Channa melasoma is one of the four species of snakeheads that are native to Singapore. It lives in shaded forest streams, and although not attractively marked, is one of the rarer species (Baker & Lim, 2012: 49). The present sighting appears to be the first record of this fish outside the Central Catchment Nature Reserve.

In Singapore, the black-bearded flying dragon occurs in mature forests of the Bukit Timah and Central Catchment Nature Reserves, and can be identified by its relatively slender appearance, yellow-spotted blackish patagium [flight membrane on each side of the torso supported by extensions of the ribs], and the distinctive black and orange throat sac (Baker & Lim, 2012: 76)
It is interesting to note the presence of this lizard in an isolated patch of regenerated forest that was formerly a rural village. This small area is separated from the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve by Rifle Range Road, and from the Central Catchment Nature Reserve by the Bukit Timah Expressway.

One of the specimens, a male of 77.9 mm standard length, was preserved and deposited at the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research under catalogue number ZRC 53770 (see figure). This alien species was recorded in the wild state in Singapore for the first time by Kwik et al. (2013), but not illustrated. It is a popular aquarium fish native to Sri Lanka and southern India (Talwar & Jhingran, 1991 as Puntius filamentosus).

Among members of the damselfish genus Abudefduf recorded in Singapore waters, the blackspot sergeant appears to be locally uncommon. It can be readily distinguished from its congeners there by a prominent black blotch on the top of its caudal peduncle. This species inhabits rocky shorelines throughout the Indo-Pacific from the Red Sea eastwards through the East Indies to the Hawaiian Islands (Allen & Erdmann, 2012: 564).

This small shark, recognized by its black-tipped second dorsal fin, is quite harmless to humans. It is distributed in the Indo-west Pacific, inhabits coastal waters up to 40 m deep, and grows to a maximum size of 95 cm total length (Compagno et al., 2005: 305)

In Singapore, the blacktip reef shark has been recorded around Semakau Landfill (Ng, 2012: 29, 146). This species does not exceed 2 m in total length, and is distributed in shallow waters on and around coral reefs throughout the tropical Indian Ocean and western Pacific. It has even invaded the eastern Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal (Compagno et al., 2005: 302)

Opinions and declarations Rendered by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature