DENR National Capital Region through its North Field Office (NFO) retrieved a Brahminy Kite (Haliastur indus) at Barangay 164 in Caloocan City on Monday, 5 July 2021.
The raptor was rescued by a concerned netizen who saw it flying near their house being chased by children. The incident was reported to the regional office on Sunday, 4 July 2021, via its social media account and was relayed to the NFO on the same day, who dispatched a team of Environmental Protection Officers (EPOs) to retrieve the bird.
The raptor was transferred to the Wildlife Rescue Center at the Ninoy Aquino Parks and Wildlife Center in Quezon City for assessment and rehabilitation to Republic Act No. 9147 or Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act of 2001.
Brahminy Kite is a medium-sized bird-of-prey in the family Accipitridae. Adults have a reddish-brown body plumage with a white head and breast. They are found mainly on the coast and inland wetlands, where they feed on dead fish and other prey.
Barangay 164 lies along the path of Tullahan River, one of the major river systems of Metro Manila, with waters originating from the La Mesa Water Reservation area in Quezon City. Brahminy Kites are a common sighting in the La Mesa Water Reservation area, with the bird often seen circling, flying and riding thermals over the water. The rescued raptor may have followed prey down the river and lost its way back.
Presently, Brahminy kites are categorized as a species of “Least Concern” under the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. Global trends, however, show that its population is on a decline due to hunting and collection of nestlings, disturbances, over-use of pesticides, and habitat loss.
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