| Abstract: |
Arakan is composed of 28 municipalities populated by ethno-linguistic groups, predominantly of the Manobo-Kulamanon and Manobo-Tinananon tribes. The Manobo tribes are considered the original settlers. Total land area is 69 432.79 ha. Classified
agricultural land comprises about 14%, however, about 24% is used for crops,
while forest is only 4%.
After commercial logging (1960s-1980s) and agriculture encroaching the logged-over areas, only isolated fragments of forest cover remain in the mountain ranges of Sinaka, Mahuson and Kabalantiian-Binoongan-Kulaman (KABIKU), which are home to important wildlife species such as the IUCN
“critically endangered” Philippine eagle and the “vulnerable” Philippine hawk eagle Spizaetus philippensis.
Though relatively small, Sinaka is regarded as one of the world’s important bird areas because of the relatively high proportion of unique and threatened species it contains. Mahuson has also a unique mammalian population,
exemplified by a new species of fruit bat, the Philippine large-headed fruit bat. Since at least 1992, two wild pairs of Philippine eagles have been breeding on mounts Sinaka and in Mahuson. In 1993, the Philippine eagle “Kahayag” was retrieved from an old nest tree at the KABIKU forest. |
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