Information on the five habitats
MANGROVES
Mangroves are a unique kind of forest community found at the interface between land and sea. Salt is harmful to most plants, yet in many intertidal areas inundated by seawater, mangroves do more than survive under these trying conditions, they thrive. Mangrove plants comprise of trees, shrubs, palms, and climbers. Mangroves can form stands that are many square kilometers in area, and line the banks of many tropical rivers for miles on end.
One noteworthy mangrove plant is the attap, or Nipah Palm (Nypa fruticans). It is tolerant of tidal inundation and the creeping stems helps to prevent soil erosion by helping to stabilize the banks. The fronds of the Nipah Palm, when dried, are commonly used for thatching. They can also be woven into other useful products such as baskets and mats. The young seeds are white-translucent and ‘jelly-like’ (known locally as “attap chee”) and serves as a common ingredient in local desserts.
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BACK MANGROVES
Back mangrove species are not subject to the same degree of tidal inundations as experienced by “true mangrove” species, growing near mangrove stands towards the landward side. Though able to withstand the high salinity and low-nutrient soils associated with coastal areas, these plants generally are not found in the intertidal areas colonised by true mangrove plants. Examples of back mangroves include the mangrove trumpet tree (Dolichandrone spathacea), with its large creamy white flowers and large seed pods, or the shrub Ardisia elliptica, now commonly seen as an ornamental plant, with small red and black fruits which are supposed to resemble chicken’s eyes. Barringtonia racemosa ( a related species of Barringtonia asiatica), is a back mangrove distributed from South Africa, across the Indo-Pacific region to Australia. Tolerant of swampy soils, this species bears long, elegant flowering stalks. Flowers are a delicate pinkish puff of conspicuous stamens, and the hanging display of reddish tennis ball-sized fruits have no doubt contributed to the rising horticultural popularity of this plant.
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FRESHWATER POND
Freshwater ponds are another kind of habitat encountered at Sg Buloh. Home to a completely different plant community compared to that found in the nearby mangroves, these ponds also harbour a fascinating (and yes, different) kind of fauna as well. These ponds reward close observation – can you see some of our native freshwater fish species, dragonflies and damselflies, aquatic ferns and flowering plants? The plants have interesting common names, such as “cattail”. Though the freshwater ponds at Sg Buloh may in part be an artifact of past human land use here, the presence of a rich flora and fauna demonstrate the resilience of nature and the amazing colonising ability of plants and animals.
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HERBS AND SPICES
Herbs and spices – people have used them since the earliest times! Wars were fought and lands have been conquered because of these plants (we may even be living in or visiting Singapore in part because of the spice trade). Today, we continue to depend on these plants for various uses. They add aromatic flavouring to our cooking and food, are widely used in providing colour, and are widely used in fragrances and medicine too.
Bees, butterflies and some other animals depend on a selection of these plants for their survival too. Some of the species here can encourage animal diversity in the garden because their flowers and fragrances can attract insects.
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SECONDARY FOREST
Where trees in a relatively undisturbed forest fall, a group of trees tolerant of the higher sunlight, hotter temperatures, and lower humidity of exposed patches take over. Their subsequent maturation leads to the formation of a forest composed primarily of fast-growing, high light-tolerant plants. We often refer to such areas as “secondary forests”. As a secondary forest develops and more and more new additions arrive via seed dispersal, these habitats may develop a structure and diversity of organisms rivaling that of an undisturbed “primary forest”.
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