The State of

Philippine
Biodiversity
 Did you know?
The world's largest pearl
was discovered by a Filipino
diver in a giant clam under
the Palawan Sea in 1934.

It weighs 14 pounds and

measures 9 1/2 inches long
and 5 1/2 inches in
diameter.

As of May 1984, it was

valued at US$42 million. It is
believed to be 600 years
old.
Tridacna gigas
Sinarapan, Mistichthys luzonensis Philippine Ironwood, Xanthostemon
verdugonianus

Mouse Deer, Tragalus nigricans Pygmy Forest Frog, Platymantis pygmaeus

Definitions

Biodiversity totality of
all species on earth
and the ecosystems
where they thrive

genetic diversity
species diversity
ecosystem diversity
 Why Study Biodiversity?
Provides shelter, food
and clothing

Pharmacological
products

Bioremediation

Economic benefits
Maintains harmonious relationship between biotic
& abiotic components of an ecosystem
Aesthetic & cultural value (existence value)
 How many species are
there?
Surprisingly, scientists have a better
understanding of how many stars
there are in the galaxy than how
many species there are on Earth!

Best estimate = 10M different species

Around 1.4 2M have been classified
 New species are still being
discovered!
(40% of fish species in South America are still
unclassified!)
Old species are being rediscovered!

Meet the coelacanth

 1m2 of temperate forest = 200,000 mites
and tens of thousands of other
invertebrates

1m2 of tropical grasslands = 32 million

nematodes

1g of same soil = 90 million bacteria and

other microbes

How many species these

communities contain is still anyone's
guess!
The Philippines is one of the biodiversity
mega-centers of the world

It is also a biodiversity HOTSPOT

 Ice Age: sea level
receded by about
80-120 meters
land bridges

Migration of animals
from mainland Asia
to the Philippines
Rich in limestone
Rich in mineral resources
Highly volcanic
Earthquake-prone
Too young to contain
dinosaur fossils

In a few tens of millions of

years, islands will
disappear!
 15
Geographical
Regions of
the
Philippines

Abundant supply
of rainfall (80
in/year) and
sunlight
 Biodiversity in the
Philippines

Endemic Species found in a particular area

only and nowhere else
 Comparison of Philippine Biodiversity
with other Countries

Total Endemic % Land Area

COUNTRY
species Species Endemic (km2)

Philippines 1139 555 49% 300,780

Spain 435 25 6% 451,171

Brazil 3131 788 25% 8,511,965

Source: Megadiversity, Earth's Biologically

Wealthiest Nations (Mittermeier, et al., 1997.
)
Mammals = 204
111/179 land species are endemic

26 marine mammals

2 species of mammals found only in

Camiguin Island
With its extensive seagrass beds, Green Island Bay in Roxas
Municipality, Palawan, is an important habitat for the endangered
dugong or sea cow. The bay is the last few remaining habitats in the
world for the species that is fast declining in numbers.
Mammals
22
Endangered 27% of total!
27 Vulnerable

Irrawaddy Dolphin
Malampaya Sound
Only 77 remaining
 Birds = 576
192 species are
endemic

Lowest endemism
among vertebrates
 Birds
124 near threatened to critically
endangered

2 extinct: Ticao Tarictic, Siquijor

Hanging Parakeet

Presumed extinct: Sulu Bleeding

Heart Pigeon, Negros Fruit Dove

1 rediscovered: Cebu
flowerpecker
 Reptiles = 197
107 lizards
15 sea snakes
5 sea turtles
85 snakes
3 turtles
2 crocodiles
 Reptiles
Better survival than amphibians

3 species of monitor lizards need conservation

Philippine Crocodile
(Critically
Endangered)
Northern Luzon or
Ligwasan Marsh
Breeding in Palawan
Amphibians = 102

Frogs, toads,
salamanders, newts

Platymantis pygmaeus

85% live in the rainforest

Good indicators of
climate change!
Amphibians
28-63% threatened/critically endangered

Data deficient

Affected by introduced species (i.e. American

bullfrog , Taiwan frog)
14,000 Plants In the Philippines

Angiosperms = 9,000
491 endangered
Gymnosperms = 33
Fern & fern allies = 1,011 49 threatened
Mosses = 506
Liverworts/hornworts = 518
Fungi = 700
Lichens = 790
Algae/Seagrasses = 1,062/ 16
Ecosystem Diversity in the
Philippines
 Dipterocarp Forest
600 1,000 m
altitude

source of hardwood

apitong, tangile,
lauan

Northern Sierra
Madre
 Coniferous Forest
500 1,500 m altitude

two species of Pinus in

the Philippines: P.
insularis & P. merkusii

Central/Northern Luzon,
Mindoro
 Molave Forest
low limestone hills, dry soil
cover

molave, narra, tindalo

western part of Luzon,

Mindoro & Palawan
 Mossy Forest

found in higher
elevations such as in
the Cordillera & Mt.
Apo

dominated by dwarf
tress & bryophytes
 Beach Forests
vegetation can survive
salt spray
Ficus, Casuarina, Hibiscus
 Other terrestrial habitats
Mangrove forest
nursery ground for fish &
mollusks
34/45 known mangrove
species

Grasslands
Kogon and talahib
Batanes
Alpine grassland (Mt. Pulog)
Aquatic Ecosystem: Freshwater

18 major river basins

211 lakes
Aquatic Ecosystems: Wetlands
Candaba Swamp,
Agusan Marsh
Migratory birds
 Aquatic Ecosystem: Marine
Coral reef community
488/500 known coral species
Only 12 endemic species
Epicenter for marine diversity
Breeding ground & shelter

Sea grass community

16 species of sea grass
Food of the seacows
 Threat to
Biodiversity
:
Extinction
Extinction: Natural Causes
Today the Earth is again in extinctions grip
but the cause has changed. The sixth
extinction is not happening because of some
external force.

