ORANG UTANS are getting a taste of forest life at the Singapore Zoo in the first such facility of its kind.
Rather than clamber atop artificial wooden jungle gyms in their enclosure, they are now free to climb 24m-tall trees in a wooded retreat not unlike their natural homes.
Visitors this past month have been surprised at the sight of these gentle arboreal creatures deftly swinging on vines and perching on treetops to gaze into the distance.
The 6,000 sq m 'free-ranging facility' is a first for orang utans in a zoo anywhere, said the zoo's executive director, Ms Fanny Lai.
The trees, linked together by a series of vines and hammocks, are just outside the animals' current enclosure.
Every morning, zookeepers lead them to the free-ranging facility, where they can spend hours lingering amid the trees.
The facility was opened earlier this month as an early Earth Day gift to these highly endangered primates.
Small innovations such as these, along with diligent matchmaking, have allowed the zoo's orang utan population to thrive.
Over the past 32 years, the zoo has bred 32 orang utans. 'That's something we are quite proud of, given that the female orang utans can get pregnant only once every seven to eight years,' said Ms Lai. There are now 25 orang utans - possibly the largest troop for a zoo. The youngest was born just two weeks ago.
Two other zoos renowned for breeding orang utans, Jakarta's Schmutzer Primate Centre and the Melbourne Zoo, together have only 18 such creatures.
'This may be a zoo, but we want to give these animals as close an experience as possible' to what they would have experienced if they were in the wild, said Ms Lai.
The orang utans now have about 10 times the space they once did, enjoying free access to about a dozen tall trees similar to those found in their native homes, the lush rainforests of Sumatra and Borneo.
Many of the orang utans here were born in captivity. 'They had never climbed a tree before - yet once we set them free, they began climbing naturally, as if they had been doing it all their lives,' said Ms Lai. 'It was quite amazing.'
Estimates from the Great Apes Survival Project, a United Nations endeavour to conserve various primate species, show that there are 15,000 orang utans left in the wild, less than a tenth of what existed a century ago.
Conserving this species is especially important, as orang utans are among man's closest cousins, sharing 97 per cent of the same genetic material.
While protecting these creatures in their natural habitats is the ideal solution, the task is proving increasingly difficult, say non-governmental organisations involved in wildlife conservation such as Traffic, which was set up by the World Wildlife Fund and the International Conservation Union.
Deforestation - which robs these creatures of their natural homes - and poaching have been the biggest threat to their survival, said Traffic's programme officer for South-east Asia Julia Ng.
'The zoo has given these animals a chance to breed safely in an environment that is as close to their natural homes as possible,' she said.
'That's simply invaluable.'
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Monday, April 17, 2006
Research tie up
After much discussions, on the 14.March 2006 the Singapore Zoological Garden (incl. Night Safari) and Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research/Department of Biological Sciences, NUS signed a memorandum of agreement which formalises the existing collaborations and create a solid foundation for future research on biodiversity and conservation genetics between our outfits.
The ongoing research includes a project on primate phylogenetics for which the Singapore Zoo is providing tissue samples from its important primate collection and the NUS collaborators (primarily Rudolf Meier) are sequencing mitochondrial and nuclear genes.
In another project, the partners are exploring species limits in Southeast Asian Trachypithecus species. This will also form the basis for any future tissue bank we may set up in NUS with our partners.
The agreement was the basis of comments made by the zoological gardens chief vet, Chris Furley, last week in the STRAITS TIMES last week when the zoo's new vet centre was annouced. In this article, he stated that the zoo was working with NUS as part of their expanding research efforts.
The ongoing research includes a project on primate phylogenetics for which the Singapore Zoo is providing tissue samples from its important primate collection and the NUS collaborators (primarily Rudolf Meier) are sequencing mitochondrial and nuclear genes.
In another project, the partners are exploring species limits in Southeast Asian Trachypithecus species. This will also form the basis for any future tissue bank we may set up in NUS with our partners.
The agreement was the basis of comments made by the zoological gardens chief vet, Chris Furley, last week in the STRAITS TIMES last week when the zoo's new vet centre was annouced. In this article, he stated that the zoo was working with NUS as part of their expanding research efforts.
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Visit Zoo Today
The animals are kept in spacious, landscaped enclosures, separated from the visitors by dry or wet moats. Giving them privacy and security of their own territory. To spare yourself walking under the hot tropical sun, you can board a little train that trundles through the park.
Rain or Shine its a good tourist spot!
Rain or Shine its a good tourist spot!
Sunday, April 09, 2006
Singapore Zoo Best of the BEST!
Singapore Zoo was conferred the Best Leisure Attraction Experience award in the 20th Singapore Tourism Awards last evening. This accolade is its eighth win since the inception of the awards in 1985.
This marks the sixteenth time Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) parks have won this prestigious award, with Night Safari having won the award six times and Jurong BirdPark twice. WRS is the parent company of Singapore Zoo, Night Safari and Jurong BirdPark.
Ms Fanny Lai, Executive Director of Singapore Zoo and Night Safari, said: “We are jubilant to be awarded this accolade for the eighth time, as it affirms Singapore Zoo’s status as Singapore’s premier leisure venue. Last year we received 1.3 million visitors, marking an 8 per cent increase over the previous year. We will continue to ensure our service quality, product offerings and physical surroundings adhere to world-class standards.”
“We are repositioning ourselves to be an outdoor learning classroom for wildlife and conservation. As part of the Zoo’s transformation from a Viewing Zoo to a Learning Zoo, we have introduced greater educational and interactive elements in our habitats and programmes to further enrich visitors’ experience,” she added.
