WILD IN THE CITY

EPISODE 31             MAY  12, 2011

GUEST: ANNA MARIA GONZALES

             PRESIDENT OF THE WILD BIRD CLUB OF THE PHILIPPINES  (WBCP)

Posted by Khrysta Imperial Rara

“THERE ARE NO WILD ANIMALS UNTIL MAN MAKES THEM SO.”   Mark Twain

I cannot imagine a world without animals. Whether they’re companion dogs and cats, or inhabitants of the seas and forests, the presence of animals adds a touch of magic to an otherwise humdrum world. We live in a highly competitive and stressful world where work seems to be the main preoccupation for most people. But seeing a black and yellow butterfly flutter around the garden or a pied fantail tease a dog into play makes me pause from whatever I’m doing and watch in utter fascination.  A few seconds of enchantment make me forget the hassles of work and allow the mind to start afresh.

Anna Maria Gonzales, architect and urban developing expert, explained that animals have existed for millions of years while man as homo sapiens has inhabited the Earth for only 200,000 years. So it is man who has encroached into the land of the animals, if we are to view evolution from that perspective. Then he built farms and cities, subdivisions and resorts. In doing so, he appropriated lands otherwise occupied by the animals, called himself “civilized” and called them “wild”.

So now we have “urban wildlife”, a term I consider to be an oxymoron. They are the frogs, geckos, lizards, birds, snakes, and other “untamed” animals that have made their homes in the urban setting. Why did they choose to live in our subdivisions or villages? Well, as Anna explained, they were already there before our subdivisions, villages and cities were built. Perhaps “displaced populations” is a more apt term. They, too, have a survival instinct so they go – or stay – where there is food, water, shelter and a place to breed – or privacy.  So many of these urban wildlife species make their homes in places where they can be hidden from man’s view, places where there is thick vegetation and abandoned structures, like parks, cemeteries, empty structures, abandoned cars, tall trees, rusty, neglected pipes, etc…  

“Humans are king” and “Technology will take care of everything” seem to be the motto of urban development from the day man first built settlements until now, Anna says.  Forest trees are razed to the ground to make way for subdivisions where houses are equipped with air conditioning units to make up for the cool air that seems to have disappeared with the trees. We live in comfort while we destroy the environment.

Many of these urban wildlife species are beneficial to man and environment.  Malotz recalled the bats that roosted in her mom’s place. While they are often hunted for their meat,  Anna pointed out that bats are an indicator species  - their presence indicates a healthy environment while their absence from a place where they should normally roost indicates an unhealthy environment. Plus everyone knows that fruit bats play a key role in an ecosystem – that of propagating the seeds of fruit trees.             

 As such, they are no longer just indicator species. They become keystone species.

Though we may not be aware of it, the animals in our midst have a vital role to fulfill in our “urban ecosystem”. Frogs eradicate mosquitoes and other insects, birds are both predator and prey and are also an indicator species. Animals, as Anna said, give us a sense of connectedness with the rest of life. They can help restore our lost connection to the natural world. They are also proof of a higher consciousness at work. And, as I said earlier, animals  enthrall us and make us laugh with their antics and unusual ways.

DEALING WITH URBAN WILDLIFE

So what do we do with the wild animals in our midst? Compromise would be best, I guess. Be compassionate and know that this planet is not ours alone. We share the Earth with a myriad other species. We can build more cities but let’s take them into consideration too.

 Wildlife corridors or animal travel corridors can help the animals cross under a road and meet up with friends and family on the other side of a busy street, for instance.  And perhaps a little “planned neglect” can help too – why not allow shrubs and some weeds to grow in our empty lots so grass birds and other species can feed and make their home there. It won’t hurt you if the land is not occupied or being used anyway.

Life in the Cave Ecosystem

Topic: Cave Ecosystems
by MALOTZ QUODALA


April 14, 2011 Episode 28

Guests: Anson Tagtag, Ecosystems Management Specialist (Wildlife Conservation)

             Ofelia Espayos, Ecosystems Management Specialist (Cave Management Conservation)

 Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau (PAWB) of the Dept of Environment and Natural Resources

In preparation for our April 14 episode on caves, I asked my friend Ichie  – who's been to at least three caves in the Philippines – how she felt about these adventurous journeys. “Being in the Sumaguing cave (in Sagada),” she said, “gives you the feeling you’re in another world.  There were layers upon layers of very clean pools of water 1,500 meters below ground and the calcium formations, and the stalagmites and stalactites were just awesome...I felt this conscious acknowledgment that I was just passing through a wondrous habitat that rightfully belonged to hundreds of bats that I saw hanging upside down.  I knew I had no reason to complain about chancing upon some heaps of bat dung along the way.” 

At the Callao cave (in Cagayan), Ichie recognized being a part of an ancient civilization.  And then, there's the magnificence of the St. Paul's subterranean river cruise (in Palawan) which, according to her, made her see that protecting this national heritage is an absolute imperative.  In all these experiences, she said, she knew she was in the midst of the incalculable  wealth that God has given to the Filipino.

The images conjured by this sharing came alive on radio when Khrysta and I discussed caves with DENR-Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau officials Anson and Ofel who kindly came to the dzUP studio for this episode.  They confirmed the immense biodiversity found in more than 1,500 known caves in our country, “and counting,” they said. 

