Getting an early bumboat ride is always part of the joy of a trip to
Pulau Ubin.
The friendly kampung dogs, (many of them originate from the kelongs nearby having been abandoned by their owners), are ever-ready to greet early visitors. Some dogs adopt visitors for a few hours and tag along during the visit. They gleefully follow you all over the island.
But before tackling Ubin, a must have on a Sunday is the fabulous Lontong at Pak Ali's shop which is situated barely three steps away at the jetty.
3 plates are better than 1... so come with friends!
(but make sure you order yours first before they do as the Lontong is in great demand)
Today was a day of sharing about what Pulau Ubin has to offer.
As part of the
Ubinday event, there was going to be a birdwatching session at the Ubin Pekan Quarry kindly supported by NParks.
Ubin is an island where secondary forests still cover most of the island and therefore provides for a great stop over for many migrating birds during the Northern winter months from October to March each year. Apart from the migratory birds, Ubin does also provide a home for many resident species, many of which are endangered due to habitat loss. Habitat loss is a real concern as more forested areas get developed on the mainland replaced by displaced granite, steel and glass.
Getting to the quarry which is just about 5 minutes away from Ubin town is easy. It is a short walk past the Butterfly Hill which is another great place to see local species of butterflies supported by a thriving hill planted with host plants. Each species of butterfly needs a specific host plant to survive. Find out more at the
Butterfly Circle blog.
With the heat of the rising sun quickly warming up the morning, even the resident
changeable lizard came out to bask in the sun soaking up the morning vista. What better place to recharge one's cells?
The
Ubin quarries used to supply granite for Singapore's early urban expansion and much of the earlier public housing estates were built with Ubin granite. Once the quarries were abandoned, rainwater soon filled up the holes in the ground. From top to bottom, the quarries could be about 100m or more deep.
Left untouched over time, the surrounding vegetation fluorished providing good perching points for various birds. Resident herons and egrets generally occupy the bare branches at the far ends of the quarry opposite the viewing point. One needs a spotting scope or a pair of binoculars to get see them up close.
The scopes were put to good use and the kids certainly appreciated the larger images of the birds.
Leave them alone with a scope and they are soon pointing at various perches around the quarry.
A great introduction to birdwatching!
This one was a
blue-tailed bee-eater which is a migratory bird seen in Singapore during the October to March period. There was also a smaller bird which was perhaps a flycatcher. The bare tree was about 300m away and the small birds were little blobs.
There were lots of birds to be seen around the quarry and everyone happy to see the faraway birds up close through the magic of the scopes.
This is a
dollarbird. .. a resident of Singapore forests.
Even 'kampung boy' made use of the scope.
NParks had arranged for 3 extra scopes and binoculars to be set up. Staff were also around to help visitors spot and share about the birds seen.
The herons and egrets use the edges of the quarry as a safe roost for the day.
This
grey heron had its wings spread out in a V shape to better enable it to cool down since it was perching in sunlight. The birds still need to moderate the rate of heat absorption and they sort of 'gargle' their throats. This is called gular fluttering. The birds flap the membranes in their throat to help with evaporation which helps them cool down.
Here is the same grey heron cooling itself the gular way...
David helps coach two young birders in the making.
There was also the spectacular
stork-billed kingfisher sitting towards the right of the quarry. This is Singapore's largest kingfisher and is certainly a very colourful bird.
"What shall i look at next?"
We were lucky to have birding guru
Subaraj join us at the quarry. Identifying birds became a whole lot more easier.
Meanwhile, the birding crowd swelled with the morning sun.
Even the local media chose to use a scope to get close to the birds.
(i think a short clip of the footage was used in the evening news)
This little girl had a little difficulty finding the birds but she soon got the hang of it and was soon counting them as fast as she could.
Far away, there was a
brahminy kite high on a perch. This is Singapore's most common bird of prey and is regularly seen near forest edges, open fields and coastal areas.
We were lucky to have the PM of Singapore come by for a look at the quarry and its native residents.
Good to have the PM come see rustic Ubin for himself.
Let's hope Ubin's rusticism is maintained and preserved for future generations.
The species tally (what i saw) was as follows:-
Crow-billed Drongo
Blue-tailed Bee-Eaters
Chinese and Japanese Sparrohhawks,
Grey-Headed Fish Eagle,
Himalayan and other Swiftlets,
an assortment of Egrets
Black Bazas
Lesser Coucal
Eastern Marsh Harrier
amongst other birds.
The pick of the morning was the sighting of the Eastern Marsh Harrier. This was a super rare sighting for Ubin. Good that Subaraj was there to identify it.
What a fabulous morning of sightings and sharing!
Thank you to David for for his ever-ready willingness to share about birds (and also butterflies and bees) and his contagious enthusiasm about nature.
Later on, some of us went for a boat tour and we were lucky to see a family of 4
smooth-coated otters swimming free and wild in Ubin's mangroves.
(The kissing noises were made by the boatcaptain in his attempt to engage the otters in squeechy talk. Kissy squeechy noises are not encouraged though. The otters may get the wrong idea!).
The presence of the family of otters is reassuring. The family was likely made up of a pair of adults with two juveniles. This means that the Ubin mangroves can accommodate the otters. We must ensure that the mangroves are protected or we may see the otters disappear from them. Fishermen should also be careful not to leave their drifters and ghost hooks behind as these do pose a considerable threat to the safety of swimming animals like otters.
Find out more about ubinday here :
http://ubinday2014.wix.com/ubin
http://www.wildsingapore.com/ubin/
