangrove forest. The pictures below shows the aerial roots of the mangrove trees, sixth 'discovery'.

Discovery Note:
1. Mangrove plants developed aerial roots so that they could cope with living in unstable, water-logged (during high tide) and oxygen-poor mud.
2. Aerial roots are roots that arise from the ground.
3. These roots help them to stabilise the mangrove plants and they can take in atmospheric air when exposed.
Discovery Note:
1. Foreground of picture above shows kneed roots from the Bruguiera species.
2. Background of picture above shows prop roots from the Bakau (Rhizophora) species.
Discovery Note:
1. Picture above shows the pencil roots frmo the Api-api (Avicennia) species.

What were these two rock like objects on the mangrove floor? Seventh 'discovery'!
Discovery Note:
1. These are the vinegar crabs or tree climbing crabs.
2. The Teochew are known to pickle this crab in black sauce with vinegar, and take it with porridge. That’s why they are also called vinegar crabs.
3. The Thais like it salted, with the roe or simply fried whole.
4. There is a tree climbing crab named the Singapore vinegar crab (E. singaporense), it has entirely red claws and commonly sighted in or near mud lobster mounds.

Side Note:
Made a mistake today for saying the Singapore vinegar crabs has red and white claws. Sorry, everyone =P

Eighth 'discovery' was a Atap Plam, here's its fruits (picture below).
Discovery Note:
1. Found in areas with calm waters of low salinity (amount of salt in the water is low).
2. The Nipah palm is the only true mangrove palm.
3. Its mature fronds are used for thatching the roofs of houses, therefore the name of “attap house” and are also woven into mats and baskets.
4. Its most recognisable use locally is its edible young seeds (attap chee).

After an hour plus, we soon reached the second last station of the walk, the Jejawi Tower (picture below), ninth 'discovery'. Discovery Note:
1. The tower is named after a Jejawi Tree found nearby the tower.
2. A Jejawi Tree is actually a fig.
3. The tree is about 20 meters tall, about the same height as the tower itself!
4. Climbing to the top of the tower would enable you to do bird sighting or view the different ecosystems found in CJ.
5. It would be a bad idea though to climb this tower when the weather is bad, especially when there is lighting.

And once on top of the tower, everyone's attention on was this long tailed Macaque (picture below), tenth 'discovery'! Discovery Note:
1. Macaques are hardy, intelligent primates with stout bodies and powerful limbs.
2. These macaques are commonly seen in our nature reserves.
3. The population of the macaques are growing because they have no predator.

Side Note:
1. The macaque we spotted was eating the fruits of the Jejawi Tree.
2. So it goes to say, that they are able to find their own food!
3. Conclusion: Please don't feed the monkeys! =)

What would a group walk be without the group photo? Here's the thunder and vinegar crabs with Ron and Pei Hao (picture below). Oh, i'm not 'in' as i was taking the photo. =P So after making a last stop at House No.1 and a short debrief, the walk ended with the participants writing on the NHC guest sheets.

Thanks to all the NIE participants for turning up despite the early morning downpour. You dudes are really gung-ho! =)
Also thanks to all NHC crabbies for making this another event to remember!

Discovery @ St John's Island on 1 Sep 2007

Twenty-second discovery posting:

The tides have changed!

What do i mean?
In a day, there are 2 low tides and 2 high tides, and one of the low tides is a lower low tide, which means the water level is lower at the shores, and it is at this lower low tide where we shore lovers explore the inter-tidal zones.
And from September onwards, for a half a year, the lower low tides will be in the late afternoon, which means more sleep for us. =P

Anyway, on Saturday, the wildfilms crew and some Naked Hermit Crab's crabbies gathered to head out to St John Island. And along the boat trip, almost all of us were snapping photos away, either taking photos of our urban cityscape, clouds, boats or the sea.

Here's a city scape photo shot below:
And here's our destination (picture below)!
First 'discovery ' was made as we approached the inter-tidal zone. A pong pong tree (picture below).Discovery Note:
1. The pong pong is a medium sized coastal tree which was once a commonly planted tree along the roads of Singapore.
2. The tree has been called Singapore apple because of the large, round fruits.
3. The seeds are extremely poisonous though so it’s advised not to eat the fruits.
4. They also have showy, white flowers which are very fragrant (picture below)
Side note:
If you are interested, you might want to read more about the pong pong tree here.

Once hitting ground 'zero' (the inter-tidal zone), Ron was exclaiming the amount of onchidiums he could spot on the rocks. Here are two of them and second 'discovery'. Can you spot them (picture below)?
Discovery Note:
1. They are actually sea slugs, which are molluscs without a shell.
2. They are hard to spot as their skin often match the algae-cover rock, sand and sediment which can get stuck on it also helps to add on to its already great camouflage.
3. They are able to survive out of water as they have modified gills which allow them to breathe air.

