You Otter Go to the Night Safari!
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The Night Safari is celebrating its 30th anniversary, and with so many people leaving town during the school midterm holiday this week, I decided to use my parabolic mic to see what I could capture on a quiet weeknight in Mandai. Wild animals are often more active at night, which makes sense. It's not as hot, and many animals in the wild have keenly developed senses for the night.

There's a tram that does a lap of the park with running commentary, but even though it's an electric tram, it's hardly quiet. My fellow passengers were quite vocal when they would eventually spot the animal in its enclosure. Many of the exhibits featured quiet animals. The elephants were quietly eating, the alligator was silently floating in its enclosure, and heck, even the Tasmanian devil foraged in stealth mode. In fact, I picked up more human chatter as I wandered the trails.

Including a kid up well past their usual bedtime. I did encounter some loud animals, two Asian lionesses, no doubt complaining about their bone-lazy lion. There's a saying that if things get quiet in the jungle, it's because an apex predator is nearby.

which might be a touch confusing when everyone can either hear or smell the lions. On the walking trails, I could get up close to the smaller critters. The Indian crested porcupine is a surprisingly noisy eater, and that sound is the rustling of their coat of quills. Mind you, these are not your happy-go-lucky shoe-sized porcupines. These are the size of medium-sized dogs. The star of the evening turned out to be two Asian small-clawed otters that I've named Bubble and Squeak.

These names are rather onomatopoeic, but come on, they're cute to look at and sound like they're having a brilliant time swimming and clambering over rocks. Unlike most residents here, otters are out and about in Singapore. If you meet any of the estimated 150+ wild otters in Singapore, the best advice is to give them a wide berth. They're pack animals that like to hang out together.

And while an otter on its own doesn't present a threat in the way a pissed off wild boar does, a group of them will work together to shoo away any perceived predators. There have been reports of them biting and scratching people who got too close. And they're infamous for entering landed properties and wiping out a koi pond in minutes. Otters in Singapore have what TikTokers call "pretty privilege". They get away with being very naughty because they look so nice and because they also sound adorable.

You've been listening to Otters Playing. Here is The Night Safari, postcode 729826. Check out this episode's show notes for more information about otters in Singapore and The Night Safari, or visit our website, hearhear.show. Catch you on the next episode.