By SAMMY JULIAN
Manila News Bureau Chief
MANILA -A Filipino conservationist has been bestowed with a Whitley Fund for Nature (WFN) award for her work involving local communities in the protection of the “misunderstood” Philippine crocodile.
Marites Gatan-Balbas, deputy director and field project manager of the Mabuwaya Foundation, was given recognition by WFN, now among the most high-profile of conservation prizes, for her work to change the traditional depiction of the Philippine crocodile (Crocodylus mindorensis) as an animal that devours human beings and is used as a symbol representing corrupt public officials.
Through her efforts, Gatan-Balbas helped bring the Philippine crocodile back from the brink of extinction.
The 40-year-old Filipino conservation leader share the £280,000 (roughly P20.6 million prize money) with seven other winners of the “Green Oscar” awards which recognize contributions of individuals to conservation made from outside the developed world.
The Whitley Awards, established in 1994 by British financial advisor and philanthropist Edward Whitley, aim to bring to international attention the work of deserving people committed to precipitating long-lasting conservation benefits on the ground. The awards involve a process of reference, application and interview.
This year’s prizes range from schemes to encourage farmers to conserve the grassland hunting grounds of the imperial eagle in Bulgaria to a project to promote coexistence between local people and lions in northern Kenya
All the winners were honored at an award ceremony at the Royal Geographical Society in London Thursday night that was attended by the fund’s patron, Princess Anne.
The Philippine crocodile, the species endemic only to the country, is one of the most severely threatened crocodilian species.
They became data deficient to critically endangered in 2008 from exploitation and unsustainable fishing methods, such as dynamite fishing.
There are roughly 250 left in the wild as of September 2011. In addition to this, very little is known about the natural history or ecology of the species.
Gatan-Balbas and her team at Mabuwaya Foundation, however, managed to increase the population of the Philippine crocodile, from 12 individuals in 2001 to 109 today, and reduced crocodile killings by humans from 13 in 1998 to just one in 2013.
The foundation aims to increase the Philippine crocodile population through nest protection, head-starting and release of hatchling crocodiles, and habitat restoration; create two new crocodile sanctuaries and build capacity for their protection; engage local communities in conservation through education and awareness campaigns./PN
