CANDALAGA
- 21 hours ago
- 9 min read
Where Sacred Forests Shelter an Endangered Eagle
In the misty forests of Mt. Candalaga in Maragusan, a young Philippine Eagle now carries a small transmitter. By following his movements, scientists hope to learn more about how young eagles survive—and how the mountain can be protected for the future.
Before sunrise, Mt. Candalaga is often covered in clouds.
Mist moves across the forested slopes and deep valleys. Tall trees rise above the forest. Somewhere beyond the ridge, a Philippine Eagle calls.
For the field team listening below, that call means the young eagle is still nearby.
But Mt. Candalaga is more than just a home for wildlife.
For the Indigenous Mansaka people of Maragusan, the mountain range is known as a Dumot, or a sacred forest. It is a place connected to their culture, ancestors, water, wildlife, and their duty to care for the land.
In this mountain, Indigenous knowledge and modern science are now working together.
In early 2026, a young Philippine Eagle, a little over one year old, was safely trapped, checked by researchers, fitted with tracking devices, and released back into the forests of Mt. Candalaga.
His journey was about to become easier to follow.
A young eagle learning to live on his own
The Philippine Eagle (Pithecophaga jefferyi) is one of the largest forest eagles in the world. It is also one of the rarest.
Even though it is a very large bird, it can be hard to find in the wild.
Young Philippine Eagles stay with their parents for many months, even after they learn how to fly. They slowly begin to explore places farther from the nest. Later, they will leave their parents and look for a place of their own.
This part of an eagle's life is very important.
Scientists want to know: Where do young eagles go? How far do they travel? Which forests do they use? What dangers do they face?
GPS and radio transmitters can help answer these questions.
But before scientists can track an eagle, they first have to catch one safely.
Days of watching
PEF Senior Biologist and Telemetry Study Leader Ron Taraya, together with PEF field technicians, DENR personnel, and Indigenous SUMPAW forest guards, had been closely watching the Philippine Eagle family living in Mt. Candalaga.
There were three eagles: an adult male, an adult female, and their young.
The young eagle was a little over one year old when he was trapped and tagged. He could already fly well, but he was still not fully independent.
His food-begging calls could still be heard in the forest, and his parents continued to stay close and bring food.
He was already learning to explore on his own, but he still depended on his parents.
Watching the family was not easy.
The team spent long hours looking across the mountain with binoculars, spotting scopes, and long-lens cameras.
Deep valleys could hide an eagle very quickly. Rain and clouds could cover the whole mountain.
Some days, the adult eagles appeared only for a short time. They would fly across a ridge and disappear again into the forest.
On other days, the young eagle could not be seen at all. The team only knew he was nearby because they could hear him calling.
Every sighting was important.
The team recorded where the eagles perched, where they flew, and how they moved around the mountain.
The Indigenous SUMPAW forest guards worked beside the researchers. Their knowledge of the forest was very important to the work.
Slowly, the team began to understand the daily movements of the eagle family.
Then, on February 1, their chance finally came.
“Eagle down”
The trapping team started work before sunrise.
They waited for hours.
At around 11:25 in the morning, the team finally heard the message they had been waiting for: “Eagle down.”
The young Philippine Eagle had been safely caught.
The team quickly began checking the bird.
Up close, the size of a Philippine Eagle is impressive.
The young male weighed about 4.5 kilograms and had a wingspan of about 1.6 meters. His body measured about 90 centimeters from beak to tail.
His eyes were clear. His feathers were mostly complete. His body condition was fair to good, and the team did not find any major health problem.
But they did see small signs of his young life in the wild.
There was a small dry wound near one wing feather. The tips of some tail feathers were slightly damaged, possibly from touching the ground while he was still learning how to hunt.
The team also collected blood, oral, and cloacal samples for health and genetic studies.
Then they fitted him with tracking devices.
A green identification band was placed on his right leg. A radio transmitter would help field teams find him nearby. A GPS transmitter would help scientists follow his movements across a much larger area.
At 12:53 p.m., the eagle was released.
He first stayed on a tall tree for several minutes.
Then he flew.
He circled above the forest and disappeared behind the ridge.
For this story, he carries the name of the mountain that shelters him: Candalaga.
What one young eagle can teach us
After his release, Candalaga started moving farther around the mountain.
At first, he stayed within the larger area used by his parents.
Later, his tracker showed that he was starting to explore farther away.
This was an early sign that he was slowly becoming more independent.
Then something unusual happened.
While Candalaga was flying, another Philippine Eagle appeared and swooped toward him.
The young eagle gave alarm calls.
The other eagle did not seem to be either of his parents.
Researchers think it may have been another eagle passing through the area. This may mean that Mt. Candalaga is important not only to one eagle family, but also to other Philippine Eagles moving through the mountain forests.
Candalaga's parents were still nearby.
The adult female was later seen carrying food toward the area where the young eagle was staying.
Even though he was starting to explore on his own, he was still being cared for by his parents.
A mountain that science predicted—and eagles confirmed
Before the nest was found, scientists had already studied which parts of Davao de Oro might be good habitat for Philippine Eagles.
