DAVAO CITY – A conservation group has expressed alarm over the increasing number of air gun shooting incidents against the critically endangered Philippine Eagle.
VOLUNTEER veterinarian Sheen Gadong (left) checks Philippine Eagle Kalatungan. (PEF photo)
The Philippine Eagle Foundation has reiterated its call to authorities to intensify its campaign to regulate if not to totally ban the possession of air guns in municipalities where known Philippine Eagle nesting sites are located.
Dr. Jayson Ibañez, PEF director of operations, issued the appeal anew following the rescue of an injured Philippine Eagle at Mount Kalatungan range in Pangantucan, Bukidnon on February 24.
MAP of Pangantucan, Bukidnon
Ibañez added that the recent shooting of the juvenile Philippine Eagle is already alarming as it is already the ninth that had been rescued due to bullet injury since 2019.
“This eagle rescue is the 19th bird to be admitted at the Philippine Eagle Center (in this city) for medical care since 2019. Sadly, it is the ninth victim of eagle shooting in that cohort,” he said.
According to PEF, Indigenous Peoples rescued the juvenile Philippine Eagle caught in the dense shrub on the foothills of the mountain range.
"Mr. Dodong Watang stumbled upon a weak eagle along Kiulayon ridge above the rivers Kaayatan nga Dako (big) and Kaayatan nga Gamay (small) in Sitio Balmar, Nabaliwa, Pangantucan, Bukidnon. According to Mr. Watang, the eagle was trapped inside a vine thicket and was unable to fly," the PEF said.
PEF said forest guard volunteers of Bantay sa Yutang Kabilin (BYK), in collaboration with Xavier Science Foundation, communicated with PEF for the rescue of the Philippine Eagle.
Volunteer veterinarians of Doc Bayani Animal Wellness Clinic surgically removed two air gun lead pellets from the Philippine Eagle’s right collar bone and right thigh.
"The pellets were lodged just beneath the skin, and the absence of entry wounds indicate that the shooting happened few months back," the clinic said.
LEAD pellets recovered from Kalatungan. (PEF photo)
The Philippine Eagle, named Kalatungan, is estimated to be about two-years-old and probably a male, the PEF said.
“Sadly, this is the third case of a Philippine Eagle getting harmed by air guns in Bukidnon since the pandemic,” Ibañez disclosed. "Parang target practice dummy na national bird natin (Our national bird is being used for target practice)."
He recounted that in the first case was in 2020 when Philippine Eagle Tagoyaman Fernando sustained an air gun pellet injury its right wing.
In July last year, Philippine Eagle Sinabadan was also rescued and permanently injured due to air gun pellet in its body.
Of the nine injured Philippine Eagles, only four have been released back to the wild.
The rest were kept at the PEC for breeding, Ibañez said.
Ibañez said Kalatungan is now undergoing rehabilitation at the PEC.
They have yet to determine if the rescued Philippine Eagle will be released back to the wild or will be kept as breeding stock, he added.
On January 2, PEF rescued an injured Philippine Eagle in the hinterlands of Toril District here. The raptor lost one of its eyes due to “jolen” or marble gun.
Regulate air guns
As air gun hunting continues to threaten the national bird and other wildlife species, Ibañez said that the government must regulate its sale and possession.
He urged local government units in known nesting sites of Philippine Eagles to legislate laws for the protection of the national bird.
Bukidnon is the biggest home of Philippine Eagle in the country with about 17 pairs, Ibañez said. But it was the first time that a Philippine Eagle was recovered from Mount Kalatungan range, he added.
Ibañez said that air gun wildlife hunting is very prevalent in the country, saying that pictures and videos are even circulated online.
The PEF official suggested that lawmakers should revisit the law on regulating firearms and should include regulation of air guns.
“The lack of regulation and prevailing treatment of air guns as ‘toys’ make it a very accessible tool for wildlife hunting and shooting, especially in the uplands where wildlife law enforcement is weak if not nil," the seasoned conservationist said.