I guess I was lucky to have visited the Philippine Eagle Center some 19 years ago in 1990. Back then, we were high school students doing the usual field trip to the city. It appears to me that the Philippine Eagle Center was a favourite attraction for students doing field trips in Davao. It’s still true this time around as it was when we were in high school.
From what I can remember back then, the scientists at the Philippine Eagle Foundation were still experimenting with techniques for artificially reproducing an eagle from parent eagles in captivity. The daunting task results from the fact that a mature female eagle can only lay a single egg in a year. That is, if she’s lucky enough to have found a male eagle in the wild who is equally, madly in love with her. Having a hard time reproducing its kind coupled with the destruction of their natural habitat caused the Philippine Eagle to become endangered as a species. For someone with a curious brain of a child, that could lead to a lot research work in the library, especially during the time when Internet was as strange as the UFO.
Long story short… Finally in 1992, the first Philippine Eagle conceived by artificial method successfully saw light. The baby was named Pag-asa, a Filipino word for hope. The success of Pag-asa has inspired the scientists to perform a series of successful experiments along that line.
The Second Coming
I was finally back to the Philippine Eagle Center last December 2008. (You might say this article is a little late. Better late than never, as they say.) It’s funny how a lot of things have changed while a lot also remain the same.
The old wooden house (visitors’ lounge) where we had a video film of the Philippine Eagle was not there any longer.
The lonely crocodile is still lonely in his cage surrounded by seemingly centuries-old trees. I’m not sure if I am older than the croc, but I believe both of us cannot be trusted. Has grandma ever told you not to trust anyone above 30? I maybe in my early 30’s and the croc… I don’t know. But a croc is always a croc regardless of the age. You just don’t wait for grandma’s advice to not touch its sensitive skin.
There are monkeys, eagles from other countries plus a host of other Philippine Eagles raised in captivity… But, hey, don’t you think they should be freed in the wild? Hmmm… I guess, they are there for a reason other than just for you and me to view.
The Third Coming?
I really missed the place. I don’t know when I am going back again nor do I know what to expect in my Third Coming. But for those who haven’t been to the site yet, I would personally invite you to come and visit the place, which is located in Malagos, Calinan, Davao City.
Here some of the recent photos taken during my last trip to the Philippine Eagle Center:
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This article is written by Carlos Velasco. He is responsible for running this website and most of its contents. Carlos runs a web development company in Davao.