DENR: Aggressive conservation efforts needed for 270 'new discoveries'

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources is calling for intensified efforts in conserving “new discoveries”—270 wildlife species that have been discovered in the country within the last 25 years, Environment Secretary Ramon Paje said Wednesday. “These endemic species are our living jewels. They are irreplaceable and unique components of our awesome environmental heritage,” Paje said at the launch of the program  “270 Plus @25, Amazing Philippine Wildlife” at the department's main office in Quezon City. “The prospects for their discovery have simply increased because our forest cover has shrunk, making the species more concentrated in more compact areas while we await the growth of trees in our reforestation efforts,” he added. A shrinking habitat is just one of the threats to these species. Others include illegal trading, the introduction of invasive species, pollution and climate change. “Saving a species is more than a simple matter of putting it in a cage or pot. It requires us to protect or rebuild its habitat, as well as the balance it keeps in relation to other species lower and higher in the food chain or web of life,” said Paje. The Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau (PAWB) has included in its list of new discoveries 29 new species of rodents found across the country; three species of bats from Mindoro and Abra; four bird species from Cagayan, Cebu and Camiguin; and 44 reptile and 29 amphibian species from Luzon, Negros-Panay, Greater Mindanao and Sulu. More than 160 plant species have also been discovered, including varieties of the world’s largest flower, Rafflesia. The Philippines ranks fifth in the world in terms of number of plant species and hosts about five per cent of the world’s flora. Considered a global conservation hotspot requiring the highest priority in conservation, the Philippines has been named one of the world’s 17 megadiverse countries, with one of the highest rates of discovery following the discovery of 16 new mammal species in the past 10 years. — BM, GMA News