Bukit Timah Nature Reserve

Bukit Timah Nature Reserve

Located near the geographical center of Singapore, the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve is a 1.7 square kilometer nature reserve located on the hillsides of the country's highest natural peak, Bukit Timah Hill, which is about 165 meters high, and parts of the adjacent area. Along with the adjacent Central Catchment Nature Reserve, it is home to more than 840 species of flowering plants and over 500 species of animals. The Crab-Eating Macaque is frequent in the reserve, as well as the Malay Pangolin, the Malay Colugo, the Plantain Squirrel and the Slender Squirrel. Colugos, which are usually nocturnal, are sometimes seen clinging to trees throughout the day. Bukit Timah is the one place in Singapore where you can find the Red-Cheeked Flying Squirrel. As for birds, one of the most common birds in Bukit Timah is the Greater Racket-Tailed Drongo. The drongos frequently follow the monkeys through the woods and feed on the insects that are exposed by the monkeys' actions. Among the other bird species are the Asian Fairy Bluebird, the Red-Crowned Barbet and the Common Emerald Dove. The reserve is one of Singapore's two sites where the Red Crowned Barbet can be found, the other is the Central Catchment Nature Reserve. The area has been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area for its populations of the vulnerable Straw-Headed Bulbuls and Brown-Chested Jungle Flycatchers.