5 Reasons - to go Birdwatching in the Philippines

Palawan Hornbill

I'm gonna start some sort of a series called "5 Reasons" which would be a rough list of why you should visit a destination or do something out of your comfort zone. I will start with my advocacy which is birdwatching. Here goes....


1. You will be surprised to know that there are more than 4 kinds of birds in the Philippines aside from the sparrows (or maya/ibong bahay), pigeons, chickens and maybe your pet parakeet. In fact, the country has more than 600 species of birds of all kinds of sizes, colors, and beauty. Add to this, roughly 200 of those are called endemics and found nowhere else in this world. These are some of the samplers - Philippine Eagle, Philippine Scops Owl, Philippine Serpent Eagle, Calayan Rail, Negros Bleeding Heart, and more!


2. Its a good way to exercise. Try to do some internet research on the birdwatchers (or birders, if you prefer Euro-speak). You will find out that a lot of the avid birders are well into retirement age. Don't get me wrong that its a hobby for oldies. But look at it this way - birding can be very tiring. As you try to find as many species as possible, you may walk several kilometers (while having fun!) and for several hours without you knowing it. And if you can do that in your old age, try to imagine how healthy it can be!


3. You will gain more friends. Maybe I could say that the serious birdwatching community is a strange kind of population. They have nothing in mind but seeing their dream species. But it can actually have a lot of downtime when the birds start hiding and you will have great bonding moments with your birding mates. Share your stories, laugh and smile at your common passion, or just simply look at the clouds while lying on grass beds.

One tip I can share for those new in the activity is that never do birdwatching alone. You will be frustrated looking at a flying or perched animal and not having an idea what it is. Go with somebody who has done it, get amazed at his excitement as he watches and stutters in identifying a lifer (that's a bird he sees for the first time). You will get better chances catching the birding bug this way.


4. You may not know it, but you will slowly become an eloquent advocate for the environment and conservation. Sooner that you realize it, you will have the passion on everything environment. After 2 or 3 trips, you will realize that its not just looking at the colorful birds. You will have the hunger to know more. About their habitats, their roles in this universe, why they are disappearing, and what are the relationship of bird protection to our own survival. It can initially be very nebulous, but it will be very fulfilling.


5. Its a very good excuse to travel. You may have seen the 10 species in your neighborhood. But more birds are meant to be discovered by your own eyes. Avid birdwatchers are known to spread to various corners of the world just to see even a glimpse of species found only on a small island or a disappearing patch of forest. Yes, its a good excuse to discover other cultures, laze on the beach while waiting for the "birding time," dine in the most exotic buffet tables, and make a more complete travel adventure.

My Travel Thailand

Just released our newest iPhone app, My Travel Thailand! Just like My Travel Philippines, this app showcases the various tourist attractions and accommodation facilities. If you have an Apple mobile device such as iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad, you can easily download this free app.

Native Chicken

Setting: Conching’s Native Chicken and Fastfood, Cebu City

How does a native chicken taste like? Strange question when every chicken should taste like, well, chicken.

Its actually quite a hassle eating native chicken. The meat is usually a bit darker than the ones that are bought in the grocery. That same meat is usually very lean and sticks very close to the bone.

Then why is the Conching’s Native Chicken and Fastfood always full with Cebuano customers? The answer is really very simple – because native chicken tastes better! Its actually hard to explain this and convince the typical human used to eating commercial chicken. Try asking your father, uncle or grand dad and you will probably get the same answer. “Because it tastes great! Now, finish that chicken.” No more lame culinary justification.


Conching is located near the SM mall in Cebu City. It really looks like an ordinary eatery (but with larger dining area), plus you will see cars of all models in the adjoining street and parking space.

This is the same part of a culinary article I wrote for Dispatch Magazine.

Cloud 9 and HDR

I tried doing an HDR from a single photo of the Cloud 9 surfing station in Siargao Island. Now, I don't know which one is better (or none? :D ). Cloud 9 was actually coined by foreign surfers who used to keep their paradise a top secret destination for themselves. Alas! the word finally got around and Siargao has become part of a circuit for international surfing competitions.

And what about the term, Cloud 9? Its a local chocolate bar that is quite famous in the Philippines. The surfer dudes liked it so much that they appropriately named their secret eden after the chocolate brand.


Here's a link of Cloud 9 to the website version of our iPhone app: My Travel Philippines

Birds, Birdwatching and Ecotourism

It is becoming almost unthinkable that you would encounter a wild animal up close in the Philippines. They either get shot for food or collected as trophies or dispensable pets.

A sea eagle that was soaring less than 30 feet from me should remind me how lucky I was to experience the moment. For I don't know if I would get another chance in my lifetime.

You see, birdwatching should be a major ecotourism activity in the Philippines. We have more than 600 different species flying in our territory. And about 200 of them are found nowhere else in the world. Some are so rare that they live only on small islands and forests.

But we hardly value our wildlife. Not for ecotourism, nor the more abstract thing called biodiversity conservation. Their babies get collected, smuggled and sold as pets. Only 5% of the illegally traded birds usually survive. The rest die along the trade trail. We burn their habitats or cut down their nesting trees. We pour concrete on even the last remaining territories of birds. Just look at the plan of the government to destroy the bird sanctuary in Manila Bay (Las Pinas and Paranaque area) to give way for more reclamation.

I have to admit, that on a national scale, ecotourism is a lame excuse to save the remaining bird species in the Philippines or even for the people or the government to earn revenues for them. The money to be earned from birdwatching may not be enough to cover the profits of cutting down the trees, selling the baby birds, or building skyscrapers on their habitats.

But there are success stories of former hunters finally becoming advocates of conservation, of children convincing their parents to love the environment, of communities coming to terms that in order to survive, they have to live to the terms of their environments.

How I wish that a hundred, nay a thousand or even a hundred thousand Filipinos would declare that they have seen wildlife up close..... And yes, even personal.