ABC Wednesday-S for Sungei Buloh

Today theme for ABC Wednesday is letter S. My letter S is Singapore, Sugnei Buloh nature park in Singapore. This is one of my favorite places to visit especially with kids.

Singapore is a small country with a lot of shopping centers. There are not many places for us to explore nature. But one of a unique places of exploring nature is Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve which is the famous bird sanctuary too. This is a natural bird sanctuary which is especially created for migratory birds which coming to Singapore from all parts of the world. I am not very crazy on bird watching, either a very professional photographer, but birds are the most easily seen among the wild creatures in our urban city, watching them is an enjoyable thing, at least to me.
 

     Click to view larder image

Apart from birds, you can find a variety of animals in Sungei Buloh National Park too. Smooth Otter, Monitor lizards, squirrels, they are all the guards of this natural wetland. There are prepared walking routes around the park that we can choose from. A shorter route, only five hundred meters long, also called the Mangrove Boardwalk, is the most popular among visitors because of the chance encounters with wildlife. I almost can find monitor lizards, crabs, angel fish, mud lobsters, shellfish, water snakes, spiders, moths, and mudskippers every time during my visit, but not even once I saw crocodiles, I was told there is crocodiles there.

My camera is not good enough to capture a clear photograph of those lovely birds and wildlife. (Click to enlarge picture)

My another favorite is get a better view of the mangrove when the tide is slow. The roots of the trees in the mangrove really stand out. All these trees help in preventing shore erosion and also are home to crabs, mud-skippers, snakes and birds.



Sungei Buloh is also a good place to see Archerfish and needlefish during high tides…

Archerfish, they are well known for the ability to shoot down insects and small creatures resting on foliage or mangrove roots. They can spit out a strong and accurate jet of water. With their tongue against the groove on the roof of their mouth, they form a tube, and force water powerfully out by snapping shut their gills. However, aside this ability, they actually preferred to leap up out of the water to catch their prey in their jaws when it is close enough.

Needle fish are living in the Sungei Buloh too..