Wildlife of Singapore
Singapore's wildlife is incredibly diverse, exotic and beautiful, though it took government intervention to ensure it remained so. The rapid urbanisation and growth in population of the last two centuries has threatened to curb the flora and fauna, with deforestation robbing many animals of their natural habitat. This was reflected in the nearly 100 species of bird and 20 species of fish that have gone locally extinct in the last 183 years. Yet the government have made great strides, mainly through actions like the Green Plans of 1992 and 2012, to ensure the island's diverse animal life can live and multiply. These initiatives mainly involved keeping tabs on changes in the flora and fauna levels, while placing new nature parks and reserves around the state.
This has allowed the following handsome creatures to thrive in Singapore:
Long Tailed Macaque Monkey: If you head to one of the nature reserves expect to see plenty of furry little Macaque monkeys. They have no fear of humans and so are very friendly but sometimes too friendly for the locals, who complain they sometimes enter houses to raid food.
Sunda Pangolin: This tough skinned little creature loves to climb trees, gorges ants and secretes an awful stink in self-defence.
Lesser Mousedeer: A true forest mammal, this gorgeous creature is, unfortunately, at risk of extinction. It's brilliantly clever, often following around careless-eating monkeys to find the bushes and vegetation on which it feeds without needing to search too hard.
Common Tree Shrew: This small little rodent-like mammal is only found in Southeast Asia. They are great climbers but should not be confused with squirrels, though they do resemble them closely.
Asian Toad: The most common amphibian in Singapore, the Asian Toad's tadpoles can be found in just about every drain in the city. Don't get too close if you see one though – its secretions can be poisonous.