Along the shores of St John, we also spotted small caves which were formed by the waves of the sea (picture below). These naturally formed caves can also be found along the more untouched shores of Sentosa. Besides the caves, Kok Sheng also pointed out that the rocky upper shore really resembles the Sentosa rocky shores too (picture below).Side Note:
The little island you might spot in the picture is actually one of the sister islands.

As we spread out to explore the shores, Kok Sheng soon found one spider conch 'hiding' beside a huge rock. Third 'discovery'!Discovery Note:
1 Young Spider Conchs who have yet to develop their "fingers" look more like members of the cone family.
2. Once they reach maturity, they develop their spider like "fingers" on the outer lip of the shell. 3. It means this spider conch which was spotted is a mature one.
4. Females have longer fingers than the males.
5. Most live in shallow water, feeding on algae.

As the tide receded , the sky darken, the time was ripe for another shot of the city scape (picture below). As the tide got lower, we headed further out and spotted this gigantic carpet anemone (picture below). Fifth 'discovery'.Discovery Note:
1. They have stinging cells in their tentacles, usually these tentacles are only exposed under water, but there have been cases where people have been stung when these are touched when these anemones are above water, so for your own safety, don't touch them with your naked hands.
2. They lack an anus, so they split out any indigestible food through its mouth.
3. This is one of the species where you could find nemos aka clownfishes living with them.

Although we did not spotted any nemos living within, we did spot a anemone shrimp (picture below). So here's sixth 'discovery'. Discovery Note:
1. They are able to live in or with anemones just like clown fishes.

One interesting thing about evening walks is that lots of animals come out to feed during the dark, especially crabs.

Seventh 'discovery' is a red egg crab feeding (picture below).Discovery Note:
1. The Red egg crab is listed among the threatened animals of Singapore due to habitat lost.
2. Egg crabs are highly poisonous and contain toxins which are not destroyed by cooking.
3. Since other animals don't particularly want to eat this crab as it is poisonous, it is slow moving and doesn't really bother to hide.

And there were also a number of swimming crabs swimming around and feeding. Eighth 'discovery' is one of them (picture below).Discovery Note:
1. They have paddle-like swimming legs which can rotate like boat propellers to enable them to swim rapidly.
2. They usually swim sideways, but they can also swim backwards and forwards!

Now tenth 'discovery' is something which left Ron, Kok Sheng and me wondering what is it. Ron said it looked like corallimorphs but he couldn't confirm (pictures below). Could anyone who knows enlightened us on this? Discovery Note:
1. Will insert them if i managed to confirm its ID.
2. Lesson of the day: There's always something new to learn on our shores!

Eleventh 'discovery' is a well camouflaged creature. Can you spot it (picture below)?Discovery Note:
1. It's an octopus, which is also called "devilfish".
2. Octopuses are characterized by their eight arms (not tentacles), usually bearing suction cups.
3. Octopuses have almost entirely soft bodies with no internal skeleton. This enables them to squeeze through very narrow slits between underwater rocks, which is very helpful when they are fleeing.
4. The only hard part of their body is a beak, which is similar in shape as to a parrot’s peak.
5. Most octopuses have a relatively short life span, and some species live for as little as six months.
6. Did you know that octopuses have three hearts? Yes, they have three hearts!

Twelfth 'discovery' is a flatworm which was found after some turning over of small rocks (picture below). Discovery Note:
1. Flatworms has both male and female reproductive systems, so when two flatworms mate. They may fertilise each other!

Thirteenth 'discovery'. Where's the picture? What is it?

A swimming camera.

It seems like after all the exploration near the seas, my camera decided to go for a dip too. Unfortunately, it did not survive the swim. =(

Well, nevertheless, got to look at the bright side of things, it's time to get a camera which can swim. haha. And at least the pictures i've taken did not "gone with the waves~". =P

Crabbies @ Chek Jawa Boardway on 18 Aug 2007

Twenty-first discovery posting:

Late entry for this second trip to Chek Jawa (referred as CJ also).

Anyway, i was with the Naked Hermit Crabs (NHC in short) and some people from the GVN at CJ as we were doing our trial run before we attempt a guided walk for the public. Basically, we wanted to make sure we don't dwell too long, talk too much, on each station so that our visitors won't go Zzzzzz... when we guide them. =P

We were a bit worried by the outlook of the weather, as there were dark clouds approaching, so very soon we were off in our trial walk.

