Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. A wonderful account of the Philippine resources and treasures, Rose! Wild orchids grow in mountainside rain forests, especially in Mindanao. 2004). Fish habitat areas protect 28%, highly protected marine park zones cover a 12% and protected areas a further 5%. The national flower of the Philippines is the sampaguita (jasmine) – a small star-shaped white blossom with a pleasant, lingering fragrance, made into garlands worn by Filipino girls and given as a gesture of welcome to visitors. An estuarine literate person understands the interconnectedness and interdependency of estuarine systems with other earth system in both time and space, can communicate about estuaries in a meaningful way, and is able to make scientifically informed and responsible decisions regarding estuaries and coastal areas. Above 5,800 meters trees become progressively stunted and finally give way to scrub and grassy upland on the highest slopes. The total gain to the Philippines for protecting its remaining mangrove ecosystem is substantial. Information on freshwater and estuarine ecosystems of tropical regions is lacking. Experts attribute this similarity to land bridges that connect mainland Palawan with Borneo. Experts attribute this similarity to land bridges that connect mainland Palawan with Borneo. Queensland’s estuarine aquatic ecosystems vary significantly in … Mangrove ecosystems were found to be occurring in tropical and subtropical areas and are distributed horizontally in estuarine and vertically in intertidal zones due to a number of environmental and biotic factors. In the higher forests grow pines, and on the lower slopes bamboos, coconut palms and banyan trees. It only covers a small part of the earth's surface and their location are unrelated to climate. The molave group of hardwoods is also important. This means the estuary must support a wide variety of food webs. Of Queensland’s estuarine wetlands, 39% are within an area of managed protection. Recognizing this, I always take the opportunity to engage my environmental science and marine biology students in fieldwork as I teach subjects that require them to go to the field and explore the environment. The Iloilo River in the Philippines is an estuarine ecosystem where urbanization has increased throughout the years and caused deterioration in the water quality of the river. Despite the itchy bites of the sandfly (local name: niknik), marine biology students braved the waist-deep waters near the Iwahig River’s mouth. Water with a dissolved salt concentration of less than 1%. The ecosystem is composed of diverse associations of … Any content should be recategorised. Past works (e.g. Coconut trees are almost everywhere, constant that you are in the tropics. Over 10,000 species of plants have been recorded from the region and about 60% of the 10,000 plant species are grown only in the archipelago. Estuarine Ecosystems. 2010, Nigrelli and Thines 2013, Thines 2014, Li et al. It was featured in the National Geographic Online Magazine. The land also produces a bounty of delicious fruits. ( Log Out /  Among these is a species of Insulamon,  a crab endemic (or only found) to Palawan. Mangroves are medium-size and highly tolerant flora that can survive in brackish water (water which is more saline than freshwater, but not as much as seawater). Unfortunately, the natural environment is being destroyed at an alarming rate. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. Mangrove ecosystems were found to be occurring in tropical and subtropical areas and are distributed horizontally in estuarine and vertically in intertidal zones due to a number of environmental and biotic factors. An overview on Philippine estuarine oomycetes Abstract Estuarine saprotrophic oomycetes are a group of eukaryotic, fungal-like protists of the Kingdom Straminipila. Notably, coasts comprise <4% of the earth's land surface but are of disproportionate importance for their services ( Barbier et al., 2011 , Spencer and Harvey, 2012 ). This protects upland habitat as well as valuable real estate from storm and flood damage. Coconut palms are generally found below 30 meters elevation, while at 300-1000 meters dense tropical rainforest contains vines, ferns, orchids, and huge trees with buttressed trunks. This apex predator of Southeast Asian and tropical Australian estuaries eat almost anything. Mabuhay! We don’t know because no information on a crab with such appearance is available. This photo-essay on a typical estuarine ecosystem in Palawan Island, one of the places endowed with a rich biodiversity in the Philippines, aims to fulfill this gap. across and last six weeks, and those of the Cattleya genus. Unfortunately, this increasing concentration of people upsets the natural balance of estuarine ecosystems, threatens their integrity, and imposes increased pressures on vital natural resources like estuaries. Global Biogeochemical Cycles 17:1111. Field Trip to Freshwater and Estuarine Ecosystems, featured in the National Geographic Online Magazine. It lies within the Coral Triangle, the area of highest marine biodiversity on earth, and has an extensive reef system covering 25,060 km2 where a total of 464 reef-building coral species can be found, Will try again. The country is remarkable for its dwarf and pigmy species of many ecological families. Salt marsh grasses and other estuarine plants also help prevent erosion and stabilize 12. GENERAL TYPES OF ECOSYSTEM IN THE PHILIPPINES Terrestrial Ecosystem Freshwater Ecosystem Brackish/Estuarine Ecosystem Saltwater/Marine Ecosystem Special Ecosystems TERRESTRIAL ECOSYSTEM Forest types classified based on; Altitude ranging from sea level to 3,000 meters above sea level. This tag should be used on existing categories that are likely to be used by others, even though the "real" category is elsewhere. Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. Celebrated varieties include the waling-waling (vanda sanderiana orchid) of Mindanao, whose blooms measure up to 12.5 cm. Our research in the Batan Bay Estuary, Philippines, a semi-enclosed estuary under large mangrove deforestation, was conducted to determine ecosystem properties through analysis of C and nitrogen stable isotope ratios and environmental factors. 