A South Philippine hawk-eagle, considered as second most threatened raptor in the country, was spotted at the Allah Valley Protected Landscape (AVPL) in South Cotabato.

According to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-SOCCSKSARGEN (DENR-12), the hawk eagle is second to the Philippine eagle as most threatened raptor in the Philippines. It is endemic to the country.

Based on the International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN), hawk eagles face a population decline as around 600 to 800 mature hawk eagles remain in the wild, especially across the islands of Mindanao, Basilan, Samar, Leyte, Negros, and Bohol.

“It is also classified as endangered on both the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Updated List of Threatened Philippine Fauna (DAO 2019-09),” DENR-12 said.

DENR-12 believes that the sighting of the hawk eagle during the recent biodiversity monitoring in AVPL highlights the need for improved protection measures.

“The recent documentation of this rare raptor underscores the need to continue and enhance current protection measures for the remaining forests it inhabits, continue surveying and monitoring its population, and include it as a priority species in their regular biodiversity assessments and surveys,” DENR-12 said.

“The species primarily inhabits forests, including primary, selectively logged, and disturbed areas, and occasionally ventures into open spaces,” DENR-12 added.