It must be the charm of the place or the determined fervor of its local government, led by Mayor Bernard A. Sepulveda that has made Borbon part of my routine. Much as I would want to deny it, the Takyong Village has made its home in my heart.
Takyong is scientifically known as Helecostyla Daphnis is a bush snail rumored to be endangered. I say rumored for our further study of the snail has made us see that though endemic to Cebu, sightings have been noted in other parts of the province aside from Borbon. It was in Borbon though that we first got introduced.
The Takyong is the subject of the proposed business of Southwestern University’s College of Business Adminsitration for the One Cebu Program of the Province of Cebu.
The snail is cooked as a delicacy in the municipality of Borbon.
I think I have introduced you to Takyong a few issues ago. The beauty of this snail is that is does not feed on leaves or on the bark of the trees. It does not harm the environment since it only feeds on fresh mountain dew and algae or fungi that grow on the bark of the trees.
Takyong survives in a cool climate, and needs a tree or bushes to adhere to, to keep it from pests as it does not have an operculum, the hard shell that covers the bottom of the snail like that of an escargot.
In our visits to Borbon, we noted that the Takyong Village or the natural habitat of the Takyong in Borbon is now declared as a regulated area for Takyong havesting to keep the population of the snail within a sustainable level. Only private farms are allowed to harvest the snail for commercial purposes.
Some of the local folks of Borbon who used to cut trees for wood now see the value to keeping the forests to keep their newfound asset alive and thriving.
A piece of Takyong generates one to four pesos each depending on its size or weight. The amount affords more than a bundle of firewood can fetch. The discovery of the value of Takyong in the area has brought about an awareness of its potential for enterprise and has forged more advocacies for the environment.
A pleasant offshoot of SWU’s project with Borbon is the municipality’s program on eco-tourism which encourages tourists to visit the place and plant trees. Where in some eco- tours the mantra is to “take nothing but pictures and leave nothing but footprints,” in the Takyong Village, they are asked to leave trees, and take memories.