Saturday, July 31, 2010

Raffles Museum Treasures: Oriental river goby

P1130905
Oriental pond goby (Rhinogobius giurinus)
Introduced to Singapore

In 1966, the naturalist Eric. R Alfred published his monograph, The Fresh-water Fishes of Singapore. In it, he noted the presence of a species of goby, which he identified as Stigmatogobius poicilosoma. This identification was followed in A Guide to the Freshwater Fishes of Singapore, where the "pond goby" was listed as Stigmatogobius poecilosoma. However, closer examination of the specimens that Alfred had looked at revealed that there was a misidentification; the "pond goby" found in Singapore was actually 2 species of stream goby, the big-mouth stream goby (Pseudogobiopsis oligactis) and Siam stream goby (Pseudogobiopsis siamensis). And to further muddle the situation, the fishes in the photos published in A Guide to the Freshwater Fishes of Singapore were actually Oriental river gobies.

It is possible that the Oriental river goby has played a part in the decline and apparent disappearance of the stream gobies from freshwater habitats in Singapore.

Ecology Asia
An annotated checklist of the gobioid fishes of Singapore
Hong Kong Biodiversity Database
FishBase


(Photo by seotaro)

Friday, July 30, 2010

Raffles Museum Treasures: Striped keelback

P1430976
Striped keelback (Xenochrophis vittatus)
Collected from Choa Chu Kang Road, November 1992
Introduced to Singapore

Ecology Asia


(Photo by Wie146)

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Raffles Museum Treasures: Chinese pond mussel

P1130864
Chinese pond mussel (Anodonta woodiana)
Introduced to Singapore

This freshwater bivalve is now well-established in parts of Singapore, where it was originally identified as Pseudodon vondembuschianus.

A Preliminary Checklist of the Molluscs of Singapore
Presence of the alien chinese pond mussel Anodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834) (Bivalvia, Unionidae) in the Iberian Peninsula
Distribution of the Chinese pond mussel, Sinanodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834) in Flanders (Belgium): ready for the invasion?
Sinanodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834) (Bivalvia: Unionidae): a new non-indigenous species in Lake Garda (Italy)
First record of Sinanodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834) (Bivalvia: Unionidae) in Moldova
Expansion of Sinanodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834) (Bivalvia: Unionidae) in the Czech Republic
Sinanodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834) (Mollusca) - a new mussel species in Poland: occurrence and habitat preference in a heated lake system
New records of Sinanodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834) (Mollusca: Bivalvia: Unionidae) from Eastern Romania
Distribution of Anodonta (Sinanodonta) woodiana (Rea, 1834) in inland waters of Serbia
Sinanodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834), Corbicula fluminea (O. F. Müller, 1774), Dreissena bugensis (Andrusov, 1897) (Mollusca: Bivalvia): Alien invasive species in Romanian fauna
The distribution and abundance of the Chinese mussel Anodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834) in the heated Konin lakes
Morphological and genetic variability of the population of Anodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834) occurring in the heated Konin lakes system


(Photo by BioKore)

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Raffles Museum Treasures: Malayan stink badger

P1430892
Malayan stink badger (Mydaus javanensis)

Once classified as true badgers (Melinae, F. Mustelidae), the 2 species of stink badger (Mydaus spp.) are now thought to be the sole Asian representatives of the otherwise entirely American skunks (F. Mephitidae).

Badger Pages
IUCN Red List
Animal Diversity Web
Cumulative Index for the Mammalian Species


(Photo by dennisikon)

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Raffles Museum Treasures: Banded leaf monkey

P1130843
Banded leaf monkey (Presbytis femoralis)
Collected from Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, October 1987
Native to Singapore: Critically Endangered

This elderly female was the last survivor of the troop which once inhabited the forests of the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. One day in October 1987, she left the safety of the trees and descended to the ground, where she was set upon and fatally mauled by a pack of dogs.

In the 1920s, this monkey was reported to be present in various parts of Singapore, including Changi, Tampines, Bukit Timah, Pandan and Tuas. Today, the species still barely clings on in the forests of the Central Catchment Area, where at least 40 are known to roam the MacRitchie and Lower Peirce Reservoir areas.

Rare Singapore monkey species in better shape than thought
Wildlife Singapore
Singapore Red Data Book
NParks FaunaWeb
Ecology Asia
The Primata
IUCN Red List
ARKive


(Photo by hiker1974)

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Branch falling on bus causes massive jam on AYE towards city

Branch falling on bus causes massive jam on AYE towards city
A large tree branch had fallen on an SBS Transit double decker, resulting in a massive traffic jam along the AYE towards the city. STOMPer Hisyam sent in a video of the accident scene and said: "It is shocking to see the fallen branch on the bus like that."

The fallen branch is reportedly blocking up all the lanes on the expressway, except for the extreme right lane, and causing a tailback all the way to the Jurong Town Hall Road.

"It took me an hour just to get past the bus and the branch, because everyone was stuck in grid lock traffic.

"This was near the South Buona Vista flyover and it was a massive jam for a major expressway like the AYE.

"I just hope the authorities have cleared up the mess already so that traffic can flow smoothly."

Branch falling on bus causes massive jam on AYE towards city

Raffles Museum Treasures: Giant forest ant

P1440257
Giant forest ant (Camponotus gigas)
Collected from Sime Road, April 1993
Native to Singapore

Photos and Info on Ants and Termites of Malaysia
A briefing on the life history of the giant forest ant Camponotus gigas Latreille 1802
Initial Efforts to Collect and Maintain a Live Colony of Giant Forest Ant, Camponotus gigas (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) at the Penang Butterfly Farm
AntBase


(Photo by Kurt)

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Friday, July 9, 2010

Raffles Museum Treasures: Lesser banded hornet

P1440265
Lesser banded hornet (Vespa affinis)
Collected from Kent Ridge, January 1992
Native to Singapore

Asian Hornet Net
Hornets Directory


(Photo by zac08)