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Bidadari: Birdwatchers and the call for its conservation

on 1st April 2013

Bidadari Cemetery has been around for decades before birdwatchers discovered that the area supports an interesting mix of resident and migratory birds (below and bottom). Very few birdwatchers, if at all any, ever entered the area when it was a cemetery. This is the reason why they were unaware of the rich birdlife the area supports.

Only when the graves were exhumed in the early 2000s to make way for development did local birdwatchers slowly became aware of what the area supports LINK. And this was all due to KC Tsang, a birder-photographer who explored the area mostly on his own. His postings of rarely seen migrants LINK 1, LINK 2, LINK 3, LINK 4 and LINK 5 sent birdwatchers and photographers scurrying to the area.

Birdwatchers now claim that Bidadari is unique, an area where many rare migratory species find refuge. Because of this they want the area, or a chunk of it conserved LINK. Some even claim that this is a migratory refuge of importance and fear that when cleared, migratory birds will have no other major areas to refuel in Singapore. This is mere speculation. When any area is cleared, birds will move to another area LINK. This will also happen in the case of Bidadari. But then the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s Master Plan 2008 has already demarcated part of the area as parkland. What this means is that a portion of Bidadari will be left for the birds. And there are many such park-like areas in mainland Singapore for some of the displaced birds to find refuge.

Rare migratory species have been sighted in the Chinese Garden in Jurong LINK 1 and LINK 2. Also at the Japanese Garden there LINK. These are parks and easily accessible, thus birdwatchers are aware of their presence. The difference between these gardens and Bidadari is that the latter is a more extensive area and less visited when it was a cemetery – thus there are more birds.

Migratory species also find refuge in the Central Catchment Reserve LINK 1 and LINK 2. These examples were spotted by major paths, rather than inside the forest proper.

Birdwatchers merely assume that the Central Catchment Reserve is not as rich in birdlife as Bididari. Is this a fact or is this because no one is adventurous enough to explore the forest, especially during migratory seasons. After all, our birdwatchers are mostly recreational birders. Their field trips are social events rather than serious outings. They only move along well-designated forest paths. If the birdlife at Bidadari, a park-like area, can remain unknown for decades, what more the forested catchment area. Should birdwatchers become brave enough explore the forest, I am sure they would be surprised to encounter more rare species.

As mentioned above, the authorities have agreed to set aside as area in Bidadari as parkland. The problem is that the Conservation Committee of the Nature Society is unhappy with the demarcated area. The Chairman of the Committee, who now designate himself as Vice Chairman (to get round the rule limiting chairmanship of Special Interest Groups to a three-year term) has by tradition been uncompromising and stubborn.

A case in point is the 1990s struggle for Senoko, an area of degraded mangrove forest, prawn ponds and grassland around Sungei Sembawang (Wee, 1993). The area was earmarked for housing and the authorities were willing to set aside a major pond as the centre piece of a town park. However, the Conservation Committee was adamant in wanting the entire area. In the end nature lost and Sembawang New Town now stands where nature once thrived (Wee & Hale, 2008). Hopefully, the Nature Society learns from its past mistakes.

YC Wee (text) & KC Tsang (images).
Singapore
March 2013

References:
1.
Wee, Y. C., 1993. Coping with nature and nature conservation in Singapore. In: Briffett, C. & L. L. Sim (eds.). Environmental Issues in Development and Conservation. School of Building & Estate Management, National University of Singapore, Singapore. Pp. 103––108.
2. Wee, Y.C. & R. Hale, 2008. The Nature Society (Singapore) and the struggle to conserve Singapore’s nature areas. Nature in Singapore 1: 41-49.

If you like this post please tap on the Like button at the left bottom of page. Any views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors/contributors, and are not endorsed by the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM, NUS) or its affiliated institutions. Readers are encouraged to use their discretion before making any decisions or judgements based on the information presented.

YC Wee

Dr Wee played a significant role as a green advocate in Singapore through his extensive involvement in various organizations and committees: as Secretary and Chairman for the Malayan Nature Society (Singapore Branch), and with the Nature Society (Singapore) as founding President (1978-1995). He has also served in the Nature Reserve Board (1987-1989), Nature Reserves Committee (1990-1996), National Council on the Environment/Singapore Environment Council (1992-1996), Work-Group on Nature Conservation (1992) and Inter-Varsity Council on the Environment (1995-1997). He is Patron of the Singapore Gardening Society and was appointed Honorary Museum Associate of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM) in 2012. In 2005, Dr Wee started the Bird Ecology Study Group. With more than 6,000 entries, the website has become a valuable resource consulted by students, birdwatchers and researchers locally and internationally. The views and opinions expressed in this article are his own, and do not represent those of LKCNHM, the National University of Singapore or its affiliated institutions.

Other posts by YC Wee

9 Responses

  1. Nice article! However, the logic of birds can anyway be found elsewhere, hence it is not worth saving is astouding!

    1. Sorry unable to comprehend exactly what you are trying to convey. Can you please state clearly what you mean. Thanks.

      1. This may be a spam comment. Spam comments are posted by bots and they typically are of this format:

        “Nice/Good/Great/Fantastic/Helpful/Useful article/post/blog! However, ___ can also be found ___, hence ___ is astounding/surprising/nice/some-other-adjective!”

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        1. Thanks for the alert. We do get a considerable amount of spam everyday. But these had been screened off. A few may slip through, then we need to delete.

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