Skip to main content

Latest Post

Palawan Sun Skink

    Leaves, twigs, and barks that have fallen to the ground make up leaf litter, and it's home to a wide variety of plants and animals. Most of the tiny animals found in the leaf litter are invertebrates. They are important food source for toads, skinks, and other small amphibians and reptiles that rely on the shelter and moisture provided by the leaf litter. One of the many creatures living in the leaf litter habitats of Palawan is the Palawan Sun Skink ( Eutropis sahulinghangganan ), a newly described species of skink endemic to Palawan. The name Eutropis sahulinghangganan derives from the Tagalog "sa huling" or "sa huli ng" (meaning in the last), and "hangganan" (meaning frontier). Palawan Sun Skink     The Palawan Sun Skink inhabits thick coastal forests, mangroves, as well as secondary forests and primary forests up in the mountains. I have seen this skink near the peak of Mount Beaufort at elevations of around 1000 masl, but the population of thi

Palawan Litter Frog – An amphibian struggling to exist

Leptobrachium tagbanorum photo by Jojo De Peralta
     The Palawan Litter Frog is one of the many species deeply affected by the changing environment in Palawan. You would be surprised to know how small the percentage of locals, even mountaineers or hikers who have seen or are familiar with this species nowadays. It was not like that in the old days. This species is used to be one of the most common amphibians that can be seen in our forest floor near clear flowing streams and rivers. It used to be abundant around Estrella Falls, Tagbanato, upper Taritien and Malatagao River. These places are close to where I grew up, and are places I enjoyed hiking in my early teens.

Leptobrachium tagbanorum photo by Jojo De Peralta
Palawan Litter Frog in Sultan Range.
     The major threat to this species is deforestation mainly due to small and large-scale agriculture and urban development. Around where I live, deforestation within this species range is primarily due to agriculture. Over the years, a lot of primary forests were cleared to support the growing population of our town and Narra became known as the rice granary of Palawan. Our town boasted that the rice produced here every cropping can feed a large percentage of population in the whole province. All seem to be improving and doing well around here, except for the small, forgotten wild creature named after the Tagbanua Tribe. A diminishing endemic amphibian unheard to many residents of Palawan, but known to science as the Leptobrachium tagbanorum Brown, Siler, Diesmos & Alcala, 2010.

Leptobrachium tagbanorum photo by Jojo De Peralta
Palawan Litter Frog in Kalakwasan area.
     The Palawan Litter Frog is a species of frog in the family Megophryidae. This species is commonly seen on leaf litter mostly along slow-flowing mountain stream in montane and lowland tropical forest. It can also be seen on the edge of fast-flowing rivers on foothills at night and can be found hiding in dense vegetation with tangles of roots, vines and crawling bamboos during the day. It has a large head and the voice or calls are loud. The body color usually varies from dark brown, yellowish brown to brownish gray; the eyes are large and black.

Leptobrachium tagbanorum habitat photo by Jojo De Peralta
Palawan Litter Frog habitat in Narra.
     Some environmentalists are blaming a guy named Monsanto and other agrochemical companies for this species declining numbers, but we believe that the real culprit is the destruction of its habitat. This species always requires forest cover. It is not seen to inhabit grasslands away from wooded areas and unlike some of Palawan species that have tolerance to habitat modification, this species does not inhabit heavy populated urban areas. It will cease to exist the moment its habitat is deforested. It was gone long before the farmers can plant crops, use insecticides, and other chemicals. I'm not saying that the harmful chemicals used in farms and rice plantations are healthy for this species. It is affecting other lowland species inhabiting our natural ponds, rivers, creeks and mangroves, but these chemicals do not flow upstream to the mountains where these species have now found refuge.

Leptobrachium tagbanorum photo by Jojo De Peralta
Palawan Litter Frog in the river.
     This species is present on the slope and foothills of all major mountain ranges in Central and Southern Palawan. It also occurs at Cleopatra’s Needle and Mount Peel area. If you like to see this species without having to hike far, I recommend driving to Salakot Waterfalls in late afternoon and stay until dark. I went herping here with guests two years ago and apart from this species, we found other species of endemic amphibians around the river and the waterfalls. It is also present at Puerto Princesa Underground River National Park, but the last time I checked, they do not allow night herping in the area.