Here's a photo of Pulau Sekudu (picture below) which means 'frog island'.
There is a story about Pulau Sekudu with relation to Pulau Ubin, but to know it, it's either that you go 'discover' it yourself or come for the NHC walk at the CJ boardway. =p

Along the path we were taking, we soon saw one of the six ecosystems found at CJ, the coastal forest (picture below), first 'discovery'.
Discovery note (about the plants living at the coastal forest):
1. Costal plants are adopted to grow in the inhospitable conditions (strong winds, salt spray and hot sun reflected off the sand and sea) along the coast.
2. The costal hill of Chek Jawa is mostly rock so there is hardly any soil for these plants to grow on.
3. So these plants either cling to rock ledges or grow wedged in crevices in the rocks.

And near the side of the boardwalk is a seashore nutmeg, second 'discovery'.
Discovery Note:
1. This is a coastal plant. Refer to first 'discovery' for the challenges it have to face to survive.
2. It was once thought that this tree could no longer be found in Singapore, however it was discovered to be living in Chek Jawa.
3. The bright red pulp of the fruit attracts large birds such as the Oriental pied-hornbills, that eat and disperse them.

Do you know that the CJ boardway is also a great place to check out the planes landing at our Changi Airport?

Here's a photo (picture below) i took.
An observation we had at the CJ boardwalk is that, there was no litter bins along the boardwalk, so if you have any rubbish to dispose off, please remember to put them into your bag or pockets until you can find a litter bin to dispose of them properly.

This is to ensure that everyone who goes there have a litter-free experience, and more importantly, it serves not to pollute the ecosystems at CJ.

Do be considerate, as i am sure that you won't like it if someone throws rubbish in your home also, right? =)

Here's a photo record (picture below) of the CJ boardwalk, third 'discovery'.
Discovery Note:
1. The CJ boardwalk was officially opened on the 7 July 2007 (have to mention this since my nick is July. =p).
2. The entire boardwalk is about 1.1km long and has 2 sections - the coastal section (about 600m) and the mangrove section (about 500m).
3. You might think the boardwalk is made of wood, but it is actually made from fibre glass and concrete, made to look like wood.

Fourth 'discovery' is another ecosystem found in CJ, the seagrass lagoon (picture below), the photo i took didn't really showed the seagrasses very well, as the time when i took this was the time when the high tide was coming in. Anyway,
Discovery Note:
1. The seagrass lagoon serves as a nursery for many sea creatures as there is free shelter and loads of food to be found there.
2. Seagrasses have a creeping network of underground stems that stabilize the sediment. So the waters around the seagrasses are fairly clear.

On the boardwalk itself, we made a 'wonderful' discovery! Wow! Fifth 'discovery', a true biscuit sea star, hahaha~ (picture below)
Discovery Note:
1. Origins : unknown.
2. Most NHCs believe that it did not originated from the seas.
3. And it is most possibly true that this is edible.

Another ecosystem that you can find within CJ is the mangrove forest, sixth 'discovery'.Discovery Note:
1. Mangroves are important as they are one of the green lungs of our earth, which means that they absorb carbon dioxide and produce oxygen through photosynthesis.
2.They are also nursery grounds for many species of marine fishes and crabs, just like the seagrass lagoon.
3. They are also nature's sponge, which means that they are able to hold large amounts of water. Massive floods have known to occur in areas where mangroves have been cleared!

An interesting thing about mangrove plants is that they develop aerial roots (refer to pictures below). Why? The answer is the seventh 'discovery'.Discovery Note:
1. Aerial roots are roots that arise from the ground.
2. Mangrove plants developed aerial roots so that they could cope with living in unstable, water-logged (during high tide) and oxygen-poor mud.
3. During low-tides, these roots are exposed and are able to take in atmospheric air.

As the dark clouds we saw earlier moved in closer upon us and with the accompany sounds of thunder, we decided to head back to House no.1 immediately. However, i did managed to find time to take a photo of the Jejawi Tower, eighth 'discovery'.
Discovery Note:
1.The tower is named after a Jejawi Tree found nearby the tower.
2. A Jejawi Tree is actually a fig.
3. The tree is about 20 meters tall, about the same height as the tower itself!
4. Climbing to the top of the tower would enable you to do bird sighting or view the different ecosystems found in CJ.
5. It would be a bad idea though to climb this tower when the weather is bad, especially when there is lighting.

Here's a photo of the house no.1 (picture below), ninth 'discovery', where we 'hid' from the rain.Discovery Note:
1. It is known as House no.1 as its postal address in Ubin is "House no.1".
2. This is now a visitor center which was converted from a Tudor-style house built in the 1930s.
3. One of the unique features of the house is its genuine fireplace, which is probably the only one left in Singapore.

