FIRST TRIP 13: Bubalus mindorensis

When I first set foot on Mindoro island four months ago, I declared to my co-workers that I wanted to have my picture taken beside a tamaraw. They all laughed at me. Forgive my ignorance but I really thought the tamaraw was much like our friendly neighborhood kalabaw. It turned out it is a wild animal and so fierce that attempting to pose beside it is next to impossible.

But then I proved them wrong. Today I got my picture taken with not one but two tamaraws! Here’s the proof: ta-daaaa!

OK, I cheated. Sort of, hehe. Because the two tamaraws are kept in captivity at the Gene Pool Farm in Rizal town. There are only two of them left there now: mother and calf. The calf, named Kalibasib, was born in the farm.

Tamaraws are found nowhere else on earth except in Mindoro. Sadly, it now ranks among the most critically endangered species on earth, its population dwindling to a pitiful 263 heads due primarily to destruction of their habitat. If only we can ensure that they continue to have a place to live in – the remaining forests of Mindoro – then perhaps they will have a chance at avoiding the way of the dinosaurs.