‘Tarsier died of heart attack’

MANILA, Philippines - The Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau (PAWB) reported yesterday its initial findings that the tarsier that died a few days after it was found at the Manila Golf Club in Makati succumbed to heart failure.

PAWB Director Theresa Mundita Lim said the necropsy conducted on the tarsier showed that the animal had also contracted pneumonia.

“This means the tarsier, which is a vulnerable animal, had been exposed to stressful conditions,” Lim noted.

She added that the nocturnal creature that thrives in Bohol will be brought to the University of the Philippines College of Veterinary Medicine so that histopathology or microscopic examination of the tarsier’s tissue could be conducted and confirm the findings. The process would reportedly take two weeks.

A caddy found the tarsier on a tree branch inside the Manila Golf Club.

The tarsier was turned over to the PAWB and since then was kept in a quarantine cage.