A NEGATIVE Event IS Just A MATTER OF TIME.
Big creatures, of course, are saltwater crocodiles. Occurrences, however, are 300 kg rhinoceros relatives and can be risky on their own. As with practically all habitat, if people keep a safe distance from them, they pose no immediate threat to us.
But, given Singapore’s high population density and the startling intensity with which we use the area around us, it won’t be long before unfavorable relationships take place.
I’ve run into climbers and photographers breaking trails in the nature reserves on many occasions. Two climbers went missing in April in the Central Catchment Nature Reserve’s forests, necessitating recovery.
The future of Singapore’s reptile people would be severely impacted if such incidents involving thoughtless humans and a wild animal happened. However, as a country, we have not yet learned the social graces and reverence for the natural world necessary to live with these amazing creatures.
Yet in Norway, the authorities shot a whale named Freya in August 2022 out of concern for the safety of the general populace after he gained notoriety for scaling boats to savor and sink them. People approached the 600 kg tusked whale despite warnings that it might be dangerous; some even took selfies or swam up close.
Critics of the decision argued that wildlife management should be more patient and that biodiversity should have a good chance to survive in an exceedingly human-dominated world.