The Pavilion of Amphibians and Reptiles raises public awareness of conservation and the impact of illegal trade on amphibians and reptiles
The Seac Pai Van Park in Coloane is an important venue showcasing natural and ecological resources and providing popular ecological science education in Macao. To diversify the popular ecological science content in the park and make it more interesting, the Pavilion of Amphibians and Reptiles and the Aviary are added to not only provide a more suitable feeding environment for reptiles and birds, but also create a platform for the public to have close encounter with nature and acquire ecological knowledge. Furthermore, the first Butterfly-Friendly Garden is built in the park, in addition to the areas fit for butterflies to inhabit and feed gradually set up in local parks, gardens or green belts.
The Municipal Affairs Bureau (IAM) has earlier invited members of the Consultative Committee on Municipal Affairs, the Islands District Community Service Consultative Committee, the Chinese Educators’ Association of Macau, teachers and students from schools to visit the facilities and listened to their views to optimise visiting modes and arrangements for educational activities. The three new facilities will be open for trial operation from 7 March onwards. At the early stage, the Pavilion of Amphibians and Reptiles will be open for visits through advance bookings. Visitors can make the bookings via “Macao One Account” or “Booking of venues and facilities” on IAM website.
For the public to have more diverse and in-depth ecological education and immersive visitor experience, IAM concurrently launches the “Seac Pai Van Ecological Immersion” activity, where participants visit the newly built Pavilion of Amphibians and Reptiles, Aviary and Butterfly-Friendly Garden with professional guides. Members of the public are welcome to sign up for the activity via “Macao One Account”.
Pavilion of Amphibians and Reptiles
Occupying an area of 1,080 square metres, the Pavilion of Amphibians and Reptiles serves as an educational venue centring on amphibians and reptiles, and exhibits more than 40 animals from 26 amphibian and reptile species. In addition to those indigenous to Macao, some of the animals that have been rescued and taken care of by IAM’s veterinary care and ecological conservation team and pets seized from illegal trade or abandoned by their owners are also among the exhibits, including Asian water monitor (Varanus salvator), Burmese python (Python bivittatus), Mississippi map turtle (Graptemys pseudogeographica kohnii), Indochinese box turtle (Cuora galbinifrons), blue-tongued skink (Tiliqua), and new Caledonian giant gecko (Rhacodactylus leachianus). The Pavilion consists of six themed exhibition rooms, namely “Wonderful World of Amphibians and Reptiles”, “Macao’s Indigenous Fairies”, “Habitats”, “Jungle Fairies”, “Herptiles and Water”, and “Reflection and Protection”.
Besides the different amphibians and reptiles for the public to observe, the Pavilion also serves as a comprehensive, multifunctional facility for animal display, popular science education and conservation by offering various multimedia installations and models of amphibians and reptiles hiding in each of the themed rooms to enhance visitor experience. Through popular science exhibitions and educational activities, it is hoped to raise public awareness of conservation of natural ecological environment, and enable visitors to have a deeper understanding of the impact of illegal trade on amphibians and reptiles, developing the Pavilion of Amphibians and Reptiles into an important educational venue where the public can explore nature and acquire ecological knowledge.
Aviary
The Aviary creates an ample space for birds under its steel dome structure. Bathed in bright sunlight, the Aviary provides an environment that serves as an ideal habitat for birds. Visitors can observe the birds from various locations and angles via viewing platforms at different heights around the Aviary.
The birds kept in the Aviary include scarlet ibis (Eudocimus ruber), Puna ibis (Plegadis ridgwayi), Nicobar pigeon (Caloenas nicobarica), grey parrot (Psittacus erithacus), and macaw, some of which are listed in the appendices of the “Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora” (CITES). To provide a wild habitat encouraging natural bird behaviours, the Aviary is planted with various types of green plants, and equipped with water features, a diverse range of perches, and so on. The natural behaviours and elegant postures exhibited by birds allow visitors to experience the wonder of biodiversity.
Butterfly-Friendly Garden
Through technical exchanges and cooperation with the Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve of Hong Kong, IAM establishes the Butterfly-Friendly Garden, the first of its kind, in Seac Pai Van Park as a pilot project, occupying an area of 640 square metres. In view of the difference preferences and needs of locally common butterfly species at each of their growth stages, 18 types of plants are deliberately selected and maintained using ecological engineering techniques to create a haven for butterflies to inhabit, feed and breed. Meanwhile, the Garden seeks to attract various insects to stay at its eco-friendly environment, so as to provide food sources for birds and other animals and form a complete and stable ecological chain, turning the urban green space into a major foothold to support biodiversity.
The Butterfly-Friendly Garden is established to not only introduce butterflies, the plant environment they need and their life cycle, but also raise public awareness of ecological conservation and the critical roles played by insects in the ecological chain for maintaining ecological balance and biodiversity, with the aim of jointly building spaces featuring “harmony between humankind and nature”.
The above three new facilities will be open for trial operation from 7 March onwards. Members of the public and tourists are welcome to visit them at the Seac Pai Van Park in Coloane. Due to limited space at the Pavilion of Amphibians and Reptiles, the public can now make advance bookings for visits via “Macao One Account” or “Booking of venues and facilities” on IAM website for better visitor experiences. Entry with on-site booking tickets will be allowed only if the visitor flow on-site permits. IAM appreciates the understanding of the public. The Pavilion of Amphibians and Reptiles also offers guided tours and themed workshops for schools, groups and the general public, providing participants with in-depth, immersive learning experience. For more information, the public can visit the Macao Nature website at www.iam.gov.mo/nature, or call 2833 7676 for enquiries.
