21-27 Mar: Highlights of the week ahead

Special events

• Earth Hour

Walks in wild places

• Inter-tidal walk at Pulau Semakau with Nature Society (Singapore)
• Paint along with Pui San at Sungei Buloh
• Mangrove walk at Sungei Buloh on Saturday with marine fish guided tour and Sunday.
• HortPark Butterfly Garden guided tour.
• Race Against Time – Science behind a Botanic Garden Tour.
• Evolution Garden tour.

for Nature Society (Singapore) members only

• Birdwatching at Semakau
• Birdwatching at Kranji Marshes

Registration now open

• 16 Apr (Sat): Horseshoe Crab Rescue & Research
• 10 Apr (Sun): NSS Kids’ Fun with Marine Life at Chek Jawa
• 9 Apr (Sat): Monkey Walk at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve
• 3 Apr (Sun): Grow Things! A Gardening Workshop for Kids with Cicada Tree Eco Place

27 Mar (Sun): Birdwatching at Semakau

for Nature Society (Singapore) members only

This is a good time to visit Semakau for resident birds and migrant surprises. Resident attractions include the Great-billed Heron, Pacific Reef Egret, Malaysian Plover and Osprey. Sightings of uncommon migrants such as the Black-capped Kingfisher, Peregrine Falcon and Eastern Marsh Harrier are possible.

Non-refundable $28 fee for boat and administration. Send your cheque to the NSS office by 18 March with the All Purpose Form. Number of persons for this trip: 11, 22 or 33. Email Hang Chong hangchong@gmail.com to register. Resident/PR identity card or passport is mandatory for boarding. Strictly for members only on a first come first served basis. Under NEA regulations, children below 12 years old are not allowed to come. Please note that your reservation is not automatically confirmed until you hear from your trip leader after the closing date.

Time: 7.30am-2pm. Meet at West Coast Pier near the Republic of Singapore Yacht Club.
Website: http://www.nss.org.sg/
Contact: email contact@nss.org.sg or call 6741 2036.

27 Mar (Sun): Paint along with Pui San at Sungei Buloh

Free art-and-nature appreciation at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve.

Tham Pui San, a volunteer of Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, is an avid artist who expresses his passion for nature through his art work.

Pui San welcomes artists of all ages or anyone who wants to learn. His objective is to encourage creativity while enjoying nature at the same time. Bring along your favourite drawing or painting supplies and enjoy learning different drawing techniques at Sungei Buloh.

More in the art in the wetlands blog.

Time: 8.30-11.30am, meet at the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve ticketing counter (Visitor Centre).
Admission charges: While the art session is free, usual admission charges to Reserve apply. $1 per adult, 50cents per child/student/senior citizen.
Website: http://artinwetlands.wordpress.com/
Contact: Tham Pui Sam at thampuisan@hotmail.com or the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve at info@sbwr.org.sg or call 6794 1401

27 Mar (Sun): Mangrove walk at Sungei Buloh

Free guided nature walk along the Mangrove boardwalk under shady mangrove trees. Spot mudskippers, crabs and other marine life, learn about our mangroves, enjoy views of the Johor straits.

Suitable for young children.

Registration is not required for small walk-in groups. But each walk is limited to 15 persons per guide and is on a first-come -first-served basis. The walks are weather permitting and may merge with other activities at the Reserve. Those coming with large groups are advised to pre-register.

More about the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve on the wildsingapore website and Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve website. This walk is conducted by the volunteer guides of NParks' Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve and is held every Sunday morning, subject to availability of guides.

Time: 9.30 am (subject to availability of guides) for walk in guests, register at the Visitor Centre.
Tour duration: One to one-and-a-half hours. Suitable for young children.
Entry charges: While the walk is free, admission fees to the Reserve apply: $1 per adult, 50cents per child/student/senior citizen.
Website: http://www.sbwr.org.sg/
Contact: info@sbwr.org.sg or call 6794 1401

26 Mar (Sat): HortPark Butterfly Garden guided tour

HortPark's Butterfly Garden is a 150-sqm landscaped theme garden comprising an enclosure and an outdoor garden. Providing a visual feast of tropical plants and nearly 20 species of native butterflies, the Butterfly Garden enables visitors to learn about the different stages of metamorphosis from egg to caterpillar into butterfly. Within the enclosure, visitors are greeted with an up close and personal encounter with these flying jewels and can observe how pupae emerge into adult butterflies before taking their maiden flight.

