SINGAPORE – Hidden amid luxury hotels in Sentosa, a World War II military bunker has for decades been an exclusive sanctuary for swiftlets, sheltering them from those who covet their nests for touted health benefits.

From Aug 2, the public can get their first glimpse of life inside the home of Singapore’s largest known colony of edible-nest and black-nest swiftlets via a replica of the bunker in the resort island’s refreshed nature discovery learning hub.

Located in a defunct monorail station, the hub in Mount Imbiah opens from 9am to 5pm daily, and acts as a gateway to Sentosa’s natural habitats and its roughly 850 kinds of flora and fauna.

Following a two-month revamp, the space, which can be accessed for free, features a replica of the military bunker along with the latest insights into the swiftlets’ habits.

Other parts of the gallery spotlight unique species, like a slow-growing climber that can be found only here on Sentosa’s rocky outcrops, and a

feisty mantis shrimp,

Unlike farms that lure swiftlets for their nests, which are prized as delicacies, the British bunker’s colonisation began entirely by the birds’ design.

In the wild, both species belong to a group of swifts drawn to nesting under the cloak of complete darkness, which they navigate with clicking noises that generate a real-time audio map of the landscape.

More than 120 swiftlet nests were first recorded in the bunker in 1987, after the birds were spotted circling the flooded military installation, said Sentosa Development Corporation’s director of environmental management Grace Lee.

Since the colony was discovered, the corporation has pulled out all stops to protect it.