If you love nature, then you'll love the Philippines. The country is recognized by biologists as having the most spectacular diversity of life to be found anywhere on the planet.
The Philippine rainforests are home to rare and exotic plants and animals. They host 8,000 species of flowering plants, 3,2500 indigenous trees, and 240 species of mammals. About 40% of the flowering plants and 67% of the mammal species found in these forests are found no where else in the world.
The country hosts more than 750 species of birds, more than those found in Australia, Japan or any other Southeast Asian country. The world's smallest falcon (right), is found in the Philippines. It's called the Philippine Falconet and is tiny at only about two and half inches long.
The Philippine Eagle (left), also called the "monkey-eating eagle," is the world’s largest eagle. It measures up to five and a half feet in height with a wingspan of seven feet, and is one of the most endangered species in the world. More than half of the bird species found in the Philippines can be found nowhere else on the planet.
The Philippines also has the highest concentration of butterflies in the world. It has 895 species of butterflies, and about 352 of these species are endemic to the country. It also hosts about 25,000 species of insects, the largest of which is the giant moth with a wingspan of one foot.
The Philippines is also home to the largest number of species of bats (at least 56 out of the 1,000 known bat species in the world). The world's biggest bats- the giant flying fox and the golden crown flying fox can be found in the virgin forests of Luzon, particularly in Corregidor and in Subic Bay.
Other rare and endemic species include: the Tamaraw of Mindoro, which looks like a dwarf carabao but is as fierce as a tiger; the Tarsier, the world's smallest primate (right); the Mouse Deer of Palawan, the world's smallest deer, the Philippine Spotted Deer and the Warty Pig.
The Largest Eagle in the World - This article provides interesting information about the Philippine eagle's "vital statistics," proving that it is the largest eagle in the world. Site is a wonderful resource about biodiversity conservation in the country. Find out how you too can participate in saving the many, rare Philippine treasures.
Good news for Philippine Eagle - features the creation of the largest contiguous protected area for the Philippine Eagle, now covering a region larger than Switzerland!
Rare and Endangered animals in the Philippines - Provides information on some of the rarest and endangered animals in the world that are endemic to the Philippines. Includes profiles, pictures, tidbits and more references.