ZAMBOANGA CITY – Members of a group of Indigenous Peoples (IPs) have vowed to support the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in the conservation of the Philippine Eagle within their ancestral domain in the province of Zamboanga del Norte.
Dionisio Rago, head of the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) in Liloy, Zamboanga del Norte, said in a statement Saturday they earned the support of the IPs after an information drive in Barangay Sianan, Godod, in the same province in line with the Philippine Eagle Week celebration, which was from June 4 to 10.
Rago said Timuay Florencia Gaas, leader of the Sianan Subanen Tribal Association, assured them that they are ready to help in the wildlife conservation efforts of the DENR considering they are living in the area.
“We pledge our support to help in Philippine Eagle conservation in our area,” Rago quoted Gaas as saying.
Rago said Barangay Sianan has been known for sightings of Philippine Eagles in the area by the IPs.
He added that their information drive is important for them to know the importance and significance of the Philippine Eagle, which is an endangered species.
He said the information drive is to strengthen public awareness on the significant role of Philippine Eagle in the forest ecosystem as well as to generate unified and concerted efforts among the IPs to ensure the protection and perpetuation of the species within Barangay Sianan.
He noted that the bird is endemic in the country and is one of the largest eagles in the world but it is facing a critically endangered status according to the International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Despite it being named as the country’s national bird, its species is threatened by the destruction of its natural habitat as well as illegal hunting, Rago said.
This year’s Philippine Eagle Week was anchored on the theme “The Philippine Eagle and Indigenous Peoples; Protecting our Forests, Protecting our Future.” (PNA)
