PAALAM PAG-ASA. After having become an icon of the protection of the Philippine eagle for nearly three decades, Pagasa succumbed to infections related to trichomoniasis and aspergillosis on January 6th. (PEF photo)
The country lost its icon for the conservation of the Filipino eagle following the death of Pagasa, the first captive-bred and hatched Filipino eagle. This was announced by the Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF) on Friday, January 8th, 2021 in a press release.
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« Pagasa succumbed to infections related to trichomoniasis and aspergillosis. Both diseases are fatal to birds of prey. Although the treatment was administered over a week ago, it continued to deteriorate, » said part of the foundation’s statement. He died at 8:03 p.m. from January 6th. Pagasa, who would have turned 29 on January 15th, is a product of 14 years of research. His birth in 1992 heralded hope for the endangered species and the entire protection mission. It was bred and hatched in captivity using cooperative artificial insemination (CAI) techniques. CIA is a breeding process in which sperm is collected from male eagles and implanted. Pag-asa produced its first offspring on February 9, 2013, named Mabuhay. He was also a sperm donor for female eagles, and his sperm has been used. Recently, Pagasa has withdrawn from the breeding program due to aging. « Although his death will not affect our breeding program since he was already retired, he played an important role. He was a benchmark and helped improve our data set for determining the productivity of captive eagles, » said PEF Managing Director Dennis Joseph I. Salvador in an online interview. “Even after retiring from breeding, Pag-asa lived his life as an icon of hops for Filipinos, young and old, and was a constant inspiration to the people who worked tirelessly worked to save our national bird from extinction, « PEF continued. Salvador asked what their plans for Pagasa remains were and said the foundation was open to the taxidermy idea. « We’ll probably go this route so that it continues to raise awareness even after it’s gone, » he said. Meanwhile, Salvador said he was healthy but not yet matured for production. « Mabuhay is going to be eight this February. You won’t be productive until 10, » he said. The Philippine eagle was declared the country’s national bird by former President Fidel Ramos in 1995, replacing the Maya. The world’s largest bird of prey was classified as an endangered species in 1965 and later classified as « classified ». Critically Endangered ”by the International Union for the Protection of Nature. In order for the Filipino eagle not to be listed in the Critically Endangered category, at least 1,000 pairs should fly free in the wild and / or live safely in captivity. Only an estimated 400 pairs are currently documented, hence the status of the species. There are currently a total of 33 eagles in the Foundation’s care.
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