2016, Bennett et al. Dr. Patrick A. Regoniel mentored graduate and undergraduate students for more than two decades and engaged in various university and externally-funded national and international research projects as a consultant. The country is remarkable for its dwarf and pigmy species of many ecological families. We review the main ecological services across a variety of ECEs, including marshes, mangroves, nearshore coral reefs, seagrass beds, and sand beaches and dunes. Above 1000 meters the trees change from tropical hardwoods to temperate species like the Benguet pine of northern Luzon. The Philippines has 54 species of bamboo, a fast-growing woody grass, throughout the islands. Presence of dominant forest species and endemic/native plants. A neglected ecosystem in the Philippines is the estuary, defined as "a semi-enclosed coastal body of water with free connection with the open sea, and within which sea water is usually diluted with freshwater derived from land drainings.”. Like most apex predators, estuarine crocodiles eat almost anything. ( Log Out /  We review the main ecological services across a variety of ECEs, including marshes, mangroves, nearshore coral reefs, seagrass beds, and sand beaches and dunes. Likewise, we identified the mangroves growing in the estuarine portion of the river. There is a dearth of literature published online on the biodiversity of tropical ecosystems particularly the estuarine portion of the coastal zone. Disclaimer, Biodiversity Differences in Freshwater and Estuarine Ecosystems. The total coastal population of the country is estimated at 55.3 million or 60 percent of its total population (Philippine CTI … It may be due to the lack of regard to the critical role these ecosystems play in people’s lives in communities or cities. I always attempt not to teach them but mentor them along the way. The combination of Ceratium furca) were well below bloom densities lowered salinity and optimum nutrient levels sup- (41,000 cells l-1) reported in fish pens in Bolinao, port high abundance of estuarine phytoplankton Northern Philippines (Yap et al. biochemical fluxes), and sustain important ecosystem services which are beneficial to society. Logging and mining, dynamiting of coral reefs, and enormous population pressures are having a devastating ecological effect. Another prominent type of ecosystem that naturally occurs in the Philippines, given the multitude of coastal areas of this country, is the mangrove ecosystem. The trip lasted only for about two hours, but we collected a diverse collection of photographs on the biodiversity of the estuarine ecosystem. Most of the forests of the region, tropical evergreen rainforests, yield many kinds of commercial hardwood timbers. Experts attribute this similarity to land bridges that connect mainland Palawan with Borneo. He loves writing about a wide range of topics. Fertile volcanic soil of the Philippines, abundant rain and sunshine, and the wide range of habitats and elevations give rise to an incredible variety of plant life in every category, from mosses and lichens (including 1,000 species of fern) to giant trees (about 3,000 species). It may be a Dynamics of Ecosystems course or  the subject Research 01, where they need to familiarize themselves with actual research situations, i. e., in the field. Change ), The Philippines and its species-rich ecosystem – Part I, The Philippines and its species-rich ecosystem – Part II. He does statistical work using SOFA, Excel, Jasp, etc. These crocodiles have also adapted to seasonally vanishing estuaries. The Philippine offers nature lovers tremendous biodiversity. Filipinos also use many different herbs for medicinal and culinary purposes. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. Substantial parts of the archipelago remain unexplored, both on land and under water. The global decline in estuarine and coastal ecosystems (ECEs) is affecting a number of critical benefits, or ecosystem services. It is said that no other archipelago has as rich a variety of orchids and other plants as the Philippines. Palawan Greater Coucal: Three Roles in the Forest Ecosystem, Four Reasons Why We Should Save Endangered Species, Break Up Your Routine Through Short Trips: Six Benefits. This collection is better than any book published in printed format. In addition, Coscinodiscus along with Thalassionema were reported to dominate the Sarawak estuarine waters [30]. Its tropical rainforest is the most species-rich ecosystem on earth. FLORA The Philippine offers nature lovers tremendous biodiversity. A specimen caught in the Philippines in 2011 measured 6.4 meters (21 feet). Dr. Freitag happened to visit Palawan State University and saw the picture in one of my online articles. Substantial parts of the archipelago remain unexplored, both on land and under water. Proper identification requires a considerable number of crabs, some measurements, and a whole lot of descriptions filled with jargon. Estuary - Free download as Powerpoint Presentation (.ppt / .pptx), PDF File (.pdf), Text File (.txt) or view presentation slides online. Plants are mainly of the type found in Indonesia and Malaysia, although Australian (e.g. What is the Difference Between Preservation and Conservation? Or probably, they have devoted themselves to economic activities to keep up with the ever-growing prices of goods and services. In the Philippines, it is estimated that the value of a complete mangrove ecosystem ranges from US$500 to US$1,550 per hectare per year or at US$600/ha/yr or US$60,000/sq. The global decline in estuarine and coastal ecosystems (ECEs) is affecting a number of critical benefits, or ecosystem services. Using the conservative estimate of value from direct benefits of only US$600/ha/yr, the Philippines gains at least US$83 million/year in fish production and potential sustainable wood harvest from the … Privacy Policy 2018, Bennett and Thines 2019).