12:42 PM
May 03, 2019
BACOLOD
CITY — Wildlife conservationists in Negros Occidental hailed the recent birth
of a critically endangered Walden’s Hornbill (Rhabdotorrhinus waldeni), locally
known as Talarak, at the Negros Forest Park, South Road Capitol Road in this
city.
The
Walden’s Hornbill chick has been named “Valentin” because it was first heard
making a sound from within a tree where it was sealed with its mother on
Valentine’s Day, said Paul Lizares, vice president of Talarak Foundation Inc.
(TFI), which manages Negros Forest Park, formerly known as the Negros Forest
and Ecological Foundation Inc. Biodiversity Conservation Center.
Valentin’s
parents, Ligaya and Kalantiaw, were born in the wild, he added.
When the
female Walden’s Hornbill lays her eggs, she is sealed in the trunk of a tree
for about 105 days to incubate the eggs and later take off the chicks. She can
only leave when her chicks are ready to fledge.
In the
meantime, she relies on the male Walden’s Hornbill to bring her food every
single day. If the male is poached or hunted, the whole family dies.
The
Walden’s Hornbill, also known as the Visayan Wrinkled Hornbill, Rufous-headed
Hornbill or the Writhed-Billed Hornbill, is now near extinct.
“They are
functionally extinct in Negros, and there have only been a few sightings and
calls heard, but no photographic proof, so far,” said Fernando Gutierrez, TFI
president.
The
Walden’s Hornbill was used to be seen in the forests of Negros and Panay
islands.
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