Pamana the eagle gains freedom on Independence Day

Thanks to the efforts of wildlife conservationists and corporate sponsors, a Philippine eagle named Pamana was released into the wild last week in a literal celebration of freedom.

Locals rescued Pamana as a young eaglet in 2012 in Iligan City, where she was found injured with two gunshot wounds, one each on her left breast and left wing. Experts from the Philippine Eagle Foundation in Davao City, where she was brought for treatment, believe that poachers targeted the bird for her talons, which could fetch up to $200 a pair in the black market. Other body parts of an eagle, including its head, feathers and wings, are also valued by collectors.

The eagle, christened Pamana, has since made a full recovery and was released back into the forests of Mt. Hamiguitan Range in Davao Oriental on Friday, June 12. In a briefing last Wednesday in Taguig City, PEF director Dennis Salvador said they were thankful for support from the private sector that make it possible for them to care for birds like Pamana as well as engage in other environmental sustainability efforts.

“The PEF was instituted in the late 1970s initially for wildlife research and to breed the Philippine eagle, which has become endangered due to rapid deforestation, especially in the forests of Mindanao,” he said. “The government pulled out funding in 1987 so we had to rely on private donors.”

The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the Philippine Eagle as “critically endangered,” facing severe habitat loss and an extreme fluctuating population. According to conservative estimates, there are only about 1,000 Philippine eagles left in the wild.

“For an endangered species like the Philippine eagle, every individual counts,” Salvador added. “Thus the ultimate goal of our rescue and rehabilitation is to eventually release them back in the wild where they belong. Pamana’s reintroduction to the area will hopefully contribute to increasing and improving its population once it finds its mate and breeds.”

The PEF currently has about 36 eagles in its facility in Malagos, Davao.

One of the PEF’s major partners is Globe Telecom, which has been supporting the foundation for years. The company has donated a total of P1.2 million to PEF since 2012, and has pledged an additional P500,000 in funding.

Globe subscribers can also donate towards the upkeep of Pamana and eagles like her in amounts of P100, P50, P20, 10 and P5 by sending a text with the message DONATE PAMANA to 4438, or through  G-Cash.

Indeed, for eagles like Pamana, freedom can be just a text or phone call away.

 

— BM, GMA News