By Sarwell Meniano
TACLOBAN CITY – The municipal government of Tunga, Leyte, has officially confirmed sightings of the endangered Philippine tarsier in one of its villages.
In a social media update posted on Thursday, the local tourism office announced that a tarsier was recently spotted in Astorga village by Julios Aglosulos, who shared photos online.
A photo taken in November 2023 of the primate spotted in Tunga town has been circulating on the internet. The tarsier was observed clinging to a young coconut tree leaf.
“As indicated by their large eyes, Philippine tarsiers are nocturnal creatures well-suited to their dim habitats. Presently, the tarsier has returned to its natural environment,” stated the tourism office.
Locally called mago, tarsier is a primate endemic to the Philippines and commonly found in the islands of Bohol, Samar, and Leyte, including Biliran and Maripipi islands.
This is the second recent sighting of a Philippine tarsier in Leyte Island.
In 2022, a sighting of a tarsier was documented in Tacloban during the night survey by the University of the Philippines Tacloban in Sta. Elena village.
A nocturnal, its main diet is insects like grasshoppers, crickets, spiders, and small vertebrates such as small lizards and birds. (PNA)
