A biodiversity survey conducted by the National Parks Board (NParks) on the island of Pulau Ubin has recorded 20 new species of fauna.

According to an announcement by Minister for National Development Desmond Lee on Sep. 25, this survey is the first comprehensive biodiversity survey held on the island.

The announcement comes a day before Ubin Day, which marks the end of an annual festival, Pesta Ubin, where community activities are hosted on Pulau Ubin.

New species

The Comprehensive Ubin Biodiversity Survey (CUBS) first started in January 2018.

With the involvement of over 200 NParks staff, National University of Singapore researchers and citizen scientists from various nature groups, over 165 field surveys were carried out.

The surveys assessed biodiversity of various groups like reptiles, amphibians, birds, butterflies, orthopterans (grasshoppers, crickets and katydids), spiders, odonates (dragonflies and damselflies) and hymenopterans (bees, wasps and hornets).

At the moment, the survey has not yet been completed for other groups of fauna such as phasmids (leaf and stick insects), mammals and moths.

However, 20 new species have already been recorded — of these, 13 species were discovered on Pulau Ubin for the first time, while six species were recorded in the whole of Singapore for the first time.

The 13 new species found include three bats, two birds, and various other insects.

The six species found on Ubin that are new Singapore include the Ruby-cheeked Sunbird, the Swamp Tiger (which contrary to its rather aggressive-sounding name, is actually a butterfly), and several spiders.

A Ruby-cheeked Sunbird female was spotted at Ubin.

Here's what the rather fantastic male looks like.

And one new to science

Meanwhile, one species is completely new to science, and has not been described in any other part of the world.

This species of spider was first collected in Brunei in 2012, and was then tentatively identified to belong to the genus Bavia.

It has also been found in coastal habitats in Singapore, such as Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve.

However, a citizen scientist and volunteer with the survey realised that the spider had been described wrongly, and that it was a completely new and as-of-yet undescribed species of its own under the genus Piranthus.

The female of this species stands out from male counterparts with its two pairs of red legs.

The findings from the survey will enable NParks to update the island's biodiversity baseline data and its species inventory.

Not only does this highlight how important Pulau Ubin is for biodiversity conservation, it allows  NParks to better manage the island and plan for future research, habitat enhancement and species recovery projects.

It has also shown that Ubin might be a potential source of wildlife that travel from the island to the mainland, or even a sink which attracts wildlife from surrounding countries.

Those interested to learn more about Ubin can join NPark's virtual talk and tours for Pesta Ubin and Ubin Day. You can check out the line-up of activities here.

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Top photo from Phuketnaturetours and Noel Thomas via NParks