MNH researcher James DV. Alvarez and graduate student Camila G. Meneses recently presented the outputs of their research during the Rufford Small Grants Conference in Hanoi, Vietnam from 19-20 October 2018.

The conference themed "Strengthening the Network of the Rufford Foundation Recipients in Southeast Asia" convened past and current recipients of the Rufford Smalls Grants (RSG). The RSG is a UK-based organization which provides grants for research and conservation projects.

Alvarez and Meneses received their RSG grants in 2015 and 2016, respectively. The grants supported their research work in Mt. Guiting-guiting Natural Park (MGGNP) in Sibuyan Island, Romblon.

Microorganisms are ubiquitous in nature. They can be found almost everywhere in soil, water, air, and even flora and fauna. On bats and birds, microorganisms are also common because of the guano that are produced by these flying animals.

Guano is nutrient-rich because it harbors diverse assemblages of microorganisms. When guano accumulates in an area, it can provide sustenance to other organisms such as minute insects that are food of bigger predators. Aside from serving a big part in the ecological balance of environments such as karsts, guano, when extracted from caves can serve as organic fertilizer.

Cockroaches are often perceived as a nuisance and pests inside the home. These persistent and thriving insects maybe most common in the urban setting but, unknown to most people, a great number of cockroach species can be found in the lush greeneries of the forest.

Just this year, young cockroach systematist Cristian Lucañas found a unique, forest-dwelling cockroach in the remote island of Sibuyan, Romblon. In a recent paper published in Halteres (Volume 9, 151-156, 2018), the roach expert described a new species belonging to a new genus of cockroach which he named Gapudipentax guiting.

The article can be downloaded via https://zenodo.org/record/1418609

Illustrators and artists of the UPLB Museum of Natural History (MNH) will be part of the UPLB Office for Initiatives in Culture and the Arts (OICA) year-end exhibit "Art in Biodiversity" which opens on 08 October 2018 at the Sining Makiling Gallery, DL Umali Auditorium, UPLB, College, Laguna.

"Art in Biodiversity" which will feature 119 art works by an equal number of Filipino artists will run until the end of the year. Acrylic and mixed-media paintings by MNH staff Edison A. Cosico, Orlando L. Eusebio, Ariel R. Larona, Rafael D. Tandang, as well as Director Juan Carlos T. Gonzalez have been selected as part of the group exhibition.

The 2nd Forum on Crocodiles in the Philippines is slated to be held at the SEAMEO- Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) inside the University of the Philippines Los Banos campus in Laguna, Philippines on 6-8 March 2019.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Agriculture, Crocodylus Porosus Philipines, Inc. has selected the UPLB Museum of Natural History as an academic institutional partner to ensure that the forum touch base with scientists, students, environmentalists, conservationists and other professionals.

UPLB Museum of Natural History Director and Curator for Birds Dr. Juan Carlos T. Gonzalez as well as Dr. Marian P. De Leon, Curator of the MNH Microbial Culture Collection were session speakers during the 10th meeting of the Asian Network of Research Resource Centers held from 5-7 September 2018 at the Korea Science and Technology Center in Seoul.

Dr. De Leon presented a paper on "Antibiogram Profile of Putative Pathogenic Bacteria from Bat Guano of a Philippine Cave" while Dr. Gonzalez discussed his research on the "Use of Museum Skins in Understanding Phylogeny, Species limits, Trait evolution and Parasitism."