Nephrolepis acutifolia

It was a day to have a potential last look at some beautiful old seawalls before they are torn down by the MRT development at Marine Parade Road but turned out to be a surprised encounter with a rare fern called Nephrolepis acutifolia. Thank you,  Stuart Lindsay, for pointing out my initial mistaken identification. It can be found on a rain tree at Marine Parade Road and a few locations such as Portsdown and SBG. Considered as an endangered species in Singapore. 

old seawall and gate

old seawall and steps

old ornated gate

Frond 1.5 to 2m long.

Pinnate frond

Sorus marginal; indusium running almost the entire length of both adaxial and abaxial margin of pinna. 

lanceolate pinnae

Can you see the sporangia peeping out from the knife edge of the margin?

Brown non-persistent scales at the base of stipes

Long slender stipes

Stipe and rachis grooved above

Fiddlehead

Wiry roots with green tips

Rain tree festooned with ferns

Young fern destined for Chek Jawa for planting

Watch this space: spores broadcast into the gaps of an old kampong stone wall in Pulau Ubin!

Last Cycad Tree of Old Katong Coastline found along Marine Parade Road

Possible! Possible! It's perfectly possible!

This native Cycad Tree (Cycas rumphii) could very well be the last precious remnant of the natural vegetation found along old Katong coastline prior to the development of Marine Parade Estate. At 3.5m tall, it is definitely a very old specimen.

I spotted it growing under a huge Waringin (Ficus benjamina) behind a section of the old Katong seawall along Marine Parade Road.

Although it can be argued that it could have been planted, I believe we should err on the side of caution and recommend its immediate conservation. Towards this end, I will forward this posting to the relevent authorities for due consideration and hope it can be transplanted to a protected location such as Chek Jawa or Fort Canning.

Cycas rumphii - revered as a 'living fossil' by science - is indeed very rare in the wild today. In Singapore, it is considered Critically Endangered. No effort should be spared to conserve it for posterity.

The extent individuals can be counted within 5 fingers:
1 in Pulau Tekong
1 in Western Catchment
1 in Lazarus Island
1 in Chek Jawa (translocated from Changi Point)