Before the downpour hit the ground , i managed to capture a scene of the dark clouds that loomed across the sky (picture below). By the way, i was at about the same point where i took the first photo you saw in this entry.As soon the rain passed, the next destination we quickly went a place somewhere near the jetty, not the toilet, but a place for food. =)

Anyway, that warps this trip to CJ. Hoping to go there soon again, and thanks to all the NHC, GVN for their information sharing and jokes which again made the trip an enjoyable one~

Crabbies @ Chek Jawa Boardwalk on 5 Aug 2007

Twentieth Discovery Posting:

First trip to Chek Jawa and it was a 'crowded' event. I was there with the Naked Hermit Crabs (that's why the 'crabbies'), Green Volunteers Network and the NIE green club for a sharing session on what we know about the flora and fauna that are found there. At the same time, many other people who are involved in nature one way or another were also at the same place for a 'party'.

Picture below shows a map of the place with the newly opened boardwalk.
Brief History of Chek Jawa:
Originally planned to be reclaimed for development, this place was brought to public attention in the middle of 2001 for its rich biodiversity and unique natural environment. And therefore, the plans for development was shelved and will be reviewed again in 2011.

"The beauty of Chek Jawa is that several different ecosystems (Coastal Hill Forest, Mangroves, Rocky Shore, Sandy ecosystem, Seagrass lagoon, Coral Rubble area) can be seen in one small area. These ecosystems and the plants and animals found there are no longer common elsewhere in Singapore." (Reference:Chek Jawa Guidebook by Ria Tan and Alan Yeo)

So as we started out the trail up on the Jejawi Tower, which is named after a Jejawi Tree found nearby the tower (picture below). First 'discovery'.
Discovery Note:
1. This is actually a fig.
2. Normally these parasitic figs germinate on top of another tree and try to make roots into the ground.
3. Once that important step is done, the fig will grow vigorously, finally kill the hosting tree and then grow on independently.

Here's a "bird's eye view" from the Jejawi Tower (picture below). A highly recommended climb as the view is great.
As we moved along the boardwalk through the mangrove area, someone spotted this mudskipper (picture below) which none of us could confirm its ID. Most were guessing that this is the blue-spotted mudskipper due to its blue spots found around its body. Second 'discovery'.
Discovery Note:
1. Mudskippers are amphibious animals. So they are able to breathe on land and underwater.
2. Underwater, mudskippers breathe through gills like other fishes. On land, mudskippers use their enlarged gill chambers to retain water which aids them in breathing on land. Something like a scuba diver’s air tank, only that this work while on land.
3. Mudskippers also have to regularly replenish the water in their gill chambers so they cannot stay far from water.
4. Mudskippers can also breathe air through their skin like amphibious but they can only do that if their skin remains moist. That's why you might see mudskippers taking water dips at times.

Third 'discovery' was a Malayan water monitor basking partly in the sun (picture below).
Discovery Note:
1. Monitors can survive in habitats that wouldn't be able to support other large carnivores as they are cold blooded, that's why they need to bask in the sun.
2. In addition, they eat anything that they can swallow. From tiny insects, to crabs, molluscs, snakes, eggs (of birds and crocodiles) and even other monitor lizards. They even eat rubbish, human faeces, and even dead bodies.
3. The Water Monitor's main hunting technique is to run after prey that it has spotted, rather than stalking and ambushing.
4. Water Monitor Lizards are highly mobile. They can swim, run faster than most of us can run and even climb trees.
5. Like snakes, they have a forked tongue that they stick in and out regularly to "smell" their prey and other tasty titbits.

As we continued on the boardwalk, we met Joseph, a really professional nature guide, and we were really lucky to get some information and pointers from him on certain flora.

Fourth 'discovery' is the Nipah Palm (picture below) and which Joesph shared with us a very interesting fact about it.
Discovery Note (information from Joesph):
1. The trunks you see in the picture above are not the trunks actually, it's the palm's frond.
2. The trunks are horizontal and actually lies underground! The trunk branches and each branch ends with a bunch of fronds. So it's very possible that what you are looking at is just one tree here! Wow!

Fruits of the Nipah Palm (pictures below) Discovery Note:
1. Found in areas with calm waters of low salinity (amount of salt in the water is low).
2. The Nipah palm is the only true mangrove palm.
3. Its mature fronds are used for thatching the roofs of houses, therefore the name of “attap house” and are also woven into mats and baskets.
4. Its most recognisable use locally is its edible young seeds (attap chee).

