Northern Expedition a highlight of Singapore's Wild Year

Thanks to Grace Chua of the Straits Times, in "The Year Gone Wild", the Northern Expedition is featured as one of the key wild happenings in Singapore for 2012!

She says: "From Chek Jawa to Changi, local and international researchers and an army of volunteers spent two and a half weeks digging up, preserving, photographing and cataloguing the specimens, which ranged from the tiniest, never-seen-before sea slugs to plate-size horseshoe crabs."

Northern Expedition featured in NUS news

The Northern Expedition is featured on the NUS website! Thanks to Tan Kai-xin for the heads up.

The article highlights the five species, which were not originally thought to be found in Singapore waters, and two rediscoveries.

Awesome creatures of the Northern Expedition

Long after the Northern Expedition is over, the photographers have been working hard processing the bazillion shots they took of the vast variety of creatures discovered during the Expedition. Here's a glimpse at some of them.

Rene One has shared several sets of glorious photos on her Naturely Curious facebook page. One set features all kinds of creatures from echinoderms to jellyfish, bryozoans to bivalves.

Awesome scientific photos of the Northern Expedition finds

Thanks to Arthur Anker, here's a glimpse of some of the amazing animals we found during the Northern Expedition!

Northern Expedition in the news

Thanks to Rachel Chan, there is a beautiful spread in today's Straits Times Life! featuring Singapore's wild life in the air, on land and sea!

"Wild things" by Rachel Chan Straits Times 2 Nov 12

There's also mention of the Northern Expedition of the Mega Marine Survey! And lots of lovely photos and info on some of our favourite wild life.

Last Day of the Northern Expedition

Today is the final day of the Northern Expedition!

Lots of moving to get done!

Wrapping up at the Northern Expedition Day 17

Today is the beginning of the end of the Northern Expedition. There are no more field trips, and everyone is busy shutting down the stations.

But we have a glimpse of some special animals seen during the Expedition, and an Irrawady dolphin was spotted during a recent dredge survey!

AMLive interview and basket star at the Northern Expedition Day 16

Prof Peter Ng and Prof Daphne Fautin shared about the Northern Expedition on AMLive, explaining what we found and why these were important in helping Singapore better understand and manage our marine ecosystems.

From the Raffles Museum facebook page.

A large basket star has also been found in the dredge survey! And another fruitful survey in the mangroves of Sungei Buloh.

Tongue-eating isopod and otters (again) at the Northern Expedition Day 15

The find of the day was this icky isopod that had eaten and replaced the tongue of this fish. Eeks.

We also had our FIFTH otter sighting for the Expedition, an exciting dredge and many other happenings as the last week of the Northern Expedition begins.

Stonefish and Owl at the Northern Expedition Day 14

The Expedition takes us to very edges of Singapore! Today I join the team heading for Lim Chu Kang mangroves, which lies abruptly at the end of Lim Chu Kang Road.

Another team returned to Mandai mangroves, while the fishing folks are tackling Changi, and lots more happenings in the field and at Base Camp.

Northern Expedition on Channel NewsAsia

Prof Daphne Fautin speaks about her astonishment in finding so much marine life in Singapore in this latest Channel NewsAsia video clip of the Northern Expedition. While Prof Peter Ng highlights that the three-week expedition will go a long way towards future policy planning.

Here's more of what she said and the embedded video clip.

More sea anemones at the Northern Expedition Day 13

We enjoyed a beautiful afternoon at Pasir Ris on the Northern Expedition Day 13. With more interesting sea anemone finds.

The weekend began quietly, with few volunteers turning up. But we had fun reviewing some special finds the day before.

Mangrove anemones and special slug at the Northern Expedition Day 12

Revived teams plunge into the mud as field trips resume on Day 12 of the Northern Expedition of the Mega Marine Survey.

Among the highlights, several mangrove sea anemones and the mangrove leaf slug. Also jellyfishes and other fun explorations in the morning.

The Northern Expedition on RazorTV

A great video clip on RazorTV giving a glimpse of the work of the Expedition, interviews with scientists, organisers and volunteers.

Here's the video.

