Lilies grow in the Philippines!

      Yes, you read that right. We have our own species of lily which is endemic. Another reason why we should save our remaining forests. It seems to me that many people do not know that many of our native plants are also very appealing. There are also not that much available information in this species of plant in the Philippines.
     
       The scientific name of the said species of lily is Lilium philippinense. I hope that there will come a day that the species is still not yet extinct when the Filipinos will appreciate its beauty.

Birds of General Trias, Cavite, Philippines

Common Moorhen

Scientific name: 

Photo courtesy of Pbase.com http://www.pbase.com/csmallari/image/82600264

White Breasted Water Hen

Scientific name: Amaurornis phoenicurus

Where to Find: Rivers and streams near ricefields of the locality

Time: All-year-round

Rarity: Widely distributed across Southeast Asia

Photo courtesy of Romy Ocon

Cinnamon Bittern

Where to Find: Rivers and streams near rice fields of the locality

Time: All-year-round

Rarity: Common in the Philippines

Photo courtesy of Romy Ocon

Barn swallow

Scientific name: Hirundo rustica

Where to Find: Gardens and roofs of houses

Time: December to Late February

Photo courtesy of Romy Ocon

Collared Kingfisher

Where to Find: Rivers and streams near rice fields of the locality

Time: All-year-round

Rarity: Common in the Philippines

Photo courtesy of flickr.com http://www.flickr.com/photos/val6425/5473727556/

Asian Golden Plover

Where to Find: Rivers and streams near rice fields of the locality

Time: All-year-round

Rarity: Common in the Philippines

Photo courtesy of Romy Ocon

Eastern grass owl

Where to find: Rice fields and grooves

Time: All-year-round

Rarity: Very rare in the locality

Photo courtesy of Birdwatch.ph

Black-winged stilt

Where to find: Rivers, coast and rice fields of the locality

Time: All-year-round

Rarity: Common in the Philippines

Photo courtesy of Birdwatch.ph

Golden-bellied Flyeater

Where to Find: Grooves within the locality

Yellow-vented bulbul

Little egret

Where to find: Rivers, coast and rice fields of the locality

Time: All-year-round

Rarity: Common in the Philippines

Striped-headed Rhabdorhinis

Grey Heron



Philippine Scops Owl
Picture unverified, taken by Local at Bacao, General Trias, Cavite

Brown Shrike

What we should plant

       

       I hope people in Tagaytay City would stop planting the cook pine tree which is a non-native species. I hope they instead plant Pinus Merkusii or Sumatran Pine tree instead which is also non-native to Tagaytay but native to a few Mountains of the Philippines.

      We need to plant more native plant species because it supports the natural ecology of the Philippines. In the long-term and species preservation, planting native species is more economical.