29 Philippine Fish Species Now Endangered

This morning, while commuting my way to work, I passed by the infamous Butuanon Bridge of Mandaue City. I’m not sure but I think they call the river below it Butuanon River too. I know that the river is connected to Cebu’s prized watersheds. Unfortunately, the river is exactly like what Manny Villar is portraying in his jingles — polluted, dark and lifeless. I thought, would it help if at least one company pledges to save the river and the lives in it? Glenn Soco may have started his campaign, but the sure way to save the river and every other devastated river in the country is to start with ourselves, in the context of the community.

Recently, a red alert status has been raised to 29 Philippine-found fish species including the famous dilis. Oh yes, dilis is in the red list! A book entitled “Red List: Status of Marine Endemic Teleosts (Bony Fishes) of the Philippines” has just been released to let the Filipinos know what we are going to lose if we don’t take action. The 29 bony fish species unique to our country’s waters, along with the threats to their survival, are listed in such book. Some of us may not mind how disturbing this topic might be, but these 29 fish species can be considered significant in terms of national pride. We are not required to identify these species by their scientific names. We, as ordinary people, just need to know what causes their near extinction and how we can save them.

Biologists Dr. Kent Carpenter, Moonyeen Nida Alava, Mike Joshua Palomar, Dr. Beth Polidoro and environmental lawyer Rodolfo Ferdinand Quicho Jr. Atty. Quicho, authors of the the book “Red List” said, “The world has changed and is changing so much due to climate change. Our biodiversity is among our most important assets to ensure our resilience amidst these changes. We must start with our endemics because they are the most significant indicators of our environmental health, thus, our capacity to adapt to climate change.” (Browse the book on the embed below)

Red List Status of Marine Endemic Teleosts (Bony Fishes) of the Philippines

The book brings us information on the level of threat to survival of the 29 fish species examined. One of the findings suggest that these fishes dwelling in our shallow waters are already vulnerable to or if not already on the verge of extinction. Data are limited and we may not be sure on whether theses species still exist today or not. We know that the root cause is our mismanagement of wastes that lead to pollution. An unbreakable chain starts from there and branches to global warming and life extinction — all in an ecological backlash. As a concerned citizen, you know what to do.

Start off by reading the aforementioned “Red List” book which was launched by First Philippine Conservation Inc. (FPCI) and Global Marine Species Assessment for the Coral Triangle (GMSA-CT), together with GTZ, Adaptation to Climate Change & Conservation of the Biodiversity in the Philippines, IUCN, Conservation International, First Gen and other supporters. The book is helpful in social awareness linked to life science in general. To get a free copy, call Monica Tan of FPCI at 638-7670 or 449-6085.

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About Bryan Karl

I am a software developer, a photography-enthusiast and a travel junkie.

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