Oh What a night!
by Rosanne Koelmeyer Anderson
The World's first nocturnal wildlife park for viewing animals;
Singapore's Night Safari is one of the country's much sort after places
to visit.
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The Eagle Owl |
The Singapore Tourist Board (STB) thus continues to draw outstanding
accolades from visitors and has won Best Leisure Attraction Experience
seven times and named the Best Leisure Attraction Experience since its
inception in 1994. The Night Safari receives more than one million
visitors annually and has even welcomed its 11th million visitor.
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Binturong |
Spanning over 40 hectares, the Night Safari is home to over 1,040
animals of 120 species of which 29 per cent are threatened. The lighting
concept used is simple and effective but has yet caught the eye of the
beholder.
Conserving the spirit of a twilight forest, the animal enclosures are
lit up by more than 2,000 specially developed incandescent light
fittings while ensuring excellent visibility.
Divided into eight geographical areas, the wildlife park can be
explored via the walking trails, Fishing Cat, Forest Giants and the
Leopard trail or by two road loops on board a tram which takes you on a
45 minute tram ride with strategic stopovers that allow visitors to
admire the magnificent panoramic view of the Seletar Reservoir, the
tree-studded hill slopes and the grassy plains.
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Leopard Cat |
Another interesting feature at the Night Safari are the "Creatures of
the Night show", held every night at the park's open-concept
amphitheatre. This innovative performance showcases the natural
behaviour of nocturnal animals like the Puma, Binturong, the oriental
small-clawed Otter and a reticulated python in an entertaining
configuration with theatrical surprises, comedy, sound and lighting
effects.
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Malayan Tiger |
Among the animals at the Night Safari is the Bull Asian elephant
Chawang, the largest and heaviest animal in Singapore Zoo and Night
Safari. It stands close to 3 metres tall and 3,480 kg in weight with one
of the few crossed tuskers close to 1.2 metres long.
Then there is South Asia's first captive Anteater which is now a
Giant Anteater baby has been classified as 'vulnerable' by the IUCN Red
List of Threatened Species while on Appendix 11 of CITES, the Giant
Anteater is a protected species and is the first born in captivity in
Asia.
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Giraffes at dusk |
The Red Giant Flying Squirrel and the Eagle owls are also an
attraction at the Night safari .
If you feel like dining and making it a more romantic evening; the
600 seater Ulu Ulu Safari Restaurant, the park's flagship restaurant
with five food stations is there to offer you a variety of local
favourites which feature a traditional village ambience with local
tribal dance performances to add to the evenings entertainment.
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Train ride |
Or you may even try some al fresco dining at the Bongo Burgers
Restaurant or simply dine on board the tram on the Gourmet Safari
Express while on the Night safari.
Whatever you opt for I can assure you that it feels good and the
experience is simply worth the while.
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