Villagers in the North Cotabato town of Aleosan on
Tuesday released back into the wild two tarsiers (Tarsius Syrictha), one of the
world’s smallest primates.
Local environment officials said the latest example of a
citizen-led rescue of wildlife animals, which took place in Sitio Simsiman of
Barangay Tomado in Aleosan, showed that communities are becoming aware of the
importance of biodiversity.
“Two tarsiers, a mother, and an infant were rescued
Sunday and released on Tuesday,” Community Environment and Natural Resources
Officer Badjury Mustapha said in an interview on Wednesday.
Mustapha said forester Nor Hassan Batugan was immediately
sent to the village to check and verify the tarsiers found by Reynaldo Puerto
who posted the endangered species on social media.
In his report, Batugan said the tarsiers were released
back into the wild by the residents and local officials of Aleosan after they
were found to be in good health.
He described the mother tarsier as 10-cm. long and has a
22-cm. tail, while the infant was 8-cm. tall and had a 12-cm. tail.
Mustapha said Aleosan officials told him that the local
government was planning to declare the town as a wildlife sanctuary through a
resolution to be passed once the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic
is over.
Since January, five tarsiers have been found, rescued,
and later released back into their natural habitat in North Cotabato. (Content reposted from Philippine News Agency)
IN PHOTO. A
mother (left) and infant tandem of tarsiers, one of the world's smallest
primates, are rescued and later released back into the wild by residents of
Aleosan, North Cotabato on Tuesday (May 5, 2020). Residents and village
officials, in coordination with the provincial environment office, are pushing
for Aleosan to be declared a protected habitat for tarsiers. (Photos courtesy
of DENR-12)
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