A PHILIPPINE eagle was found dead, washed ashore in Barangay Daliao, Maasim, Sarangani, on September 19. It apparently died from drowning. Anything Philippine eagle-related is always newsworthy. It is, after all, our national bird and icon. According to the Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF), this was the third recorded case of an eagle crashing into the coastal seas of Maasim, Sarangani. And it is the eighth overall in Mindanao. For me the story does not end there. I wanted to know, why are the Philippine eagles drowning?

The Philippine eagle is one of the world's largest eagles. It has a wingspan of 7 feet and a crown to tail measure of 3 feet. It was known historically in local folklore and by its scientific name as the 'monkey-eating eagle' because it eats monkeys. As an apex predator it also eats other mammals, lizards, snakes and birds. In the late 1970s, through the efforts of renowned ornithologist and conservationist Dr. Bob Kennedy, who was then filming the Philippine eagle for research, President Ferdinand E. Marcos issued a proclamation changing the raptor's name into a more dignified 'Philippine Eagle.' In 1995 it was legally named the national bird.