San Juan, Batangas—Known for its white-sand beaches, this town, earlier declared as a bird sanctuary, will soon promote one of, if not perhaps its best-kept, secrets as an ecotourism destination—a bat sanctuary in the middle of the forest. This was revealed by Councilor Noel Pasco, chairman of the town’s agriculture and fisheries committee, and member of the committee on environment and tourism.               

“We are planning to open our doors to nature lovers who might want to experience this new adventure—a journey to the bat kingdom,” Pasco told the BusinessMirror in an interview.

Local officials have been actively promoting this town as an ecotourism destination and have passed enabling ordinances that strengthen existing environmental laws as they see better economic opportunities protecting the environment.

THE forests of the Laiya Aplaya Mountain in San Juan, Batangas, are home to two species of giant fruit bats. The Golden Crowned Flying Fox is the largest bat in the world, with a wingspan of 2 meters, while the Large Flying Fox is the heaviest bat in the world, weighing up to 1.1 kg. --JONATHAN L. MAYUGA

In 1995 local officials passed a resolution declaring the entire town as a bird sanctuary—in effect prohibiting hunting, catching, transporting or selling of birds in the town.

In 2004  the town also passed enabling ordinances declaring nine out of 16 coastal barangays as Marine Protected Areas to shelter marine life, including the threatened marine turtles, dolphins and butanding found in its coastal waters; the protection and conservation of a species of the teak tree locally known as malabayabas, which is endemic to the town; and now, the habitat of giant fruit bats at the Laiya Aplaya Mountain, which covers three towns—San Juan, Lubo and Rosario, all in the province of Batangas.

Approximately two-and-a-half hours’ drive south of Metro Manila, this town is known for its native products like lambanog and palayok. It also boasts of the unspoiled beaches of Laiya, one of 16 coastal barangays that boast of a long stretch of beautiful white-sand beaches. The town is home to nesting marine turtles, mangrove forests, dolphins and the occasional butanding, and a unique species of birds.

Among the existing ecotourism and adventure travels this town offers to local and foreign tourists are snorkeling and scuba diving, hiking and camping, plant and wildlife appreciation—which include whale-shark and dolphin watching—as well as bird watching.

Soon it will offer the majestic view of the bat kingdom right in the middle of the forest, its latest attraction for nature trippers.

This coastal town in Batangas is home to two species of giant fruit bats—the Golden Crowned Flying Fox, scientifically known as Acerodon jubatus, an endangered species; and the Large Flying Fox, scientifically known as the Pteropus vampyrus, also threatened with extinction.

The Golden Crowned Flying Fox is the largest bat in the world with a wingspan of 2 meters, and the Large Flying Fox is the heaviest bat in the world with a weight of up to 1.1 kg.

The giant fruit bats are keystone species that serve as pollinators and seed-dispersal agents, helping regenerate the forest.

Scientists said there are 300 plant species that rely on fruit bats to pollinate them and disperse their seeds.  Some of the plant species dependent on fruit bats are bananas, mangoes, avocados, figs and cashews.

Unlike most bat species, fruit bats use their sense of smell, and not echolocation. Fruit bats travel up to 50 km a night in search for food. They roost during the day. The roost in San Juan has a population of approximately a thousand bats.

The 3-km journey to the bat kingdom is, by itself, already an adventure. It is a two-hour trek via a shallow river and streams on foot or by horse leading to the foot of the Laiya Aplaya Mountain.  From there, it will be another hour’s trek without the horses to the bat kingdom.

Local officials of this town, as well as the local communities, have seen and appreciated the economic potential of nature conservation and wildlife preservation.

Willie Gutierrez, 24, a resident of Laiya Aplaya, is hopeful that more tourists will come because this offers additional income opportunity for a farmer like him—either as a tourist guide or a tourist companion.

Gutierrez, who owns a horse, is one of six tourist guides who offer horseback riding to local and foreign tourists who go to the bat kingdom.

Besides ecotourism, local communities benefit from community-based forest- and marine-resource management.

“Everything is interconnected. You protect the bats, you protect the agent that regenerates not only the forests in Batangas, but other areas, as well, because bats are migratory mammals,” Pasco explained.

The Laiya Aplaya mountain, according to Pasco, provides livelihood to the communities.  However, he said the law against bird hunting, as well as the giant fruit bats that thrive in the forests, is now strictly enforced.

Pasco said slowly, they are educating the people who are still into the practice of slash-and-burn agriculture, as well as cutting trees for fuel and for charcoal making.

“Slowly, we are educating them, teaching them alternative means of livelihood from ecotourism.  We are teaching them to help take care of the forest.  Instead of cutting trees, we teach them to help pick up pieces of garbage left behind by litterbugs to keep the forest clean,” he said.

Town officials are getting help from Ramon Flores, a marine-turtle conservationist who belongs to Earth Day Network, an organization that promotes the protection and preservation of Mother Earth, and two Peace Corps volunteers in couple Steven and Rebecca Gomez. The couple has been actively involved in the town’s information, education and communication campaign as far as environmental protection is concerned.

Eight of the coastal barangays of this town have been identified as nesting sites of marine turtles, which are also threatened by extinction.

Flores said the active involvement of the community boosts the government’s effort to protect marine wildlife.

“Before, you could see people selling turtles and turtle eggs for consumption.  Now, you’ll see the people building fences to protect nesting sites of marine turtles,” he said.

“The turtles that eat seagrass and jellyfish help a lot in striking a balance of nature, making the beaches of San Juan, Batangas, more enjoyable,” he said. 

To the bat cave!

San Juan, Batangas—Known for its white-sand beaches, this town, earlier declared as a bird sanctuary, will soon promote one of, if not perhaps its best-kept, secrets as an ecotourism destination—a bat sanctuary in the middle of the forest.

Veggies: good practices trump poisoned profits

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet—The bane of chemically oriented farming that swept La Trinidad and parts of Benguet province in the 1950s remains a problem, although serious efforts by the provincial government have been under way for many years to improve the vegetable industry and protect farmers from the risks of pesticide use.