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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

Blue Paradise Flycatcher

Blue Paradise Flycatcher Terpsiphone cyanescens photo by Jojo De Peralta in Palawan
     The Blue Paradise Flycatcher Terpsiphone cyanescens (Sharpe, 1877) is a member of the family Monarchidae endemic to Palawan group of islands. This colorful bird is a lowland species inhabiting Palawan mangroves, second growths and primary forests on the foothills. It is mainly found in the understory of forest and undergrowth around 10 to 20 meters from the ground. It is rarely seen on top of tall trees. This species has shown an ability to endure habitat modification and is often seen in many disturbed habitats and tree plantations.

Blue Paradise Flycatcher Terpsiphone cyanescens photo by Jojo De Peralta in Palawan
Female Blue Paradise Flycatcher
     The males, measuring about 216 millimeters, are more colorful and larger than females. Adult males are mostly grayish blue except for the flight feathers and the underside of the tail, which are black. The females differ from being a bit smaller and having grey-brown back, rump and tail. The wings are rufous brown and the breast is pale blue-gray grading to white belly. The call is a loud rattling staccato, the trill usually last for about 4 seconds and repeated several times for minute.

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Nepenthes philippinensis

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