Marvel at 500,000 Extraordinary Types of Flora and Fauna Right Here in Singapore (yes, there are dinosaurs)!
Singapore’s first natural history museum opened doors to the public in April 2015. Close to a mind-blowing 500,000 species are catalogued here.
Each is admitted via a barcode online, given upon confirmation of the booking. I scanned the barcode on my phone and — voila — the doors flung open and I made my grand entrance. Guests all had to walk through the botanical section first.
Here’s a life-size model of the Rafflesia flower, which gives off a rotting flesh stench so as to attract insects to aid in pollination. Genius, eh?
I got to see how different specimens look like under a microscope too, by shifting the specimen plate!
The famous Tongkat Ali *ahem* looks like that:
Oh gosh, these creatures gave me a hair-raising experience (which made the other visitors shriek too):
One more? Nah, I shall not, lest you close this tab. You’ll have to go down to check them out.
Seeing them sent butterflies fluttering in my stomach — literally so as I was so thrilled! I really marvel at their beauty.
That’s a huge Japanese spider crab caught in the land of the rising sun, which weighs around 19kg — just imagine that!
Wait… what’s this mythical creature?
Specimens there are so well-preserved and many actually look like they’re still alive! Very impressive, I must say.
You must know by now that the highlight of the museum are the diplodocid sauropod dinosaurs — Twinky, Prince and Apollonia. Hailing from the States, they are believed to have been alive about 150 million years ago. The curators toiled hard to piece the super-heavy bones together, held by metal cables. You’ll learn how they were discovered, what challenges they faced and why they eventually vanished from the surface of earth. You know what? The largest of the three here, Prince, measures 27m from head to toe!
Honestly, I haven’t seen more than half of the specimens there before, so this trip was truly an eye-opener. It’s also very educational — you’ll get to learn how different animals reproduce. There are even videos showing the processes from courting to mating! Other interesting displays include human skeletons and live mudskippers which provide a contrast to the dead exhibits.
You really have to make a trip down– trust me, that money is worth every while. Psst… the light here makes for wonderful photography, which is a bonus. I’m up to return any time!
How to get there:
Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum
Address: 2 Conservatory Drive, Singapore 117377
Opening hours: 6 sessions daily (except Mondays and PHs), from 10am to 7pm, in 90-min blocks
Nearest MRT: Kent Ridge MRT or Clementi MRT
Entrance fees apply.