Their habitat model showed that Maragusan has about 28,986 hectares of suitable Philippine Eagle habitat.
Then the discovery of the eagle family in Mt. Candalaga proved that the model was correct: the mountain really can support a breeding Philippine Eagle family.
The discovery was also important because the active nest found in 2025 became the first documented active Philippine Eagle nest in Davao de Oro.
And the eagle is not the only rare species living on the mountain.
Mt. Candalaga is also known as the only documented habitat of the critically endangered Rafflesia magnifica, a very rare giant flower found in Maragusan.
One lives high above the forest. The other grows on the forest floor.
Both need the same thing: a healthy mountain forest.
Why Mt. Candalaga may become a Critical Habitat
Because of its importance, the Philippine Eagle nesting territory and the wider Mt. Candalaga area are now being considered for declaration as a Critical Habitat under Republic Act No. 9147, also called the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act.
A Critical Habitat is an area outside an existing protected area that is important for threatened wildlife.
This is useful because not every important forest is inside a national park.
A Critical Habitat can help protect places where threatened animals live, nest, hunt, and raise their young.
It can also help guide how people use the area so that important wildlife habitats are not damaged.
But a Critical Habitat designation does not mean putting a fence around the forest.
It means communities helping to keep the forest safe as a long-lasting nesting home for its resident Philippine Eagle family.
It means Indigenous forest guards, local people, government agencies, and conservation groups working together to protect nesting areas, reduce disturbance, watch for threats, and keep the forest healthy.
The goal is not to keep people away from Mt. Candalaga.
The goal is to help people and wildlife continue to live in the same landscape in a responsible way.
Farmers, barangay officials, Indigenous representatives, the LGU, and conservation groups have already joined consultations and mapping activities for the proposed Critical Habitat. These discussions help make sure that local land use and community concerns are included in the planning.
For Philippine Eagles, protecting the whole forest is very important.
Protecting one nest tree is not enough.
The eagle needs forests for hunting. Its prey also needs places to live. Adult eagles need safe trees for nesting and resting. And young eagles like Candalaga need connected forests where they can explore and eventually find their own territory.
Saving an eagle means saving the forest around it.
Why Candalaga matters beyond one mountain
Mt. Candalaga is only one part of a much bigger landscape.
Studies under the Eastern Mindanao Biodiversity Corridor found about 3,423 square kilometers of suitable Philippine Eagle habitat in the corridor.
Researchers estimate that this amount of habitat could support about 47 breeding pairs.
But only around 11.1 percent of that suitable habitat is currently inside formal protected areas.
This means many forests that Philippine Eagles may need are still outside protected areas.
Critical Habitats can help protect some of these important places.
The idea is simple: do not wait until an eagle is injured or rescued. Protect the forests first, so eagles have safe places to live.
A sacred forest seen in two ways
The Mansaka idea of Dumot existed long before GPS trackers, maps, or wildlife laws.
It teaches that some forests are special and should be treated with respect.
Science uses different words.
Scientists talk about habitat, biodiversity, watersheds, tracking, and forest corridors.
But both ideas lead to the same message: some forests must be protected and kept standing.
Today, Indigenous SUMPAW forest guards work with biologists and government staff to watch over Mt. Candalaga.
They are also learning how to use tools such as radio telemetry to help locate tagged eagles.
Technology can show where an eagle goes.
But technology cannot protect a forest by itself.
A satellite cannot stop illegal activities. A radio cannot patrol a mountain. A GPS cannot teach young people why an eagle matters.
People still have to do those things.
Following Candalaga
Somewhere above Mt. Candalaga, a young Philippine Eagle is learning how to survive on his own.
Every ridge he crosses takes him farther from childhood.
Every new forest teaches him something.
He must learn where to hunt, where to rest, when to avoid another eagle, and one day, where to build a life of his own.
Far below, scientists can see his movements as small points on a map.
One point becomes many. Many points become a trail.
And that trail may help people understand which forests the next young Philippine Eagle will need.
Candalaga does not know that scientists are following his signal.
He does not know that Indigenous forest guards are watching the mountain.
He does not know that people are working to give his forest stronger protection.
He simply spreads his wings and flies.
Below him is a Dumot, a sacred forest.
In it grows one of the world's rarest flowers.
Above it flies one of the world's rarest eagles.
And the hope is simple: that long after Candalaga's transmitter stops sending signals, Philippine Eagles will still be flying over the sacred forests of Mt. Candalaga.
Candalaga — Quick Facts
First in Davao de Oro: The active nest found in 2025 was the first documented active Philippine Eagle nest in the province. |
Two rare species, one mountain: Mt. Candalaga is home to the Philippine Eagle and the critically endangered Rafflesia magnifica. |
Eagles need a lot of space: The study uses an average home range of about 73 square kilometers, or 7,300 hectares, for one Philippine Eagle breeding pair. |
Most suitable habitat is still outside protected areas: Only about 11.1 percent of suitable Philippine Eagle habitat in the Eastern Mindanao Biodiversity Corridor is inside formal protected areas. |
Candalaga carries two trackers: A GPS transmitter helps track larger movements, while a radio transmitter helps field teams find him locally. |
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