The Singapore Tourism Awards is organised by Singapore Tourism Board. It seeks to acknowledge star players in the tourism industry whose contributions have enhanced Singapore’s status as a premier tourist destination. The criteria include innovation and creativity in products and services, and service quality.
Innovations
Opened in 1973, Singapore Zoo continues to innovate and refresh its offerings. Last year, it opened new exhibits featuring giraffes, babirusas ( Sulawesi pigs), Asian small-clawed otters and even tropical plants and vegetables. It also refurbished its Fragile Forest and Elephants of Asia exhibits to offer more educational elements such as interpretive signages and discovery stations. To cater to different language needs, Singapore Zoo has also revamped its current exhibits by incorporating different languages such as Japanese and Chinese.
While the Singapore Zoo already enjoys a reputation for being one of the top zoos in the world, the park is always looking for ways to improve its exhibits and programmes. Last year, it introduced a new “Wonders of the Wild” show. This half-hour programme showcases 10 animal species of mammals and reptiles. It aims to educate the public on animal conservation matters.
New initiative to promote conservation and educational goals
Singapore Zoo continues to contribute to the global conservation effort with its captive breeding programmes of endangered animals. In 2005, it had bred about 90 animals, many of them endangered or threatened in the wild. Endangered animals at the Zoo which gave birth include the Nubian Ibex, Sulawesi Crested Macaque Cotton-Top Tamarin and Douc Langur. The World Conservation Union defines an animal as endangered when it faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild in the near future. In addition, Singapore Zoo has also undertaken numerous research and conservation projects locally and externally with local and foreign universities.
Another breakthrough project in the pipeline is a world-class veterinary diagnostic and treatment facility slated to open in March 2006. With an initial start-up cost of $3.6 million, the Wildlife Healthcare and Research Centre is targeted to be a global leader in veterinary healthcare and research, training of Zoo vets and reproductive research in Zoo animals. The new and improved facility will include a public viewing gallery that allows visitors to observe the animal surgery and treatment areas and interactive displays that will educate visitors on the work of Zoo vets.
This marks the sixteenth time Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) parks have won this prestigious award, with Night Safari having won the award six times and Jurong BirdPark twice. WRS is the parent company of Singapore Zoo, Night Safari and Jurong BirdPark.
Ms Fanny Lai, Executive Director of Singapore Zoo and Night Safari, said: “We are jubilant to be awarded this accolade for the eighth time, as it affirms Singapore Zoo’s status as Singapore’s premier leisure venue. Last year we received 1.3 million visitors, marking an 8 per cent increase over the previous year. We will continue to ensure our service quality, product offerings and physical surroundings adhere to world-class standards.”
“We are repositioning ourselves to be an outdoor learning classroom for wildlife and conservation. As part of the Zoo’s transformation from a Viewing Zoo to a Learning Zoo, we have introduced greater educational and interactive elements in our habitats and programmes to further enrich visitors’ experience,” she added.
The Singapore Tourism Awards is organised by Singapore Tourism Board. It seeks to acknowledge star players in the tourism industry whose contributions have enhanced Singapore’s status as a premier tourist destination. The criteria include innovation and creativity in products and services, and service quality.
Innovations
Opened in 1973, Singapore Zoo continues to innovate and refresh its offerings. Last year, it opened new exhibits featuring giraffes, babirusas ( Sulawesi pigs), Asian small-clawed otters and even tropical plants and vegetables. It also refurbished its Fragile Forest and Elephants of Asia exhibits to offer more educational elements such as interpretive signages and discovery stations. To cater to different language needs, Singapore Zoo has also revamped its current exhibits by incorporating different languages such as Japanese and Chinese.
While the Singapore Zoo already enjoys a reputation for being one of the top zoos in the world, the park is always looking for ways to improve its exhibits and programmes. Last year, it introduced a new “Wonders of the Wild” show. This half-hour programme showcases 10 animal species of mammals and reptiles. It aims to educate the public on animal conservation matters.
New initiative to promote conservation and educational goals
Singapore Zoo continues to contribute to the global conservation effort with its captive breeding programmes of endangered animals. In 2005, it had bred about 90 animals, many of them endangered or threatened in the wild. Endangered animals at the Zoo which gave birth include the Nubian Ibex, Sulawesi Crested Macaque Cotton-Top Tamarin and Douc Langur. The World Conservation Union defines an animal as endangered when it faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild in the near future. In addition, Singapore Zoo has also undertaken numerous research and conservation projects locally and externally with local and foreign universities.
Another breakthrough project in the pipeline is a world-class veterinary diagnostic and treatment facility slated to open in March 2006. With an initial start-up cost of $3.6 million, the Wildlife Healthcare and Research Centre is targeted to be a global leader in veterinary healthcare and research, training of Zoo vets and reproductive research in Zoo animals. The new and improved facility will include a public viewing gallery that allows visitors to observe the animal surgery and treatment areas and interactive displays that will educate visitors on the work of Zoo vets.
Sunday, April 02, 2006
New exhibit in Zoo
Visitors to the Singapore Zoo yesterday discovered that a new primate exhibit the zoo had promoted actually contained apes of a different kind - HUMANS!
The new display was both an April Fool's Prank and an attempt to highlight man's role in conservation.
How man's activities such as deforestation and pollution are destroying the earth's other creatures.
Homo Sapiens are the most dangerous and powerful creatures on earth. However the ladies are fully clothed and dun run around in their baby suit.
The new display was both an April Fool's Prank and an attempt to highlight man's role in conservation.
How man's activities such as deforestation and pollution are destroying the earth's other creatures.
Homo Sapiens are the most dangerous and powerful creatures on earth. However the ladies are fully clothed and dun run around in their baby suit.
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