The Role of Government

Their agency plays a key role in the implementation of RA 9062 -- the 2001 law that seeks to conserve, protect and manage caves and cave resources as part of our country's wealth.  It was along this line that DENR-PAWB recently sponsored a week-long conference in Nueva Vizcaya  for a group consisting of reps from the Tourism Department, the National Historical Institute, the National Museum, and select LGUs -- to finetune together their over-all mission, plans and their respective roles as implementors of the cave law.

Our guests confirmed that caves form part of the natural resources that must  be protected and managed well, because – apart from the sheer beauty of their natural water and mineral formations  – they are loaded with  irreplaceable archeological and ecological value such asfossils and other paleontological and  geological deposits, artifacts that have historical, cultural and sociological import to us  Filipinos, and overwhelmingly bio-diverse naturally occurring live plants and animals.

As cave protectors and cave law implementors, it is the above-mentioned agencies that bear the burden and pride of enforcement, of ensuring that visitors and sightseers behave in ways that will preserve cave resources.  And that is why Anson and Ofel point out, there are caves that today are still not open to the public.,.  More specifically, it is the job of local governments to adopt whatever measures and preparatory steps are necessary in order that caves located within their jurisdiction will be visitor-ready. This requisite state of preparedness includes the capability to arrest and seriously prosecute cave violators, such as vandals.

But vandalism by uncaring tourists is not even the worst affront to our caves, we found out.  As we all know, the awe-inspiring stalagmites and stalactites found inside caves take hundreds of years to form.  Yet, our guests Anson and Ofel told us, there have been several horror stories of “enterprising” people – criminals, actually -- who felt entitled to make money out of these precious cave resources by actually cutting off stalagmites and stalactites for export.  “For use as what?” we asked.  Anson and Ofel said these precious natural resources eventually find their way overseas as aquarium and manicured garden decorations!

The Beat of Life in Caves

Anson and Ofel then went on to give us a sneak peek at the life that beats inside these caves.  They spoke of fishes, reptiles, mollusks and other smaller invertebrates - and of course the bats.   Philippine bats feed on insects or fruits, they assure us; the bloodsucking kind, or vampire bats, thrive mostly in the Southern and I certain parts of the North American continents only … not hereabouts (thankfully). 

The Philippines is said to have at least 56 species of bats, the smallest and the largest of bats in the planet among them. The natural function of bats is to disperse seeds, to guarantee the constant pollination of fruit-bearing trees and plants.  As well, they feed on insects, then produce droppings, called guaño, that constitutes one of the best natural fertilizers available to man.

Ofel and Anson also informed that there is no such thing as overpopulation of bats.  They warn, in fact, that the killing of bats is an offense that is punishable by imprisonment and payment of a huge fine.  Woe to those who hunt bats and eat them as a delicacy.  That apart, there is need for a little more education to dispel lingering myths and superstitions about our bats. They will continue to be misunderstood and endangered unless we make them familiar.

The health of our caves also impact greatly on ecology, and vice versa.   Each cave comprises the unique and special habitat of and for the plants and animals that depend on it.  On the other hand, the vegetation over and around  a cave provides it the hydration that makes its life and the lives in it possible.  Therefore there is nothing worse than cutting trees around a cave, because that will certainly dry it up and spell its death as a habitat.

As I waited for my friend to pick me up after the program, I got to talking with the guard assigned at the ground floor of the Media Center where dzUP is housed.  Mr. Maumen Kuli, who was listening to our program, told me of the way he and his folks back home in Maguindanao know of the wonders that are their beautiful caves.  He also shared his belief that their caves are “enchanted” in that they, who revere and protect their caves, have in turn been protected by the caves from “enemies.”  He was, he said, a part of a rebel group when he was a lad.  Their “enemies” who, according to him, had no respect for the caves, either died or got lost inside these caves.

Kwentuhang Pets Atbp DZUP 1602

This is the first radio program in the country that focuses on animals. Host Khrysta Imperial Rara is a print, broadcast and online journalist, animal protection advocate and faculty member of the Dept. of Journalism in the University of the Philippines, Diliman. 


Co-host Malotz Quodala is a legal researcher, researcher of History as well as a media and image consultant.


Executive Producer Mel Estonilo is a veteran radio journalist. DZUP is managed by the Dept of Broadcast Communication at the College of Mass Communication in the University of the Philippines, Diliman. It is a member of the KBP .


The program, which airs every Thursday at 1-2pm, can be accessed through live streaming at www.dzup.org.

Kwentuhang Pets Atbp is the first animal rights and welfare program in the Philippines. Its maiden broadcast was on Oct. 7, 2010. The program seeks to make people, specially Filipinos, aware that attitudes toward animals are changing all over the world. Animals are viewed more now as friends or part of the family and not just mere property or possessions. The program aims to enlighten people on changing trends around the world in order to stop cruelty toward animals. It also explores the world of companion animals, farm animals, laboratory animals and those exploited in the entertainment industry as well as wildlife from the point of view of experts and advocates.

Host Khrysta Imperial Rara (right) and co-host Malotz Quodala (left)
 with guest Dr. Mundita Lim, Director of DENR's Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau