QUEZON CITY – The Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD) recently visited the laboratories and museums at the University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD).
The visit was part of the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of the program, “From Genes to Ecosystems: Understanding Fruit Bat Species and Genetic Diversity and its Ecological Interactions with Plants in Tropical Lowland Forest.”
Dr. Perry S. Ong of the University of the Philippines Diliman leads the program. It aims to generate more knowledge on fruit bats, resulting in the development of science-based solutions and strategies on how to better manage and ultimately conserve these biological resources.
DOST-PCAARRD’s Industry Strategic S&T Program (ISP) Manager for Biodiversity, Dr. Nimfa K. Torreta, led the M&E team composed of Dr. Leila C. America, Director of the Forestry and Environment Research Division (FERD) and Forester Maria Kristina Abigail S. Lapitan, project staff under UP’s Emerging Interdisciplinary Research (EIDR) Program.
Dr. Ong explains that managing threatened and endemic species, such as fruit bats, requires understanding of their habitat requirements and identifying minimum areas to be protected to ensure their survival.
The research program is conducted in the intact tropical lowland forests in Palanan, Isabela, one of the most endangered forest ecosystems in the country and elsewhere.
During the visit, Dr. Ong presented the program overview, recent program accomplishments, and financial utilization per project.
Study leaders and University Research Associates from the four project components also presented the location sites in Palanan, Isabela, the equipment used by the team, and each of the projects’ initial findings.
Overall, the team collected 10 species of fruit bats and 8 species of insectivorous bats. Among the species, Ptenochirus jagori (mangrove forest), Cynopterus brachyotis (lowland forest), and Eonycteris robusta (ultramafic forest) are the individual species with the highest percent recapture in March to May 2017.
As part of the monitoring, the research team showed the laboratories under projects 3 and 4 where various samples of seeds, leaves, and fruit bats’ feces, and the equipment are stored. The team also explained the protocols used by the team in data gathering.
The research team is still gathering data and processing different samples from fruit bats to ensure that all initiatives and strategies to protect the species and their habitats are science-based, appropriate, and realistic.