Ever wondered what would natural superpowers look like? I was delighted to witness some exhibited by the tropical lowland rainforest plants during my GE4224 Fieldtrip. Under the guidance of Dr Gretchen, we visited the Learning Forest located in the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Singapore Botanical Gardens on 12th February 2022. This area was slated for restoration as part of the larger Tyersall-Gallop Core and adopts a framework species reforestation method where the existing non-native rubber trees support the growth of native trees before the former is removed from the area upon substantial restoration.
Conservation Biogeography of Singapore and Beyond
Our Field Trip Experience exploring the Tropical Rainforest and Keppel Wetlands at the Singapore Botanic Gardens
Tag: Plant Adaptations
As famously quoted by adventurer, Bear Grylls, many life forms have to adapt to their surrounding environment to survive and thrive. The various amazing plant adaptations to their respective ecosystems was my biggest takeaway from my field trip to Singapore Botanic Gardens’ (SBG) Learning Forest and Keppel Discovery Wetlands with my Applied Biogeography class, led by Professor Coffman. I found great joy in identifying different plant adaptations and understanding their purpose! Now whenever I visit parks or my own field site, I keep a keen eye on unique adaptations. It changed the way I see nature and the environment and gave me greater insight to the biotic and abiotic factors in each ecosystem. Everyone should visit the SBG Learning Forest and Keppel Discovery Wetlands to learn and gain a new vision of the environment!
In the heart of Singapore Botanic Gardens on a humid Saturday afternoon, a group of students from NUS’ Applied Biogeography module trek along a beaten cement path as the sounds of various birds and insects fill the air. Their professor eagerly calls them over to look at a palm tree, its pleated leaves larger than their faces. “So here you see an example of adaptation, where the understory foliage has larger leaves for more sunlight,” Professor Gretchen explains excitedly as the rest listen with great interest. The plant in question, with a quick iNaturalist identification, turned out to be the Vanuatu Fan Palm (Fig 1), a common species found in the understory layer of tropical forests. Its large leaves allow for the tree to absorb more sunlight due to the low sunlight penetration in the understory, while its pleated texture helps the plant save energy. Such is an example of the unique adaptation strategies that different species adopt to help them survive in the forest.
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