Mid-morning on the mud of Chek Jawa. The tide was already returning to shore as we worked our way to the transect sites for a quick survey of the seagrasses. The mud seemed fresher and deeper on this day and the sandbar had shifted again like a finicky feline. On the way, the van surprised a boar on the hazy trail and a pair of hornbills hopped on a low branch as we walked down to the flats.
The view westward, showing the boardwalk as it weaves through the mangroves and the observation tower. Over the coastal forest and shoreline of Rhizopora and Nypa, hornbills soared and the biggest bulbul of all roared with liquid melody.
Overlooking Pulau Sekudu is House No. 1, which serves as the visitor centre for the Chek Jawa Wetlands. Built in the 1930s as a holiday retreat for the then Chief Surveyor Langdon Williams, the building is a tropical Tudor cottage with a working fireplace. The entrance features a large marine aquarium that simulates the seagrass habitat of Chek Jawa, while inside are museum specimens of the coast's fauna.
The seaward side of the boardwalk extends from the coastal forest to the rocky rubble near the warning beacon.
There's only one sheltered spot on this part of the boardwalk so bring a hat and sunblock. One day, there will be a letter to the papers requesting for an iconic merlion to be erected on the rocks.
In the mangroves, a maze of aerial roots mark the Rhizopora forest that struts above a bed of algae. Fiddler crabs brandish their oversized chelipeds on the soft mud below the planks of faux wood and mudskippers patrol the water's edge for dead tributes from the sea. Fruiting nipah palms dot the tidal swamp and on firmer ground, the golden blooms of sea hibiscus trees open for but a day before turning brown and withering in the dying hours of the evening light.
More on the Chek Jawa Wetlands on:
• Wild Singapore with all-round info on the facilities, natural attractions and map of the boardwalk route.
• Ron's tidechaser blog
• EART-H by Joe Lai
• Walter Lim's Cooler Insights blog
• Siva's Habitatnews blog (plus the sighting of a rare banded krait)
• Kok Sheng's Wonderful Creations blog
• The WildFilms blog
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