Dredging, more talks and isopods at the Northern Expedition Day 10

Yesterday, I joined the dredging team that have been working every day throughout the Expedition. There are limited places on the boat so I didn't get to go until now. Here is Dr Bertrand setting up a net for a dredge, next to him, the yellow sled dredge and the brown beam dredge.

Many interesting creatures were found, we had another series of exciting talks in the evening and enjoyed a great dinner too.

Northern Expedition in the news!

The Northern Expedition in today's Straits Times by Grace Chua with photos by Ng Sor Luan.

Photo by Ng Sor Luan, Straits Times

Among the highlights of the article, it describes a typical day at the Northern Expedition and features some key happenings so far.

What has the Mega Marine Survey found so far?

What has the Mega Marine Survey found? Since it started, over thirty new records have been found from Singapore and the region, including the Laternula, a species of lantern shells which may have bioactive compounds and chemicals that can aid medical science.

Volunteers busy sorting through finds at the Northern Expedition.

Six species have been identified as possibly new to science, including a new species of small goby, nicknamed "Zee", found in the mudflats off Lim Chu Kang. Another five species have been rediscovered, including a species of a large coastal catfish which was last seen in Singapore waters over 100 years ago.

Here's the full NParks media release of the latest finds at the Survey.

VIP visit and otter again at the Northern Expedition Day 9

Today, Minister of State Tan Chuan-Jin visits the Northern Expedition! So we had a very busy day. AND another otter sighting too!

Minister expressed his support for the Expedition and how impressed he is with the passion shown by all those involved in making it happen. See Minister's full personal post about the Expedition and efforts for marine conservation.

Durians and evening talks at the Northern Expedition Day 8

As we wait for the afternoon boat ride to Base Camp at Pulau Ubin, Dr Tan Heok Hui spots the Galaxea, the boat used for our dredging work, heading back to its berth at Punggol. Looks like the dredge just got done.

Today, we look forward to an evening of talks and dinner at Ubin Town.

Highlights of Week 1 at the Northern Expedition

Here's a glimpse of some of the interesting places and colourful marine life seen during the first busy week of the Northern Expedition that I missed blogging about in earlier posts.

Photo by Loh Kok Sheng on facebook.

Loh Kok Sheng and Ivan Kwan surveyed a part of Pulau Ubin that is rarely visited on Day 2. Past the picturesque Tanjung Tajam.

Surprises in sea anemones and wood at the Northern Expedition Day 7

Some sea anemones started to 'give birth' to tiny baby sea anemones! Prof Daphne Fautin hurried over to the Sorting Station to tell the volunteers to see this special event for themselves.

We also came across surprises in dead wood, on a quiet but productive Sunday morning at the Northern Expedition of the Mega Marine Survey.

Otters (again) and strange sea creatures at the Northern Expedition Day 6

A pair of otters were spotted today by Koh Kwan Siong right next to our sorting station at Outward Bound Singapore! Our third otter sighting in a week!

Also, more strange sea anemones, a surprise jellyfish catch and other finds on the first weekend of the Expedition.

Strange clams at the Northern Expedition Day 5

Not all the animals we collect are killed. These large Knobbly sea stars and some other sea stars from Chek Jawa are going to be returned when we revisit Chek Jawa again this evening. Tiny samples of their tissues have been taken and we don't really need to have them as specimens.

I'm back for Day 5 of the Expedition with more field trips, and a 'Pandora' surprise while sorting teeny weeny clams.

Special crab at the Northern Expedition Day 4

The elusive Masked burrowing crab has been found by Chay Hoon at Changi on Day 4 of the Northern Expedition! Marcus came with his Big Camera and took a nice photo of this mama crab and blogged about the trip.

Shared by Marcus Ng on facebook

Another flurry of field trips with all kinds of interesting finds. 

Otters and special crabs and snail at the Northern Expedition Day 3

Loh Kok Sheng saw otters during the survey at Tuas on Day 3 of the Northern Expedition!

I caught up with the special finds made so far as I spent a day at the Expedition, before the field teams headed out for surveys at Tuas, Chek Jawa, Pulau Sekudu and Pulau Ubin in the evening.

Otters, octopus and more on Northern Expedition Day 2

Day 2 of the Northern Expedition got off to a great start as Jerome spots otters at Punggol Jetty on the way to Pulau Ubin!

