To the globe-trotting backpackers, mentioning equatorial Southeast Asia brings to mind emerald tropical rainforests weaving through the region. Stretched to the horizon and back in time, Southeast Asia’s tropical rainforest is home to 15% of the world’s tropical forests, and is amongst the most biologically-rich ecosystems. However, they are often inaccessible.

Fig.1 Map of the Learning Forest in Singapore Botanic Gardens. Own work. Extracted from Singapore Botanic Gardens.

With the opening of the Learning Forest in Singapore Botanic Gardens (SBG), we can get an easy glimpse into thewonders of tropical rainforests (Fig.1). This conservation project of restored lowland rainforest and wetland habitats has extracted the essence of the region’s botanical heritage, condensing them into what is akin to as a terrarium housing. Withover 300 rainforest, 200 wildlife species and so much more, it has the important aim of facilitating forest ecology learning.

Fig.2 Well-paved footpath in contrast to the rustic landscape. Own work. Extracted from Singapore Botanic Gardens.

In 2022, I visited the Learning Forest with my National University of Singapore (NUS) Applied Biogeography class, and was immediately impressed by its vast greenery and cacophonies of wildlife. It felt like I was in another realm – one extremely pleasant. I scrambled to explain this feeling and it occurred to me that not only was it due to being in close proximity with nature but it was also the sighting of well-paved footpaths prompting familiarity (Fig.2). These, I later found out were deliberate and part of a three-step forest restoration process NParks[1] terms as its landmark biophilic design[2] – The first, to present ecological processes and the next, to implement an aesthetic layer showcasing the most magnificent attributes for visitors’ delight. Finally this design aimed to overlay a recreational layer, otherwise the footpaths, to ensure habitats are easily accessible and comfortable. In other words, the forest is social and has been designed to lure urbanites like myself to visit and partake in their agenda of ecological learning. Unlike the dismissive attitude on sighting man-made interventions in naturistic landscapes, this context exemplifies a welcoming approach.

 

Fig.3 A worm’s eye view of the canopy layers in the Walk of Giant. Own work. Extracted from Singapore Botanic Gardens.

However, it was the Walk of Giants in the forest that took my breath away. Shrouded by some of Southeast Asia’s tallest trees like the Sea-Apple trees (Syzgium grande) and Tembusu (Cyrtophyllum fragrans) reaching up to 30-m tall, I was engulfed in their magnificence (Fig.3). It made me feel like a small speck and propelled me to probe the pervasive thought of humans as domineering over nature where in the face of these giants, this is nothing but a fallacy.

Fig.4 Observations that I made as I tracked through the forest floor to the canopy layer (Left: Clouded Monitor – Varanus Nebulosus and Bronzeback – Genus Dendrelaphis; Right: Akar Ipoh – Indorouchera griffithiana; all species here are listed under “Least Concern” according to IUCN Red Book listing). Own work. Extracted from Singapore Botanic Gardens.

Not only in their sizes, the giants are also impressive in the biodiversity they support. Likened as a building with many floors, they have many layers housing wildlife and vegetation. For which, the exploration of these layers was made easy with the pavement designed in a gentle-grade loop. It allowed me to gain ground gradually from the forest floor to the canopy and witness the changes in the landscapes – From the dimmed, dark and humid landscapes where wildlife like clouded monitor (Varanus Nebulosus) and Bronzeback (Genus Dendrelaphis) were found foraging on the forest floor, to the bright views of climbers and epiphytes like Akar Ipoh (Indorouchera griffithiana) on the branches in the canopy (Fig.4). However, as distinct as these layers seem to be, they still work together to form a cyclical self-sustaining nature.For instance, these trees develop new branches for epiphytes to grow and become food for decomposers and nesting spots for animals when they die.

Fig.5 The Learning Forest as a terrarium. Own work. Extracted from Singapore Botanic Gardens.

Conclusively, the forest draws parallels to a terrarium in aspects like self-sustenance and a human-curated mini-ecosystem (Fig.5). However, this is not all rosy as human designs bring in a slew of questions. How much should we intervene?Should the forest be restored based on a 1800s map or a more recent one? What should be restored? These are wicked questions but based on my visit, the forest has nonetheless fulfilled its core agenda of facilitating ecological learning through its design.

 

 

Written by Andrea Ng

 

[1] The National Parks Board that oversees Singapore’s green spaces

[2] Biophilia, the love of living things, refers to our innate connection with nature rooted in our biology.