BALANGA CITY – A committee led by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to do the annual Asian Water Bird Census reported on Sunday the presence of 25,935 migratory birds for a day alone compared to last year’s 14,899.
DENR forester Daniel Miguel, chair of the committee, announced an increase of 11,036 birds over the census made on January 28, 2012.
With the DENR undertaking the census were representatives of the Wild Bird Club of the Philippines, the local government unit and some students of a local university.
“Ibig sabihin, maraming pagkain ang mga ibon sa City of Balanga kaya dumadayo sila dito,” explained Miguel.
Gina Mapua, WBCP vice-president, congratulated Balanga for the large increase in the number of migratory birds. “The weather is good as it is very good for the birds to stay in Balanga,” she said.
She noted a big number of little, intermediate and large egrets, large flock of black-winged stilts and whiskered terns.
“Maraming ibon, ibig sabihin maraming pagkain. It is amazing there are many species na napupuno ang langit kapag sabay-sabay silang lumiliad,” said Fr. Auks Enjaynes, OP, a member of WBCP from Cebu.
The priest said he will recommend Balanga to bird watchers.
The count started as the sun began to break the dawn before 6 in the morning and lasted until before 9 of the same morning.
Four groups were created to undertake the census each in the seaside villages of Tortugas, Lote/Itaas, ibaba and Sibacan/Tuyo; all in Balanga City. They made the evaluation separately and reported the result to DENR.
Six great crested terns were sighted for only the third time in the Wetland Park in Tortugas, reported WBCP.
Aside from egret, black-winged stilt, whiskered tern and the great crested tern, gray plover, shank, heron and moorhen were also seen in Balanga.
Similar water bird census were done in the Candaba Swamp in Pampanga last Sunday and in Pantabangan Dam and Paitan Lake in Nueva Ecija last week. Next to be counted are migratory birds in Casiguran, Aurora and Sasmuan, Pampanga.
