DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 3 Oct) – A team from the Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF) sighted the female Philippine eagle “Carlito” in the forests of MacArthur town in Leyte, showing behaviors that suggest the raptor is feeding well and thriving in her new natural habitat three months after her release into the wild.
Based on an information published by PEF on Wednesday, the two-week expedition to locate “Carlito” commenced last Sept. 24, aimed at assessing her status and getting decent photos and videos of her in the wild as reference for assessment.
Conservationists spotted the elusive eagle around 8:30 a.m. of Sept. 29, or five days after the intensive search began, while scanning the tree crown and forest canopy from one of the observation platforms set up to aid in the search.
The team spotted the eagle flying above the riparian forest, less than a kilometer from the platform.
This was the first time the raptor had been “observed closely and photographed” in the wild for almost an hour since she was released last June 28.
“The technicians who first saw the bird flying shouted ‘Eagle!’ and everyone focused their binoculars to the direction of the bird. Upon closer inspection using our field telescope, the team confirmed that it was indeed ‘Carlito’ – thanks to the GPS (global positioning system) transmitter that was clearly seen strapped on her back,” the PEF said.
It said that the team had difficulty locating the “very shy and secretive” raptor, and finding her “felt like searching for a needle in a haystack” as she was not flying visibly despite the clear skies.
“Carlito” and “Uswag” were the first Philippines eagles released in Leyte last June 28 as part of the foundation’s Philippine Eagle Reintroduction Program, aimed at restoring the eagle population in the province.
The eagle population of Leyte was believed to have been wiped out when Typhoon “Yolanda” struck the country late in 2013.
Rescued from Mindanao, both birds symbolized hope for restoring the Philippine eagle population on Leyte Island, according to PEF.
A month after release, “Uswag” died from drowning after crashing into the sea. Its carcass was found floating among debris of seagrass and algae off Camotes Islands in Cebu last July.
The PEF suspected that “a series of thermal updrafts brought ‘Uswag’ closer to the shore line, and the gradual loss of these columns of hot air towards the sea and the inability of Philippine eagles to sustain power, flapping flights in the absence of thermal updrafts resulted to the bird crashing at sea.”
According to PEF, “Carlito” has established its territory within the forests of McArthur municipality within the deep gorges and ravines of a river locally called “Valerie.”
“Carlito showed behaviors which suggest that she was feeding well and healthy in the wild forests of Leyte,” it said.
The team observed the bird engaging in general maintenance behaviors such as preening or grooming her feathers; rousing or raising her feathers away from her body, shaking her body vigorously and then re-arranging its feathers; sunbathing or intentionally staying under the sun; and defecating or pooping.
“Pooping suggests that she just had a meal. She also raised her crest or head feathers while looking intently at some portions of the forests. All of these are clear signs that she had been hunting successfully over the past three months,” PEF said. (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)
