DAF provided technical and financial support to the tamaraw survey in the Blue Mountain region in the heart of Mts Iglit-Baco Natural Park in November 2020. Report on the possible presence of tamaraw in that area was suggested by local community members attending the PHVA workshop in 2018.
Despite not being able to confirm the presence of the species, the operation provided the chance to survey this natural area located at the junction between the ancestral domain of the Buhid tribe and Bangon tribe and the forest line literally dividing oriental and occidental Mindoro. In addition, we were able to assess the northern limit of the area used by lowlander cattle ranchers considered as non-tenured migrants since the endorsement of the Park Management Plan in 2020. As suspected, the survey proved that this vast natural area could be very favorable for tamaraw translocation once phase out of cattle ranchers is successful, while the presence of the species further north is considered plausible and will require another verification survey.
Data collected will help refine the existing map of this area in terms of physical features and land-use.
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