DENR's intervention to save tarsiers sought

TAGBILARAN CITY ,Philippines — Governor Edgar Chatto has asked the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to intervene in the conservation of the Philippine tarsiers in Bohol.

Chatto requested Environment Secretary Ramon Jesus Paje to sign a memorandum of agreement, on behalf of DENR, with the Philippine Tarsier Foundation Inc. for this purpose.

In a letter to the secretary, Chatto sought DENR's intervention to "stop the caging and display of tarsiers in different places of Bohol as both local and foreign environmentalists have expressed outrage of such brazen display of tarsiers who are nocturnal animals being bothered during the day."

The governor found it necessary for the PTFI and the DENR to co-manage the 167-hectare sanctuary in the town of Corella to serve as the main habitat for tarsiers under the Tarsier Conservation Program.

The DENR and PTFI had co-managed the 167-hectare area in Corella in the past and it can proceed this time to set some parameters to protect the tarsiers from exploitation, he said.

"The DENR and PTFI have the expertise and scientific data on the Philippine Tarsier and an existing Tarsier Sanctuary Center adjacent to the 167-hectare area," said the governor.

Chatto also pointed out that, as Bohol's living jewel and tourism icon, the tarsiers never belong in cages.

"The display of tarsiers in cages creates traumatic stress which can lead to death. It is very clear in the directive and the provincial ordinance, as supported by scientific researchers, that this little primate cannot survive long in cages and should be placed in a natural habitat," he said.

Keeping the tarsiers in cages for commercial purposes outside their natural habitat poses a great threat to their existence and eventually creates bad impression for Bohol and the Philippines as an eco-tourism destination, said Chatto.

The governor also cited that through the efforts of PTFI, former President Fidel Ramos, during his stint, signed Proclamation 1030 declaring the Philippine tarsier as a specially protected species.

The PTFI also facilitated the visit of Prince Charles and his adoption of the tarsier, which introduced the Philippine tarsier to the world.

From then on, the National Geographic, the Discovery Channel, the NHK and other environment-oriented TV productions got interested on the Philippines tarsier and even came up with documentaries about the animal's existence in Bohol.