Shared by Jerome Pang on facebook.

Today, there was dredging, and field trips to Tuas, Chek Jawa and Pulau Ubin. Here's a glimpse of some happenings.

The Northern Expedition begins!

The Northern Expedition starts today!

A rather large contingent of core participants depart from Punggol and head off for Outward Bound Singapore at Pulau Ubin, where the Expedition will be based.

Training for the Northern Expedition

Volunteers are getting trained for the Northern Expedition which starts next week!

Three batches of Specialist Volunteers got detailed briefings on what we can expect and how the Expedition will be conducted.

Mega Marine Survey at the TMSI Open House

Today the Mega Marine Survey volunteers helped in raising awareness of our marine life during the Open House at the Tropical Marine Science Institute.

The awesome touch pool is a great attraction and volunteers helped to explain more about the fascinating creatures that can be found on Singapore's shores!

Exploring the deep sea beyond and in Singapore too!

Thanks to Grace Chua of the Straits Times, the Survey is in the news sharing about the deep sea explorations of Dr Bertrand Richer de Forges and how he will be leading our effort "to trawl the Singapore Deeps, a 200m-deep channel scoured by ancient currents off the Southern Islands" next year!

Dr Bertrand gave a talk last week, sharing his awesome adventures in the deep seas around the world. We are lucky to have him guide us on our upcoming Northern Expedition in October!

21 Sep (Fri): The Wallace Lectures "Marine Biodiversity: Known and Unknown"

Dr. Bertrand Richer de Forges will share about what lives in the deep sea. Using deep sea vessels of all kinds, Dr Bertrand has explored places thousands of meters from the surface! He was recently in Singapore for the Mega Marine Survey's mini-expedition at Pulau Ubin where he directed the sampling of our seabed.

Dr Bertrand (in hat) with Prof Peter Ng and key expedition leaders
working out dredging locations for the expedition.

During the expedition, Dr Betrand also patiently taught volunteers and shared fascinating stories about his many adventures. Come for his talk to find out more!

Dr Bertrand at the sorting station with volunteers.

This is the second talk in the resurrected Wallace Lecture Series, originally a series of important lectures delivered in the 1960s by well-known biologists in the then University of Malaya.

Preparing for the October Northern Expedition!

Last week, volunteers got a glimpse of exciting plans for the first Northern Expedition planned in October!

This event will bring together global and local scientists, as well as volunteers to do an intensive survey of our Northern shores.

A Rare Glimpse into a Scientific Expedition

In A Rare Glimpse into a Scientific Expedition on My Green Space, published by NParks, Jocelyne Sze shares what she saw and learnt from the Expedition.

Brings back memories of hard work but also lots of fun, finding out more about marine life in Singapore's waters!

Sungei Loyang (11 Jul 2012)

A small team surveyed the mudflats at Sungei Loyang and despite the sticky soft mud, found lots of interesting marine life!

All photos by Rene Ong.

Thanks to Rene Ong, we have a glimpse of what happened. Here's Yen-Ling kicking off the session with a safety briefing.

Dredge survey turns up astonishing marine life!

What lives at the bottom on our sea bed? To find out, the Survey dredged right in front of of our container terminals.

Photo by Rene Ong.

An astonishing variety of amazing marine life can be found here! Thanks to photos shared by Rene and Sam on facebook, we have a glimpse of what they found and how a dredge is conducted.

Join the Bivalve Workshop (23-27 Jul)

Boggled by bivalves? Learn about Singapore's fascinating clams at this Workshop! Ordinary people can join as day participants. Registration closes 15 Jul. The day lecture programme is now available.

The intriguing Hammer oyster is a bivalve!

Dr Tan Koh Siang of the Tropical Marine Science Institute, National University of Singapore will be conducting a Workshop: Introduction to Tropical Bivalves on 23-27 July, 2012.

Mega Marine Survey at the Festival of Biodiversity (26-27 May)

The Survey team and volunteers were at the Festival of Biodiversity to share with ordinary people about the amazing marine biodiversity that we have discovered so far!

Thanks to Rene Ong, here's some photos of the responses to our finds!

Pasir Ris (11 May 2012)

The early hour didn't deter these volunteers from turning up for yet another adventurous mudflat survey, this time at Pasir Ris. Kwan Siong is now the lead officer at NParks and he kicks off the session with a briefing.

