MNH thesis student and BS Biology graduate Sharri L. Guerra won first place for Undergraduate Oral Presentation during the 26th Philippine Biodiversity Symposium at Ateneo de Manila University last 18-22 July 2017. The symposium, themed "New and Emerging New Trends in Biodiversity Research and Conservation" was organized by the Biodiversity Conservation Society of the Philippines.

Sharri's presentation on the "Bioacoustics of Philippine Hornbills" and garnered the highest score from the panel of judges. As part of her thesis, she recorded and analyzed calls of captive hornbills at Avilon Zoo in Rodriguez, Rizal and evaluated the difference in their call signatures as a criteria to delineate species of Philippine hornbills. Her research outcompeted 6 undergraduate presentations.

Romblon State University faculty and students and several staff of the DENR Protected Area Management Board of Mt. Guiting-guiting Natural Park were trained on biodiversity management methods by a team from the UPLB Museum of Natural History last 10-12 June 2017 at Sibuyan Island off Romblon. The training team was composed of curator Dr. Aimee Lynn Dupo, wildlife biologists James Alvarez and Camila Meneses, entomologist Jeremy Naredo, other museum staff and local field assistants.

The training-workshop was held to train participants on standard methods which are applied in biodiversity studies. Done over a period of three days, the training was composed of several lectures accompanied by hands-on activities. The output of the workshop also included drafts of local research proposals aimed to give solutions to challenges that come with biodiversity management and research.

Led by wildlife biologists James DV. Alvarez and Camila Meneses, the Museum of Natural History (MNH) continued its biodiversity expedition in Mt. Guiting-guiting, Sibuyan Island in Romblon last 22 May to 24 June 2017. Alvarez and Meneses is junior researcher and thesis student, respectively at the Museum. They are conducting their fieldwork as part of their manuscript data gathering for the Master’s degree in Wildlife Studies at the University of the Philippines Los Baños.

Sibuyan Island has been identified by the MNH as a site for its current and future researches. “The museum has laid out short and long-term plans to gather data which will be important in managing the island’s biodiversity,” Alvarez reported.

The scientific community mourns the loss of one of the best field biologists in the Philippines -- Danilo “Danny” Balete.

Balete is known for his work on the taxonomy and conservation of Philippine mammals. Through decades of scientific work, he has described and co-described more than half of the known small mammals of the country. The discoveries he has been part of has put the island of Luzon as the center of mammalian diversity in the world.

Shortly after their last activity during the Pangasinan fieldwork, some delegates of the Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) Philippines Study Abroad Program (PhilSAP) shared some of their most memorable experiences.

For Sarah Chong, Alejandra Padilla, Eunice Gonzalez and Selena Infante, the mangrove and giant clam observations were very interesting because their first-time experiences were assisted by Museum of Natural History. As biology students, they appreciated the way the fieldworks were conducted.

For the final fieldwork of the TAMIU Study Abroad Program in the Philippines, the UPLB Museum of Natural History guided the delegates in exploring Mt. Makiling and discovering some of the fauna that inhabit the mountain last 30 June and 01 July 2017.

The TAMIU delegates were composed of ten students together with their professors Drs. Marcus and Ruby Ynalvez. The MNH team was composed of Director Juan Carlos Gonzalez, extension specialist Florante Cruz, entomologists David Emmanuel General and Jeremy Naredo, as well as field biologists James Alvarez and Camila Meneses. Museum technicians Edison Cosico and Orlando Eusebio along with two interns completed the team.