Bukit Timah Nature Reserve

The Bukit Timah Nature Reserve (abbreviation: BTNR) is a nature reserve near the geographic centre of Singapore. It is located on the slopes of Bukit Timah Hill, the country's highest natural peak standing at approximately , and includes parts of the surrounding area within the planning area of Bukit Panjang. The nature reserve sits about north-west from the Central Area, Singapore's city-centre, and is roughly in size.

Together with the neighbouring Central Catchment Nature Reserve (CCNR) in close proximity, it houses over 840 species of flowering plants and over 500 species of fauna. Today, it is one of the largest patches of primary rainforest left in Singapore. The forest reserve was formally declared as an ASEAN Heritage Park on 18 October 2011.

Etymology

thumb|right|Rock marking the summit of Bukit Timah hill within the reserve

The name Bukit Timah is borrowed from the tallest hill found in the area of the same name, which is also the tallest geographical location in all of Singapore. means hill in the Malay language, while means tin. It is directly translated to English as "Tin Hill".

The hill served as a granite quarry for many years, but since the mid-1900s, all quarrying operations have been abandoned and the area converted into recreational and even filming locations.

History

In 1882, Nathaniel Cantley, the Superintendent of the Singapore Botanic Gardens, was tasked with assessing the forests of the Straits Settlements. His recommendations led to the creation of several forest reserves, including Bukit Timah in 1883. While most reserves were exploited for timber, Bukit Timah was preserved. By 1937, many reserves were depleted due to development pressures, but Bukit Timah and two other areas remained protected for their flora and fauna. In 1951, the Nature Reserves Ordinance established formal protection for these areas, which were then managed by the Nature Reserves Board. Today, under the National Parks Act and managed by the National Parks Board, these nature reserves continue to safeguard Singapore's indigenous flora and fauna.

Activities

thumb|Quarry visible from the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve

The primary activities at Bukit Timah are strolling, running and hiking. There are also smaller groups of people who rock-climb and abseil at the Dairy Farm quarry as well as mountain biking. There are specially-allocated mountain-bike trails around the area and Bukit Timah Mountain Bike (MTB) Trail is located within the Reserve. The 6.5 km MTB trail loop around Bukit Timah Hill and stretched between Hinhinde Park and Dairy Farm Road. The trail represents a tropical rocky terrain with extended technical climbs and difficult descents at short intervals. For MTB Map trail rating, it is largely made up of black diamond sections with intermittent blue square sections. There are also short alternative double black diamond sections.

The Reserve is popular among athletes training for mountain-climbing. There are a number of hiking trails. The blue trail is rated as "easy" and is long, ending overlooking Hindhede Quarry. The red trail is also rated as "easy" and is long. Common insect species include cicadas and giant forest ants (Camponotus gigas). The government hopes that the Eco-Link@BKE will allow the Raffles' banded langur to repopulate Bukit Timah from Central Catchment once the vegetation matures.

Birds

The greater racket-tailed drongo is one of the most common birds at Bukit Timah (Dicrurus paradiseus).

Eco-Link

In 2011 the National Parks Board and the Land Transport Authority announced a plan to construct an ecological corridor, the Eco-Link@BKE, at the Bukit Timah Expressway to connect Bukit Timah Nature Reserve with the nearby Central Catchment Nature Reserve. Construction was completed in late 2013. The Eco-Link is an hourglass shaped bridge passing over the expressway, permitting wildlife to pass between the two reserves. The reserves had been separated since the expressway was built.

References

External links