All photos by Rene Ong

Thanks to Rene Ong, we get a glimpse of what happened.

Changi Creek (12 Apr 2012)

Another team of dedicated volunteers turned up for an early morning survey of the mudflats at Changi Creek.

All photos by Rene Ong

Thanks to Rene Ong, we get a glimpse of what happened. It sure was a glorious blue-sky day!

How can we tell if a fish is a new species?

This little goby may be a new species. New not just to Singapore, but to science! This find highlights the importance of our efforts at the Mega Marine Survey!

Photo by Dr Tan Heok Hui

It also shows that even boring, similar-looking animals might be entirely different species! Here's more about how gobies are identified, and why it is important to take the specimen. Photos are not enough to identify many kinds of marine life.

Second Mega Marine Survey Volunteers' Dialogue

What have we found? What exciting activities are ahead? And how can ordinary people participate?

This morning, volunteers of the Mega Marine Survey gathered to find out from Dr Tan Koh Siang. Rene, as usual, is busy taking photos of everything.

More photos of the First Marine Biodiversity Expedition

Rene Ong meticulously took countless photos of the marvellous animals discovered during the Expedition!

From gianormous sea stars to tiny brittle stars, intriguing anemones, weird fishes and strange sea cucumbers. She's shared them all on her Naturely Curious facebook page.

First Marine Biodiversity Expedition (8 Mar 2012)

I'm back for the last days of the Expedition and it's a hive of activity at the work stations when I arrive in the afternoon of the second last day.

There's frenzied work on taking DNA vouchers, with phototaking, sorting and preserving going on all at the same time. And more field trips too!

First Marine Biodiversity Expedition: More glimpses

Jocelyne Sze shares more about the Expedition in her blog Nature Rambles.

Here's Prof Peter as the dredging is being set up
on the NUS research vessel Galaxea.

Thanks to Jocelyne, we have a glimpse of some of the very many exciting happenings at the Expedition! Here's some of the many events that I didn't blog about.

First Marine Biodiversity Expedition (7 Mar 2012)

It's Day Two of the Expedition and another batch of volunteers are back on the mudflats at Pulau Ubin, Outward Bound Singapore.

They were a fun and enthusiastic bunch from APB (Asia Pacific Breweries) who are sponsoring the Survey and Expedition. It was nice to meet them again and earlier, I had been on a trip Big Sisters Island with them.

First Marine Biodiversity Expedition (6 Mar 2012)

The Mega Marine Survey's first Expedition kicked off this morning! A small team are gathered at Celestial Resort, Pulau Ubin for this momentous event.

Here, the leading members of the Expedition are scrutinising the navigation maps to plot our first dredging exercise. So what is an Expedition all about?

Sungei Api Api (21 Feb 2012)

The lovely mangroves that line Sungei Api Api at Pasir Ris Park is the site of our survey today!

It's really soft and squishy here! But as usual, this didn't stop the volunteers!

Survey digs up 100 species!

Thanks to Grace Chua of the Straits Times, the Survey is in the news with a report of how we have uncovered 100 species, some are new to Singapore or to science, even though we are only one-third through the project!

Among the featured creatures is this anemone which we found deep into the mudflats of Lim Chu Kang. This bumpy, warty sea anemone so new to science, it does not even have a scientific name yet. We have fondly nicknamed it Bill and we've seen it at other locations in Singapore too.

Sungei Cina (21 Jan 2012)

It's the Eve of the Eve of the Lunar New Year, but this didn't deter volunteers from making time for another mudflat survey!

We gather at the new Woodlands Waterfront Park. Fortunately surveying is not depicted as one of the suspicious activities that requires a call to the authorities! Haha.

New lab sessions for sign up: Jan-Jul 2012

Your help is needed in the laboratory to sort out what we have found on our surveys! You do not need to have any training to join us in these sessions, there will be staff to guide you in the labs.

As Dr Tan Koh Siang showed during a Dialogue Session, we often have to take a much closer look to identify what we have found. So far, only 10% of our finds have been sorted out! Volunteers are needed to sort out invertebrates, fishes and tiny creatures. Here's what happens at a lab session.