Leptobrachium tagbanorum photo by Jojo De Peralta
Palawan Litter Frog in Mt. Salakot area.
     The Palawan Litter Frog is endemic to Palawan. We should be proud to have so many interesting species confined in this island. It’s a shame that we don’t seem to know what to do with them.
Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Palawan Spitting Cobra

      The Palawan Spitting Cobra (Naja sumatrana miolepis) is a spitting cobra that can be found in Palawan. This species is a medium sized, ground dwelling venomous snake. The scales are smooth and unlike some of the most beautiful cobras in Asia, this species has no impressive hood marks. The head is elliptical and depressed, the eyes are medium in size with round pupils, the snout is rounded and the nostrils are large. Juveniles tend to be of different colour than the adult. They can grow up to around 1.5 meters, but spitting cobras over a meter in length are seldom seen and photographed in Palawan . Palawan Spitting Cobra hood mark       It can be seen resting during the day under heavy thickets of grass, stacks of woods and cavities under rocks or soil. Abandoned mice dens are favorite hideouts in grasslands, farms and rice fields. Although it usually hunts for food at night, this species can be seen moving around on the forest floor at sporadic times during the day. Locals a
Read more

Two-lined Coral Snake

     The Two-lined Coral Snake ( Calliophis bilineatus ) is a small, brightly colored venomous snake of the family Elapidae. It is endemic to Palawan and several of its smaller islands adjacent to mainland. This snake occurs on a wide range of elevation from second growth forest in sea level to mossy forests high up in the mountains where it is largely active during the day. I have been doing night spotting and photography for many years, but I have not seen one during nighttime. This snake spend most of its time burrowed underground, under stacks of woods and leaf piles or cavities under rocks. It has a unique defense behavior compared to other venomous snakes in Palawan. It usually flees when threatened, but when cornered, it will flip on its back and play dead. Other technique to fool attackers is by hiding its head while raising and flicking its red tails. The predator usually finds the colorful moving tail an irresistible target and would go for it, leaving the true
Read more

Nepenthes philippinensis

     A Pitcher plant is a carnivorous plant which have a modified prey-trapping leaves that features a deep cavity filled with digestive liquid. There are several endemic tropical pitcher plants growing in Palawan, the most common is the Nepenthes philippinensis .        This species has long, scrambling vines and are often climbers, accessing the canopy of their habitats using tendrils that stretches out and twines around any suitable support. It produces more pitchers and flowers on a single plant compared to all known species of nepenthes in Palawan. There are several color variants, but the lower pitchers are usually reddish and the upper pitchers or traps are green or yellowish.        This lowland species is widespread in Palawan and can be found thriving in soils with low nutrient availability and high concentrations of heavy metals like nickel and chromium. Like all carnivorous plants, this pitcher plant can grow in locations where the soil is too poor in mine
Read more

Schultz’s Pit Viper - A spectacular venomous snake endemic to Palawan

     I have heard it said that Palawan has more snakes in the wild than anywhere else in the country. Maybe true, but there are species of snakes commonly seen in other places that are scarce in Palawan rainforest. We have enough vipers in the wild though.  Trimeresurus schultzei Griffin 1909 commonly known as the Schultz’s Pit Viper is one of the most spectacular snakes that can be found here. This snake is endemic to Palawan and its surrounding small islands. Schultz’s Pit Viper       The Schultz’s Pit Viper is primarily arboreal species. They’re capable, but rarely navigate and hunt on the ground. They’re slow and less camouflaged on the ground and therefore more vulnerable on the forest floor. Using its prehensile tail to hold onto branches , it prefers to perch on trees where its green color acts as camouflage while waiting for prey. It is an ambush hunting snake relying on its camouflage to catch food. The heat-sensing loreal pits are used to locate warm-bl
Read more

Banded Keel-throated Pitviper

    The Banded Keel-throated Pitviper Tropidolaemus subannulatus (Gray, 1842) is said to be the most common pit viper in the Philippines. This venomous pit viper species is also native to Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei. Like the Schultz’s Pit Viper , this species is primarily arboreal and an ambush-hunting venomous snake. It is active at night, but also seen moving around during the day, especially in the rainy season. Banded Keel-throated Pitviper     The Banded Keel-throated Pitviper and the Shultz’s Pit Viper are both spectacular venomous pit viper that can be found in Palawan. They can be told apart from the shape of the head and the scales on the head. The scales of the head and chin of Banded Keel-throated Pitviper are strongly keeled, a closer look will show that the second upper labial is separated from the scale forming anterior border of facial pit. Shultz’s Pit Viper head and scales however looks smoother and the second upper labial is fused to the scale bordering the se
Read more

Palawan Mangrove Snake

    The Boiga dendrophila multicincta (Boulenger, 1896) is a large colubrid snake endemic to Palawan. It prefers humid habitats and always seen in woody areas close to bodies of water. This snake primarily occurs in lowland forests, mostly mangrove and riverine habitats, but is also found near mountain streams in the foothills up to old growth forest above 1000 masl. It is commonly seen resting on tree branches overhanging on bodies of water during the day and on the ground hunting for food at night. With its long body, this snake can move swiftly on trees and is also an adept swimmer. It is known to prey on birds and other small arboreal animals, but it seems to spend more time hunting on the ground where food is abundant. Palawan Mangrove Snake     The Palawan Mangrove Snake, also called Palawan Yellow-ringed Cat Snake is mildly venomous. But despite being considered not life-threatening to humans, locals fear this snake for its unpredictable and irritable behavior. They look
Read more