A purposive search for the Dulungan
AFTER two days of long trekking across the rivers, up to the steep cliffs, and towering ridges of Culasi, in the northern part of Antique, we reached the site, 741 meters above sea level. Three holes were found in one single Balakbakan or Tanguile (Shorea polysperma) tree, but the one on the topmost was its nest hole. Rufous-headed Hornbill (Rhabdotorrhinus waldeni), locally known as Dulungan, is one of the most elusive birds in the Philippines. Endemic to Panay and Negros Islands, it is now considered a critically endangered species in the world.
This expedition was part of the purposive search for the “Big Five” species in 2013, which include the Dulungan of the Central Panay Mountain for the Critical Habitat establishment.
During the nesting season of the Dulungan, according to our local guide, the hole is usually full of fresh droppings and food leftovers, which we found on the bottom of the nest tree. Male Dulungans look for food as the female is imprisoned in the hole until the chicks are semi-developed and ready to go out of the nest holes.
During this period, the female undergoes a complete moult. As the male flies from tree to tree looking for food, mostly dip the food in a part under its neck and gives it to the female back in the nest through a slit on the hole. This motion goes on, and becomes more frequent when the eggs hatch and until the chicks are
shirts blending with the colours of nature, we stood there silently, without any sudden movement. As mosquitoes and leeches feasted on us, we heard its goat-like call, so I readied my camera as it was near to tree, nearer and nearer back to the nest hole. Finally, there he was, his wide, black wings spreading as he landed towards the hole and large orange bill clipping a seed to be fed for the female.
I drew the camera to take a shot of the most beautiful bird (to me) in Panay. As I was about to take a peek at the eye piece of the camera, one of our companions, in much excitement, yelled “Shoti! Shoti!” [Take a shot!]. Hearing And there it was, gone.
The hours of waiting turned to nothing. Well, I just jokingly said to myself, maybe it was not meant to be for now. We waited again for some time, but the bird already knew we were there so he was cautious in going back to the nest. We know he was still around as we in front of us in the understory, like he’s showing off. But he never came back to the nest hole for me to take that shot that I wanted.
That area could have been the perfect spot for the shot, but we didn’t have much time to capture a snapshot of the Dulungan, for other obligations and responsibilities await us. So we moved forward that we were looking for. We found another group of male Dulungans the next day, but it was a bit too far and the weather conditions did not go along as well so I couldn’t take a good shot of it.
Still not extinct
But in the end, we were still glad that Dulungans still exist in Panay Mountains in spite of its critically endangered status. They can only be found in Panay now, not the whole mountain range of central Panay, for it is still conducive as a Dulungan habitat. Forest destruction and hunting are the main reasons of the decline in number of these species. Only 23 percent of the Philippines’ original forests remain, affecting threatened and endemic wildlife species all over the country.
The Haribon Foundation has been working hard to educate local communities close to Central Panay Mountains about forest and wildlife protection and the importance of our forests. In March 2017, Haribon, in partnership with the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines ( NGCP), answered the call for the conservation of this threatened species. Through the establishment of baseline information, communication, education and public awareness (CEPA), and policy development, Haribon and NGCP aimed to improve the conservation of the Dulungan.
is to better understand the ecology of the Dulungan and the communities’ awareness about it in the municipalities of Sebaste and Culasi in the province of Antique.
A series of field and perception surveys were conducted in 14 upland barangays of these municipalities from April to June of 2017. In the perception surveys, forest users were interviewed about their local knowledge about the forests and the Dulungan. A total of 207 individuals were interviewed representing approximately of each barangay. Field surveys were also conducted in several localities within the forests of Culasi and Sebaste, including the nest observation to study the breeding behavior of the Dulungan. Sightings of this bird in mid-elevation forests.
The perception survey showed that most of the communities knew of the Dulungan, although more than 50 percent did not know that it is the provincial bird studies showed the importance of mid-elevation forests as its habitat. This is supported by the community’s local knowledge from their personal sightings of the birds and their nests. The communities value the forests and are also well aware of seed dispersal agents in the forests. Although threats may still be present for some localities, the communities were aware of the local policies that protect the Dulungan. We are now receiving positive responses from the locals, local government units and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources regarding this. Let us help protect our fast declining forests not only in Panay, but in the whole Philippines.
This purposive search is part of the Forest and Climate Protection Project in Panay, which aims to ensure total protection of the whole Central Panay Mountain with its globally significant biodiversity used by the adjacent communities in a sustainable manner, funded by Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).