New eagle hatched in the wild

By Gerry T. Estrera
Just when there was successive bad news about the recent development in eagle conservation in the country, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) reported of an eaglet hatched in the forest of Baliguian in Zamboanga del Norte.
 “We are very happy on hearing the news that a new Philippine eagle was hatched in the wild. This only shows that the province still has a very good forest cover, and I thank the people of Zamboanga del Norte for having taken good care of their natural resources,” Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Ramon J. P. Paje said in a statement.
 The Regional Eagle Watch Team of DENR-Region 9 reported to Paje that “the young eagle was hatched on its parents’ nest atop a tree in Barangay Linay on the eve of December 17 last year.”
 The eaglet was given the name “Atbalin,” an acronym for “attraction for barangay Linay.” 
 “Atbalin’s arrival,” Paje pointed out, “is certainly a welcome addition to the dwindling Philippine eagle population in the country.”
 Early this year, on January 19, rain-sogged vines wrapped around a tree branch at the Philippine Eagle Center (PEC) in Malagos of Calinan district in Davao City broke and fell on a roost perch killing a male eagle named Arakan.
 Exactly eight days later, a female eagle named Marikit died due to a respiratory disease known as “aspergillosis.” According to Medline Plus, aspergillosis is caused by a fungus, which is commonly found growing on dead leaves, stored grain, compost piles, or in other decaying vegetation.
 The deaths of Arakan and Marikit were a big blow to the eagle center’s breeding program.  “The loss of this pair means one less genetic source for the eagle center’s captive gene pool,” declares Anna Mae T. Sumaya, the center’s curator. 
 “However, efforts to restore their destroyed enclosure will give way to another natural pair and a new opportunity for another pairing attempt that would contribute to the said gene pool,” Sumaya adds.  “Their loss would not be in vain as measures to correct past failures are underway and continuous efforts to improve breeding are in the works.”
 The PEC, inaugurated in the late 1970s, is the transient home of the endangered Philippine eagle (known scientifically as Pithecopahaga jefferyi).  Its work is divided broadly into two roles: in situ and ex situ conservation of the country’s bird icon. In situ is the raising of birds in its original habitat while ex situ is the method of propagating the species in captivity.
 “We have more than three decades of experience in the development of technologies for the captive propagation of Philippine eagle,” says Dennis Joseph I. Salvador, the executive director of the Philippine Eagle Foundation, Inc., which oversees the center.  These include infrastructure design, breeding techniques, incubation and hatching procedures, and the assessment of health and nutritional requirements.
 Today, the center has about three dozens of Philippine eagles, including Pagasa, the first Philippine eagle hatched in captivity.
 Unlike most animals and human beings, Philippine eagles are monogamous.  Once an eagle reaches sexual maturity, it is bound for life with its mate.  They can be seen soaring in pairs in the skies.
 The breeding season of the Philippine eagles ranges as early as July to as late as February.  During the breeding season, the eagles do aerial courtship and mate in the next or neat it.  Female eagles lay only one egg every two years.  Both parents alternately incubate the egg for about 60 days, although the female spends more time incubating while the male hunts for food.
 Upon hatching, the eaglet remains in the nest for about five and a half months.  Once it fledges, the eagle parents will continue to look after its young for as long as 17 to 18 months teaching the young eagle how to fly, hunt, and to survive on its own.