Sierra Madre Mountains, Philippines Photograph by Jorgen Thomsen/ Conservation International   Philippines Tropical and Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests   3,200 square miles (8,300 square kilometers) -- about half the size of Hawaii Critical/Endangered

· Secrets of the Sierra Madres
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern
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Secrets of the Sierra Madres

Along the rugged Sierra Madre Mountains on Luzon, the largest island in the Philippines, isolated many species have thrived and evolved as a result of their isolation. Unlike the islands of Japan, which were part of the Asian mainland before breaking away millions of years ago, Luzon has never been connected to the mainland. As a result, several species that live here are found nowhere else in the world.

Special Features

This ecoregion contains some of the most extensive forests remaining in the Philippines. The montane forests are characterized by oaks and laurels, with epiphytes, moss, and vines encircling trunks and branches. Trees in the highest-elevation montane forests are often covered with moss, making branches appear much thicker than they really are. The temperature is lower at higher elevations, which slows the decomposition of leaf debris. As a result, the soil beneath is thick and matted, a perfect haven for burrowing animals.

The Philippine eagle, the national bird of the Philippines and one of the world’s seven largest eagles, is also one of the world’s most endangered birds, with perhaps fewer than 50 individuals left in the wild. These birds nest atop huge epiphytic ferns high in the rain forest canopy. Each requires a territory of 38 square miles (100 km2) and feeds primarily on flying lemurs (which are unrelated to the lemurs on Madagascar).

Wild Side

Eight species of near-endemic and endemic mammals make their homes in these highlands. The Palanan shrew-mouse, found only in this ecoregion, is known to scientists from only two specimens that were discovered in the northern Sierra Madres. Large mammals include the long-tailed macaque (a monkey), Philippine warty pig, Philippine brown deer, Malay civet, and common palm civet. These animals remain numerous despite increasing habitat loss. Birds that prefer these mossy forests include the Luzon buttonquail and the whiskered pitta. The pitta likes to hunt for invertebrates along the ground, taking advantage of areas that warty pigs have already rooted through. The flame-breasted fruit dove, the largest fruit dove in the Philippines, lives here, too, although it is particularly sensitive to habitat destruction.

Cause for Concern

Although While deforestation continues at an alarmingly regular pace, the montane portions of the northern Sierra Madres remain relatively inaccessible and therefore intact. Still, habitat conversion, road construction, mining, and commercial logging are increasing threats to the ecoregion’s biodiversity. The complete lack of protected areas at montane elevations is also a cause for concern.

For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report.