TACLOBAN CITY – The Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF) lauded forest guards and local partners for helping newly released eagles survive in the mountains of Leyte province, as indicated in a recent successful hunt.
PEF director of operations Jayson Ibañez said in a phone interview Tuesday that one of the forest guards from upland Kagbana village in Burauen town, Leyte, took a photograph on July 18 of Kalatungan I, a recently released male Philippine eagle, successfully hunting an Asian Palm Civet.
“With fewer than 400 pairs left, every successful hunt is a win for the species. Big thanks to our forest guardians and local partners helping eagles like Kalatungan I soar,” Ibañez said.
Three-year-old Kalatungan I was released on May 8, along with his mate, an eight-year-old female named Lyra Sinabadan.
They are the second pair of national birds to be released in the province. The first pair was reintroduced in Leyte’s mountains in June 2024.
Both birds were rescued in Bukidnon and arrived in the mountains of Burauen on March 21. They are part of a five-year initiative to reintroduce the raptor in Leyte.
This milestone marks the successful integration of Kalatungan I into the wild. It reflects the role he now plays as an apex predator of the complex food web of the Anonang-lobi forest ecosystem, according to the official.
The Anonang-Lobi Mountain Range, located in the central part of Leyte Island, is a 60,000-hectare Key Biodiversity Area.
The PEF calls for donations to support the forest guards and their vital work in monitoring and protecting eagles and their habitats.
The Philippine eagle is one of the rarest eagles in the world and one of the largest and most powerful among forest raptors. It is listed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, with only an estimated 400 pairs remaining in the wild.
