THE FIRST Autumn Migration Raptor Watch Festival will be held on Oct. 5 in the town of Glan, Sarangani, one of the stopover sites of birds making the journey from Taiwan and Japan towards Indonesia. The migratory birds have been observed in the last couple of years to take a layover in Rio del Pilar, according to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Region 12 (DENR-12). Last year, the Sarangani provincial government, through the Environmental Conservation and Protection Center, recorded 132,945 birds composed of Chinese Sparrowhawk (96%), Grey-faced Buzzard (3%), Peregrine Falcon and Western Osprey (1%). The monitoring and study continues this year, said DENR-12, “to generate scientific data that will help authorities understand certain aspects of raptor biology, migration behaviors and to help identify critical sites for conservation.” This year’s monitoring season includes a reforestation initiative of one of the roosting sites, Mt. Taltak, in partnership with Raptorwatch Network Philippines and the Japanese Society for the Preservation of Birds. The Raptor Watch Festival aims to highlight the importance of maintaining the environmental health of the area to keep the raptors coming

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