It is happening because
of us, Homo sapiens, an
exterminator species,
as one scientist has
characterized
humankind.

~Virginia Morell, The Sixth Extinction

National Geographic, February 1999
84,000,000

~ Conservation International
www.conservation.org
 4th!

~IUCN Red List

www.iucn.org
Extinction: Anthropogenic Causes
Habitat destruction
Deforestation, Forest fragmentation
Destructive fishing methods
Dams, Roads
Forest Fragmentation
Mid Mid Mid
1960s 1970s 1980s
Primary Forest Secondary Forest
Destructive
Fishing
Practices
 Seventy
percent of each
haul of trawler
fishing is
considered by-
catch.

Dolphin
as by-
catch in
drift net.
Dams
 Extinction: Anthropogenic

Commercial products
and live specimens
Medicinal purposes
Exotic pets
Food
Ornamentals
3 baby Chiru = 1
shahtoosh shawl
Poachers cut high
tension lines during
power cuts and lay the
wires on beaten tracks
used by rhinos. The
animals tread on to the
live wires and die of
massive electric
shocks.

Police investigations
into recent rhino kills
also suggest the use of
telescopic rifles fired
long distance with
special armour-piercing
ammunition.
 Extinction: Anthropogenic
Introduced species
(accidentally
or not)
Pest control
Remediation
Aesthetic purposes

Predation/Competition
 In this photo provided by the Everglades National Park, the carcass of a
six-foot American alligator is shown protruding from the midsection of a
13-foot Burmese python Monday, Sept. 26, 2005 in Everglades National
Park, Fla., after the snake apparently swallowed the alligator, resulting in
the deaths of both animals. (Everglades National Park photo)
What are we doing about
it?
RA 7586 - Establish protected
areas
Mt. Makiling Forest Reserve (1910)
Mt. Apo World Heritage Site
Tubbataha Reef
What are we doing about it?
Captive Breeding Programs
i.e. Philippine Eagle, Philippine Crocodile
Important: Preserve genetic variety!
Giant Pandas in China
 Pandas have relatively
low fertility rates. In the
wild, female pandas
usually give birth to a
single cub only once
every two to three years.

But they lose virtually all

interest in sex once they
are in captivity. More
than 60% of male
pandas in zoos or
sanctuaries exhibit no
sexual desire at all.
Cheetahs in South Africa
 Bilbo, a bamboo lemur, weighed just 30g when he was born on 22
February, 2007. Rejected by his mother at a zoo in Stockholm, Sweden,
he has since gained a further 100g. It is thought there could be just 200
bamboo lemurs left in the wild.
What are we doing about it?
Use wildlife species
to earn income for
local communities
With adequate controls!
Community Based
Resource Management
Ecotourism
What are we doing about it?
CITES (1981)
(http://www.cites.org)
Appendix 1 endangered
Appendix 2 - threatened
Appendix 3 soon to be threatened
Ex. Giant clams, seahorses, flying foxes
What are we doing about it?

RA 9147: The Wildlife Conservation

and Protection Act

to conserve and protect wildlife species;

to regulate the collection and trade of wildlife;
to pursue Philippine commitment to
international conventions;
to initiate/support scientific studies on the
conservation of biological diversity
What are we doing about it?

EO 247: Regulations on
Bioprospecting
(the research, collection, and utilization of
biological and genetic resources)
Biopiracy - the
appropriation and
monopolization of
traditional population's
knowledge and
biological resources
 Taxus sumantrana
University of PA
Taxol cancer curing

Conus magus
Neurex, Inc.
SNX-111: painkiller
 Momordica charantia
US National Institute
of Health, US Army,
NY University
Anti-diabetic

Canaga odorata
Yves Saint Laurent
Essential oils
(perfume)
 What are we doing about it?

IPRA
Ancestral domain
FPIC before
anyone can have
access to resources
in their territory
 What are we doing about it?
Preserve genetic stock
Seed Banks
IRRI, Doomsday Vault (Norway)
Frozen Zoos
It is being built to safeguard the world's food
supply against nuclear war, climate change,
terrorism, rising sea levels, earthquakes and the
ensuing collapse of electricity supplies. "If the
worst came to the worst, this would allow the
world to reconstruct agriculture on this planet,"
says Cary Fowler, director of the Global Crop
Diversity Trust, an independent international
organization promoting the project.

The $3 million vault will be built deep inside a

sandstone mountain lined with permafrost on the
Norwegian Arctic island of Spitsbergen. The vault
will have metre-thick walls of reinforced concrete
and will be protected behind two airlocks and
high-security blast-proof doors. It will not be
permanently manned, but "the mountains are
patrolled by polar bears", says Fowler.