The Central Catchment Nature Reserve (; ms, Hutan Simpanan Kawasan Tadahan Air Tengah; ta, மத்திய நீர்ப்பிடிப்பு இயற்கை ரிசர்வ்) is the largest

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

, occupying 2880 hectares. Forming a large green lung in the geographical centre of the city, it houses several recreational sites, including the

Singapore Zoo The Singapore Zoo, formerly known as the Singapore Zoological Gardens or Mandai Zoo, is a zoo located on the margins of Upper Seletar Reservoir within Singapore's heavily forested central catchment area. Opened in 1973, the zoo was built at a ...

, the Night Safari and the

River Safari River Wonders, formerly known as River Safari, is a river-themed zoo and aquarium located in Mandai, Singapore, forming part of the Mandai Wildlife Reserve. It is built over and nestled between its two counterparts, the Singapore Zoo and the ...

, as well as several newer facilities built to encourage public appreciation of the reserve, such as the HSBC TreeTop Walk. The reserve sits within the boundaries of the

Central Water Catchment The Central Water Catchment, also known as the Central Catchment Area, is a designated planning area and one of the two main water catchments of Singapore. The country's main reservoirs – MacRitchie, Upper Seletar, Upper Peirce and Lower ...

. It is one of the four gazetted nature reserves in Singapore. The other three are the

Labrador Nature Reserve Labrador Nature Reserve ( Chinese: 拉柏多自然保护区, Malay: Kawasan Simpanan Alam Semulajadi Labrador), also known locally as Labrador Park (拉柏多公园, Taman Labrador), is located in the southern part of mainland Singapore. It is ho ...

which was gazetted since 1 January 2002, Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve and

Bukit Timah Nature Reserve The Bukit Timah Nature Reserve (abbreviation: BTNR) is a nature reserve near the geographic centre of Singapore, located on the slopes of Bukit Timah Hill, the country's highest natural peak standing at a height of approximately , and parts ...

. All four nature reserves along with the parks are protected under the Parks & Trees Act 2005. The nature reserve acts as a catchment area for the surrounding reservoirs. The country's main reservoirs – MacRitchie, Upper Seletar, Upper Peirce and Lower Peirce are located within the reserve. Most forests in the CCNR were cleared for logging and cultivation unlike Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, which remain relatively undisturbed. The CCNR now consists of a mixture of young and mature secondary forests with virgin

primary forest An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological feature ...

surrounding the reservoirs.

Attractions

Bordering MacRitchie reservoir are remnants of rubber plantations from the 19th century. Walkways and boardwalks in the reserve, which range from 3 to 11 kilometres long, allow visitors to enjoy a closer feel to nature. The reserve is also visited by hikers and trekkers due to its terrain and scenery. A hike can lead to the nearby

Biodiversity

The nature reserve boasts a rich biodiversity with over 500 animal species including crab-eating macaque,

colugo Colugos () are arboreal gliding mammals that are native to Southeast Asia. Their closest evolutionary relatives are primates. There are just two living species of colugos: the Sunda flying lemur (''Galeopterus variegatus'') and the Philippine fly ...

common treeshrew The common treeshrew (''Tupaia glis'') is a small mammal in the treeshrew family Tupaiidae, and is native to Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia. It has been listed as Least Concern by IUCN as it remains common and displays some adaptability to on ...

Sunda slow loris The Sunda slow loris (''Nycticebus coucang'') or greater slow loris is a strepsirrhine primate and a species of slow loris native to Indonesia, West Malaysia, southern Thailand and Singapore. It measures from head to tail and weighs between . ...

and

Sunda pangolin The Sunda pangolin (''Manis javanica''), also known as the Malayan or Javan pangolin, is a species of pangolin. It is found throughout Southeast Asia, including Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, and the islands of ...

. Central Catchment Nature Reserve is the only place in Singapore where Raffles' banded langur monkey remains, with a population that has been severely diminished. Wild birds such as crimson sunbird,

greater racket-tailed drongo The greater racket-tailed drongo (''Dicrurus paradiseus'') is a medium-sized Asian bird which is distinctive in having elongated outer tail feathers with webbing restricted to the tips. They are placed along with other drongos in the family Dic ...

and

kingfishers Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly colored birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species found in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

are found in the reserve, too. Some species of critically endangered bats have also been spotted. The reserve has many species of butterflies. It is home to some 1,600 species of flora. The reserve, along with the adjacent

, has been identified by BirdLife International as the Central Forest Important Bird Area (IBA) because it supports populations of vulnerable straw-headed bulbuls and

brown-chested jungle flycatcher The brown-chested jungle flycatcher (''Cyornis brunneatus'') is a species of bird in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae. It breeds in South China ; its winters in the Malay peninsula. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical m ...

HSBC TreeTop Walk

The nature reserve contains a 250-metre suspension bridge. The HSBC TreeTop Walk opened to public on 5 November 2004. It connects the two highest points in MacRitchie – Bukit Pierce and Bukit Kalang. At the highest point, the bridge hangs 25 metres from the forest floor. The difficulty level of the trail ranges from moderate to difficult. The suspension bridge serves an important role in forest canopy research, giving researchers access to areas well off the ground. To preserve the tranquility of the environment and for safety reasons, the number of people allowed on the walkway is capped at 30. Visitors will only be able to travel along the narrow walkway in one direction, by entering from the Bukit Pierce entrance and exiting through the Petaling Trail. Rangers are deployed along the 10.3-kilometre trail to ensure safety.

Conservation

The CCNR provides free guided tours to schools and the general public. This is part of National Parks Board's efforts to educate people about the conservation of nature areas in Singapore.

Banded leaf monkey conservation

The

banded leaf monkey The Raffles' banded langur (''Presbytis femoralis''), also known as the banded leaf monkey or banded surili, is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is endemic to Singapore and southern Peninsular Malaysia. The species underwen ...

is one of four primate species native to Singapore. The CCNR is the only location in Singapore where the nationally critically endangered banded leaf monkeys can be found. Due to rapid urbanisation and habitat loss, the population at

had died out in 1987. The Central Catchment population had declined to as few as 10–15 monkeys before recovering to about 40 by 2012. Today, they are restricted to a small area within the Central Water Catchment with a population of about 70 by 2022.

References

External links

National Parks Board's website

Central Catchment Nature Reserve
{{Parks in Singapore Central Water Catchment Nature reserves in Singapore North Region, Singapore Parks in Singapore Important Bird Areas of Singapore