Mangroooooving!

I've lived in Pasir Ris all my life, and I've never actually walked this section of the mangrove walk. *shamefaced*

Well, there's always a first time for everything. Joined the Naked Hermit Crabs for their first ever trip into the Pasir Ris Mangroves. It's fantastic that this free walk could garner all sorts of people, from families with young kids in tow and students who want to know more about our biodiversity to even couples seeking out a new way of dating. HA!

One thing I found inspiring was that the guides were actually people with day jobs who still find time to share their experience and knowledge about Singapore's wildlife. After a week of work, going on these trips as guides is relaxing. Perhaps as more of us are becoming more aware of the environment and the priceless moments it can provide, there'll be a proliferation of great guides such as those that I've met on this walk.

Before the walk started, Ria told us that if we're lucky, we might get to see the mangrove pitta. But it's a rare bird, so it was unlikely we'll even see it. One of the guides even said she tried looking for them before, but hasn't seen it yet.

First time lucky! Some very generous birdwatcher told the group that there was a mangrove pitta somewhere, and even showed us his pictures. So the sharp-eyed kids went searching for the bird. Lo and behold! It was just standing not too far off. Definitely the highlight of the trip.

The mangrove pitta is near threatened globally and critically endangered in Singapore. There was recent sightings of pittas in the mangroves, but no one's ever seen more than one each time. Let's just hope it's not the only one around.

Ria pointed out the parts of the mangroves that had trees which were covered in sooty mold - an indicator of poor habitat quality. After awhile, you'd actually start to notice that there were many patches which had trees whose leaves were covered in the mold. Not the most reassuring thing, since the mangrove habitat is to many unique mangrove species, such as the pitta.

What was worrying was that along the boardwalk, there was not one single stretch that was litter free. From bottle caps, cans and discarded materials, to a random bottle stuck in a tree, litter was simply everywhere. I don't mean to sound all gloomy, but it feels as if there are people who think they love nature and go for these walks to revel in it, when actually they are in love with the notion of being in love with nature. =\

Is the idea of loving nature actually driving the extinction of many species? It's very much like how these places are being loved to death.

Enough of the morbid stuff.

There were few older visitors to the mangroves and they shared their experiences of the mangroves in their time. We always knew that outside the coastal areas like the beaches lay outside. But it felt different to hear first-hand experience of how they actually went through these mangroves to get to the beach. I don't know whether its a good or bad thing that we now have our boardwalks and concrete paths to the beach. Hmm.

There's also going to be developmental projects nearby, more potential damage to the mangroves and coastal areas. We'll find out soon enough.

At the end of the day, nothing is more satisfying that getting something so simple yet majestic like that.