As Joesph ended his sharing, someone immediately caught sight of a banded krait. Fifth 'discovery'! Discovery Note:
1. The Banded Krait is easily identified by the alternating black and yellow bands, which are of equal thickness and extend onto the ventral surface.
2. Sightings of this elusive snake in Singapore are rare. Though it is highly venomous it does not have an aggressive temperament by day. At nights it is more active and potentially more dangerous. So do respect it and keep a distance from it.
3. The species occurs in a variety of habitats including forests, agricultural and coastal areas. But it is more often that we encounter them close to water bodies.
4. They are known to feed on other vertebrates including rodents, lizards and other snakes.

Sixth 'discovery' was two tree climbing crabs on a tree just next to the boardwalk, thus the close up shot (picture below) .
Discovery Note:
1. Tree-climbing crabs can be seen easily in the day from the boardwalk. At this time, they usually climb only high enough to clear the water level and remain motionless on tree-trunks, leaves or boardwalk legs.
2. This is probably a predator-avoidance behaviour, especially with the many predatory species of fish and crabs that hunt with the incoming tide.
3. At night time or dusk, they emerge to feed on the forest floor and have been seen climbing up trees to heights of more than six metres to graze on algae as well as eating leaves.

Here's a attempt at a "nice" photo (picture below). It shows a mangrove tree standing near the seagrass lagoon. The seagrass is not visible as the tide was coming in. As we reached the end of the trail, some of us visited the house no.1 which was recently repainted and specimens were placed inside for visitors to find out more about the flora and fauna they would see around Chek Jawa.

Here's a technology driven display where more information would be shown when the visitor scans the exhibit she/he would like to know more about using a barcode scanner (picture below). House No. 1 even comes with a fireplace (picture below)! Few of my friends were commenting that they won't mind living in a house like this in the future. Well, looking at its exterior, its surroundings, it isn't easy to disagree with them (pictures below). After visiting the house no. 1, i had to rush to meet the others as all of them were waiting at the pick up point to go back to the Jetty.

So it's bye for now and see you soon, Chek Jawa.

And also Thanks to everyone for making the walk a very informative one and enjoyable. =)

Semakau Inter-Tidal Walk on 4 Aug 2007

Nineteenth discovery posting:

(Entry@ 6 Aug 2007: Thanks to Angie for a photo of the volute which was laying eggs)

Semakau had a 'crowd' of people, Team Seagrass were there to do seagrass transect, some Nparks stuff were there to do recording of plants (if i didn't remembered wrongly) and us doing the guided walk at the Inter-Tidal zone.

Have to admit that this posting would be quite short due to some reasons.. because at first i though that i did not brought my camera (which i really was lamenting along the walk) only to find out after the walk that i did brought my camera, it was hidden deep in my bag... ARGHZ!

Anyway, i was leading the 'turtles' with, Angie (who knows loads about corals) as my assistant of the day and i did tell my group that i was very tempted to shout, "Turtle Power" =P

Also i have to thank Jing Kai for his photo contribution, so that i can write on something interesting...

'Discovery' by Jing Kai's group: A coastal horseshoe crab (pictures below)
Discovery Note:
1. Horseshoe crabs have known to 'roam' the earth since days even before the dinosaurs was around, so scientists calls them 'living fossils'.
2. Although they are called horseshoe crabs, they are not related to crabs. They are actually more related to spiders and scorpions.
3. There are two types of horseshoes crabs we can find in Singapore, the mangrove one (circular tail) and the coastal one (the trianglar tail)
4. The tail is not venomous and is not used as a weapon. It is merely used as a lever to right itself if it is overturned. If you see an upside down horseshoe crab struggling with its tail waving around, do give it a helping hand. It will not hurt you.
5. The blood of the horseshoe crab is blue, as it is copper-based.
6. Their blood is able to clot easily when it detects bacteria, so their blood was harvested for these purposes until a team from NUS's department of Zoology has cloned a substance to replace using horseshoe crab's blood. Read more about it here.

(Entry @ 6 Aug 2007: Below was something that most of us saw for a first time, including myself, volute laying eggs (picture below)! A new 'Discovery'! Thanks to Angie again for giving me permission to use her photo. => )
Discovery Note:
1. Volutes are carnivorous. They prey on bivalves, enveloping the victim completely with their foot forcing the bivalve to finally open from exhaustion and lack of oxygen.
2. They can grow to more than 20cm and used to be common but now threaten due to 'harvesting' from humans and habitat lost.

As i only managed to find my camera after the walk, i only managed to get a group photo of everyone at the Semakau Jetty, here it is (picture below).
And also nevertheless, Thanks to Angie for her great assistance and explanation on corals and sponges and also all 'turtles' for being there. =)

"Turtle POWER"