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  • Writer's pictureMarx Yim

ASE Ecology Student Tay Li Si Commended For Arthropod-Forest Restoration Study

Updated: Jul 17, 2023

Heartfelt congratulations to ASE 4th year ecology specialisation student and NTU President Research Scholar (NTU PRS), Tay Li Si for being conferred the Certificate of Recognition for Commendable Research Accomplishments with Merit for his URECA (Undergraduate Research Programme) study “Does Forest Restoration also Restore Arthropod Diversity and Community?”. His project was undertaken within the Tropical Ecology and Entomology (TEE) Lab and supervised by Asst Prof Eleanor Slade.


Tay Li Si studied whether forest restoration recovered arthropod diversity and community.


Arthropods dwelling in soil and leaf litter on the forest floor are vital because of the ecosystem benefits they provide. Studies have shown that they help with decomposition, improve soil quality, aid in pollination and seed dispersal and they are also an important part of the food web. Despite their importance, little is known about the soil-/leaf litter-arthropods in Singapore.


(Left) Arthropod abundance in relation to forest type; (Right) NMDS of arthropod community composition among forest types in leaf litter samples.


The goal of Tay Li Si’s study was to discover whether forest restoration efforts in Singapore are helping to restore the diversity and community structure of our arthropods. The study is also the first in Singapore to identify and quantify the arthropods that live in soil and leaf litter on our forest floor. With this study he hopes to bring awareness to the many critters that live beneath our feet and also to shed light on how restoration may impacts arthropod diversity and communities. For his excellent study, he was invited to pitch and communicate his research at the 2021 International Conference of Undergraduate Research (ICUR), which involved 595 international students from 14 institutions comprising of 12 countries. Find out more about his research in-depth in his presentation below.

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