“MAHALTA: The significance of Mangyan, Halcon and Tamaraw preservation efforts in keeping Mindoro heritage.
Mangyan refers to the Philippine ethnic group living in Mindoro Island but some can be found in the island of Tablas and Sibuyan in the province of Romblon as well as in Albay, Negros and Palawan. The word Mangyan generally means man, woman or person without any reference to any nationality.
Mangyan refers to an indigenous Philippine ethnic group living on Mindoro Island since the 10th century A.D. Among the most remarkable aspects of their rich culture is the writing system known as “Mangyan Scripts” that remains in use by the Hanunuo and Buhid Mangyan in southeastern Mindoro.
Mount Halcon is home to the indigenous Alangan Mangyans. Its thick vegetation contains much flora and fauna, including the critically endangered Mindoro bleeding-heart which is endemic to the area, and the stick insect Conlephasma enigma, which was first described in 2012.
The mountain was also the location of a possible World War II Japanese holdout. Isao Miyazawa found evidence that his comrade Captain Fumio Nakahara was living there in 1957. Another search in 1977 was called off due to Miyazawa contracting malaria.
Tamaraw
At a glance, a Tamaraw might be mistaken for a domestic buffalo, but its V-shaped horns, smaller frame and feistier personality set it apart. Listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, there are about 500 individual Tamaraw left on Mindoro. Some 80% live in Mounts Iglit-Baco Natural Park, and two other small populations – numbering around 50 and 12 individuals – live elsewhere on the island. Without immediate conservation measures, these isolated subpopulations face extinction within the next few decades.
These figures are all the more sobering when compared to the 10,000+ Tamaraw that roamed the island at the turn of the twentieth century. Hunting, poaching, disease from domestic cattle, habitat destruction from non-sustainable land use – even invasive plants that the animals cannot eat – have dramatically reduced this population. And with females averaging just one offspring every two years, recovery of this species calls for immediate, effective conservation efforts.
The Mangyan people and the Tamaraw are more than mere neighbors in the steep mountains and valley forests of Mindoro. Tamaraw are a source of tremendous national pride, appearing on national currency and postage stamps, and even serving as the Far Eastern University mascot.
And because the Tamaraw and Mangyans share a reliance on management of the environment and preservation of their ecosystem, the long-term survival of these animals is directly tied to the future of Mangyans. Helping one means helping the other.
Reference:
https://www.google.com/search?q=mangyan&hl=en-US&sxsrf=ALeKk032ypYMwk3biquaSKKQC_SZP9cFOg%3A1619712832475&ei=QNuKYPa5HM3m-AbQm7zYDw&oq=&gs_lcp=
https://www.globalwildlife.org/project/tamaraw-in-mounts-iglit-baco-natural-park/
https://www.google.com/search?q=mount+halcon+preserve+&hl=en-US&sxsrf=ALeKk00SwfE3IPddK5DnUQn2jb7Z1b_PdQ%3A1619712784194&ei=ENuKYKG7C4j6-QbW8buQCA&oq=mount+halcon+preserve+&gs_lcp=ChNtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1zZXJwEAMyBQgAEM0CMgUIABDNAjIFCAAQzQI6BAgAEEc6AggAOgIILjoGCAAQFhAeOgUIIRCgAToECCEQFToHCCEQChCgAVC6pAJYssgCYJPdAmgAcAF4AIAB-wGIAeUPkgEFMC41LjWYAQCgAQHIAQjAAQE&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-serp