The Butterfly Garden also serves as an experimental garden for National Parks Board to work on a Butterfly Species Recovery Programme to research on suitable nectar and host plants for breeding a variety of butterfly species, including locally extinct species such as Clipper (Parthenos sylvia) and Common Sergeant (Athyma perius).

Get up close and personal with the flying jewels, and learn their different stages of metamorphosis from egg to caterpillar into butterfly. Observe how pupae emerge into adult butterflies before taking their maiden flight within HortPark's Butterfly Garden.

This walk is free and is held every last Saturday of the month.

Time: 9-11am, please gather at the Butterfly Garden for the tour
Website: http://www.nparks.gov.sg/
Contact: 6471 5601

26 Mar (Sat): Earth Hour

Many ways to celebrate including the Earth Hour Party at the Promontory @ Marina Bay, the Earth Hour Night Walk, a Live Concert and Carnival with educational games, craft activities, and discover how to do good while shopping. There's also a screening of "The Age of Stupid".
More details and registration on the Earth Hour website.

26 Mar (Sat): Race Against Time – Science behind a Botanic Garden Tour

Join this free tour by staff of the Singapore Botanic Gardens to learn more about the Gardens’ research work.

Come and explore the hub of the Gardens' research facilities at the Singapore Botanic Gardens to learn about botanical research. Find out about the urgency of plant exploration, collection and scientific documentation as species and habitats continue to be lost in the region. Visit the Orchid Micro-propagation and hybridisation display and find out how new hybrids are produced. You can also enter the restricted domain of the Herbarium and Library to learn about the valuable historical treasures they hold for science and posterity.

Registration is on a first-come-first-served basis at the Green Pavilion, Botany Centre (max 20 persons).

Time: 10-11am
Venue: Green Pavilion, Botany Centre
Contact: Singapore Botanic Gardens Visitor Services at 6471 7361
Website: http://www.sbg.org.sg/

26 Mar (Sat): Evolution Garden guided tour

Take a journey through time, from the fiery planet that our world was in ancient times before memory, through the planet of dinosaurs, and into the modern world of 250,000 different flowering plants we enjoy today.

Journey through time with our volunteer guides in this one-hour tour.

Suitable for kids.

This walk is held every fourth Saturday of the month. Please register 15 minutes before the tour. Registration is on a first-come-first-served basis at the Singapore Botanic Gardens Visitor Centre.

Time: 9am (English tour)
Venue: Register at Singapore Botanic Gardens Visitor Centre before the tour starts.
Website: http://www.nparks.gov.sg/
Contact: Visitor Services 6471 7361

26 Mar (Sat): Birdwatching at Kranji Marshes

For Nature Society (Singapore) members only

Dr. Ho Hua Chew leads this walk. From the meeting place, a hired bus will ferry us to our destination. We begin with a pleasant stroll along a countryside road to the Kranji Marshes where we will continue our walk along the PUB Bund. The marsh is designated by URA as a Nature Park and is currently adopted by NSS under the PUB’s ABC Waters Programme. Birding highlights here include the Red-wattled Lapwing, Purple Swamphen, Rusty-breasted Cuckoo, White-browed Crake, Changeable Hawk Eagle, Grey-headed Fish Eagle and more.

Pre-registration required, maximum 20 persons. Email kranji@nss.org.sg by by 18 March 2011.

Time: 7.45am meet at Kranji Dam Carpark near the Tidal Gates of Kranji Reservoir (off Kranji Way). Reachable by Bus 925 from Kranji MRT Station.
Website: http://www.nss.org.sg/
Contact: email contact@nss.org.sg or call 6741 2036.

26 Mar (Sat): Mangrove walk at Sungei Buloh

Free guided nature walk along the Mangrove boardwalk under shady mangrove trees. Spot mudskippers, crabs and other marine life, learn about our mangroves, enjoy views of the Johor straits.

With Marine Fish guided tour at 9.30am.

Suitable for young children.

Registration is not required for small walk-in groups. But each walk is limited to 15 persons per guide and is on a first-come -first-served basis. The walks are weather permitting and may merge with other activities at the Reserve. Those coming with large groups are advised to pre-register.

More about the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve on the wildsingapore website and Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve website. This walk is conducted by the volunteer guides of NParks' Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve and is held every Saturday.

Time: 9.30am for walk in guests, register at the Visitor Centre.
Tour duration: One to one-and-a-half hours. Suitable for young children.
Entry charges: While the walk is free, admission fees to the Reserve apply: $1 per adult, 50cents per child/student/senior citizen.
Website: http://www.sbwr.org.sg/
Contact: info@sbwr.org.sg or call 6794 1401