Eaglet named ‘Mabuhay’

DAVAO CITY, Philippines – “Mabuhay.” The word denotes life, and a warm welcome. It is the name chosen for the first offspring of Pag-asa, the first Philippine Eagle bred in captivity.

The ninang (godmother) of the eaglet, now a week old and thriving, picked the name, according to Philippine Eagle Foundation executive director Dennis Salvador. The donor remains anonymous.

The Tagalog word mabuhay can mean “welcome,” “to live,” “live well” or simply “hello.”

Salvador said the sponsor was given the privilege to name the eaglet after pledging P168,888.88 for the bird’s upkeep at the Philippine Eagle Center in Barangay Malagos, Calinan district, this city.

The amount the donor pledged was more than the P150,000 required for sponsoring an eagle.

Salvador said the donor, who described herself as an ordinary employee, pledged to adopt the eaglet as long as it is alive.

The donor reportedly got the money from her savings and opted to remain unnamed so that the focus would be on the Philippine Eagle and the cause of conserving the endangered giant raptor.

The eaglet, the 25th bred in captivity at the Malagos Eagle Center, was a product of artificial insemination between Pag-asa and the 29-year old female eagle Kalinawan.

The eaglet was hatched last Feb. 9 at the Malagos Eagle Center, 48 hours after it started breaking out of its shell.

Kalinawan was rescued in Zamboanga del Norte and turned over to the Philippine Eagle Foundation in 2009.

Kalinawan is one of the giant raptors kept in the eagle gene pool at the Malagos Eagle Center.

Salvador told The STAR that Kalinawan is also among the seven eagles at the Malagos Center that have been offered for adoption.

The same system prevails for the adoption of an eagle, wherein the sponsor gives P150,000 annually for the upkeep of the bird. The amount could be brought down to P125,000 a year if the adoption would be for five consecutive years.

There are currently fewer than 1,000 Philippine Eagles nationwide including the 34 at Malagos.

Most of the eagles in the wild are found in the forests of Mindanao and Samar in the Visayas.