One more month till the deadline for the LKCNHM Eyes of a Naturalist Contest! ⏰ Stand a chance to win cash vouchers of up to $500, LKCNHM family membership and our 8th anniversary merchandise! To encourage both amateur and professional photographers and artists to take part, all contestants are eligible for a lucky draw at the end of the contest. 🎁 Link in bio to learn more (@lkcnhm). #LKCNHM #EyesofaNaturalist #PhotographyContest #IllustrationContest

[ANNOUNCEMENT] Join our new LKCNHM Telegram and WhatsApp Channels and stay connected with the latest updates on Museum events and public programmes! 📱📢 Tired of missing out on intertidal walk signups or workshop opportunities? Be sure to join us for the quickest updates on exciting research, outreach and education activities, with direct access to registration links through our channels. Turn on your notifications 🔔 and stay in the loop via our newly launched channels at the link in our bio! Do also spread the word among your friends, family, and anyone who would love to be part of our online communities. We look forward to connecting with you on Telegram and WhatsApp!

Ever wondered about the history of the landmarks at the Civic District of Singapore? ‍️Join our Outreach and Education team on a walk from Raffles Place to City Hall MRT station and explore these landmarks through the lens of British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace! In the mid-1800s, Wallace spent eight years travelling and documenting flora and fauna in the Malay Archipelago, a vast chain of islands which includes present-day Southeast Asia. During this period, he visited Singapore four times. Learn about the possible human connections he made during his time here, as well as the places he visited while in our town area—including the hotel he had likely stayed at! 🚶 As part of our National Day celebrations, we are offering the walk at a discounted rate of $20.00 (before GST). Each participant will also receive a complimentary book published this year by the Museum, titled ‘Two Wallace Lines’! 🎉 Link in our bio to sign up for Session 2 (23 Sep 2023, Sat) (@lkcnhm)! #LKCNHM #NaturalHistorySG #SGNaturalHistory #AlfredRusselWallace #VisitSingapore #NationalDay #NationalDay2023

Psst—have you visited ‘Specimen Stories: Biodiversity in a Changing Climate’, our limited-time exhibition put up at the Fullerton Hotel Singapore’s East Garden Gallery? If not, be sure to catch it soon! Due to popular demand, the exhibition has been extended till 8 September (Fri). ‘Specimen Stories: Biodiversity in a Changing Climate’ invites visitors to learn more about the richness of Southeast Asian biodiversity as documented through local and regional research expeditions. To commemorate the exhibition’s final week, check out this timelapse of the installation process from behind-the-scenes! 👀 Also, don’t miss the chance to gain one-time FREE ADMISSION to the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum through our selfie/wefie promotion! 📸🐋✌️ Just post a selfie/wefie with the exhibition’s sperm whale skull replica on your Facebook or Instagram account, tag us (@lkcnhm) and The Fullerton Hotel Singapore (@fullertonhotelsg), and present it to our staff at the ticketing counter to enjoy two pax free entry into the gallery.* *Do note that redemption of this selfie/wefie promotion is valid only up to 24 September 2023 (Sun), so do make your visit to our Museum no later than this date to enjoy your free admission. The Museum is closed on Mondays. #LKCNHM #SGBiodiversity #ASEANBiodiversity #FullertonHotelSingapore #FullertonSG

Come on a dredge with us! As part of our ongoing studies of marine benthos within Singapore waters, this benthic survey surfaced a range of species (and sediment!) that helps us know more about our marine biodiversity. With the term ‘benthic’ referring to the lowest ecological area of a water body, the survey examined the seabed to uncover more about the marine organisms and ecosystems living on the ocean floor, which form the ‘marine benthos’ of the area. Check out the scaphopod, crabs, polychaetes and more sieved out from this muddy haul in the video above! With the kind support of St. John’s Island Marine Laboratory (@sjinml) and Conservation International (CI-MSIG) (@msigsg), the team was able to conduct more than 30 such surveys onboard the SJINML Galaxea research vessel. Much remains to be found amidst the ongoing identification and sorting of organisms—so stay tuned for what we may uncover from these sneak peeks into Singapore’s marine environment! 📹: Choo Yen Ee #LKCNHM #BenthicSurvey #DredgeSurvey #MarineBiodiversity #NatureSG #SGNature #SGBiodiversity

Waiting a year for the next season of your favourite TV series is difficult enough, but how about waiting half a century for all five volumes of ‘The Birds of the Malay Peninsula’? In this month’s tidbit of #SGNatHistory, read on to learn about the struggles to publish the series in the 1900s. The first two volumes were authored in 1927 and 1928 by zoologist H. C. Robinson during his retirement, until his passing. Frederick N. Chasen completed the third and fourth volumes in 1938 and 1939. A renowned ornithologist, Chasen was also appointed as the Director of the Raffles Museum in 1932. Tragically, he passed away while evacuating from Singapore during World War II, and any notes he had prepared for the fifth volume were lost. In 1964, a set of plates was discovered in the Natural History Museum, London. These plates by artist Henrik Grönvold were meant for the fifth volume of ‘The Birds of the Malay Peninsula’. An unpublished manuscript by Edward H. Banks was also deposited. With much enthusiasm, Lord Medway and David R Wells assembled the final volume of the series in 1976 – 49 years after the first volume was published! Written by the Outreach and Education team 📸 Photo by user DatBot, Wikimedia Commons #LKCNHM #NaturalHistorySG #SGNaturalHistory #Birds #MalayPeninsula

On 1 August 2023, the Museum held its second installation of Quiet Hour! Hosting students from MINDS Woodlands Gardens School, this round’s Quiet Hour spanned two sessions, consisting of one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Led by staff from our Outreach and Education Unit, the students were inquisitive and outgoing in asking and responding to questions throughout their tour of the gallery! We hope the students and teachers from MINDS Woodlands Gardens School had an enjoyable time learning about our local biodiversity and we look forward to welcoming more groups for Quiet Hour in this inclusive effort! Moving forward, LKCNHM hopes to continue taking further strides in our mission to serve and provide for all patrons. Read more in our blogpost at the link in our bio!

The Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum is more than just a gallery; our Zoological Reference Collection acts as a national repository for over a million specimens. These are used by researchers to study, describe, and discover new species. Check out these three species linked to our collection and recorded in Singapore for the first time by our very own LKCNHM staff and NUS collaborators in our August Biodiversity Records. 1. Under the sea: Since late 2022, the Museum has been embarking on marine dredging expeditions around Singapore, and exciting discoveries have already been pulled up… Like this new Singapore record of a placuna oyster found at depths of 16.8 to 37.4 metres! 2. In the field: The first Singapore record of this assassin bug was found on Sentosa Island during an insect biodiversity survey. Its most distinctive features include the long thick setae (“hairs”) on its antennae and legs. 3. Hidden gems in our collections: A curator identified a new record of the recently described glass perchlet from Pulau Ubin, but there’s a catch–the six individuals used for this discovery had been collected 22 years ago! Link in bio to read about these and other recent encounters with Singapore’s wildlife (@lkcnhm). Written by the Outreach and Education team 📸: Photos by (1) Tan Siong Kiat, (2) Siti Maimon binte Hussin, (3) Kelvin Lim. #LKCNHM #NiSBR #NatureinSG #NatureSG #SGNature #SGBiodiversity #SingaporeBiodiversity #BiodiversitySingapore #SGPokedex #ZoologicalReferenceCollection #NUS #MarineDredge #Oyster #AssassinBug #Sentosa #GlassPerchlet #Fish

Happy #NationalDaySingapore! To mark 58 years of Singapore’s independence, let us take a look at some species of native fauna with scientific names that also bear our nation’s name! 1) Singapore Vinegar Crab (Episesarma singaporense) While this crab can be found in mangroves elsewhere in Southeast Asia, it was first described from specimens collected in Singapore. With its distinctive bright red claws, it forages for food around mud burrows and mud lobster mounds at low tide, and climbs into trees or burrows to hide from incoming predators at high tide. It is also a delicacy in many cultures, particularly with Teochews pickling the crab in black vinegar before eating them in porridge, hence its name! 2) Singapore’s Riffle Bug (Rhagovelia singaporensis) Members of the genus Rhagovelia are highly endemic in their natural distribution, and this species is no exception. Found in Central Catchment Nature Reserve’s slow-flowing forest streams, this semi-aquatic insect propels itself on the water’s surface using a unique structure called a ‘swimming fan’ on its middle pair of legs—fine hairs spread in a fan-like manner that penetrates the water while the legs remain above. 3) Murphy’s nudibranch (Murphydoris singaporensis) Though elusive and small with a maximum body length of only 5mm, this mangrove-dweller is not to be missed! Recorded in Northern Singapore, Murphy’s nudibranch inhabits the fringes of mangrove forests from Kranji to Sungei Buloh, while also known to exist in Thailand. While little is known about its ecology, its distribution is believed to be more widespread than currently recorded, remaining undiscovered due to its tiny size and cryptic colouration. They appear to be associated with decaying wood with simple aquatic invertebrates known as bryozoans, making it possible that they feed on these 'moss animals’, though this is unconfirmed. 📷: (1) LKCNHM, (2) Tran Anh Duc, (3) Rene Ong #LKCNHM #NatureSG #SGNature #SGBiodiversity #NDP2023

Introducing the judges for the photography and illustration category of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum’s inaugural Eyes of a Naturalist Contest! Grab your camera and/or art materials and take part in our photography & illustration contest! Stand a chance to win cash vouchers of up to $500, LKCNHM family membership and our 8th anniversary merchandise! All contestants are also eligible for a lucky draw. Link in bio to learn more (@lkcnhm). #LKCNHM #EyesofaNaturalist #PhotographyContest #IllustrationContest

As part of the ‘Eyes of a Naturalist’ Contest, a Scientific Illustration Workshop was held by the Museum on the Saturday morning of 22 July 2023! Catch up on the various scientific illustration techniques that participants learnt during the workshop! Read more at the link in our bio. #LKCNHM #ScientificIllustration #EyesOfaNaturalist #EoN #Workshop

Enjoying a day out in the Boat Quay area? ☀️ Why not drop by our exciting new exhibition, ‘Specimen Stories—Biodiversity in a Changing Climate’ at the Fullerton Hotel Singapore! If you need directions, this video has got you covered 🙌 Learn more about the richness of Southeast Asian biodiversity as documented through local and regional research expeditions, and the role that biodiversity plays in the contexts of our changing climate. ‘Whale’ we be okay? 🐳 Be sure to stop by the East Garden Gallery at @fullertonhotelsg to find out! The exhibition will be up until the end of next month (31 August)! Catch us while you can! P.S. Don’t miss the chance to gain FREE 2-PAX ADMISSION to the Museum, just by taking a selfie/wefie at our exhibition! (Refer to the instructions in our previous post 👀) #LKCNHM #SGBiodiversity #ASEANBiodiversity #FullertonHotelSingapore #FullertonSG