A RECENT study shows a moth species endemic to Baguio City can be found at the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) tree park.
The Pine Looper Moth (Milioniacoronifera) was found to be a moth species endemic only in Baguio City, according to University of the Philippines Baguio (UP-Baguio) Biology professor, Dr. Zenaida Baoanan, in the study, “Valuation of the Ecological Services of the GSIS Tree Park at Baguio City.”
“The moth is still understudied. Since it is endemic, it is prone to extinction. We don't know yet the other values of it but it feeds on pine trees. Without the pine trees, they will also perish,” Baoanan said.
The moth was conferred protection in the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Administrative Order 2019-09.
GSIS Tree Park has 49 plant species including pine trees (Pinus kesiya) and agoho trees (Casuarina equisetifolia), 35 invertebrate species, including the Pine Looper Moth, and 24 bird species, 33 percent of which are endemic to the city.
It was learned the tree park is also a migratory path for other birds.
The GSIS tree park is one of the remaining green patches of the city.
Bankrolled by the UPB Cordillera Studies Center, the study was conducted by the team of Baoanan, Dr. Corazon Abansi, Mr. Deign Frolley Soriano with Professors Liezel Magtoto and Jocelyn Floresca affirming the presence of the moth in the area.
The UP team appeared before the City Council this week and presented their study to city legislators and warned of ecological collapse if tree cutting will not stop.
An increase in heat index was also forecasted as more trees are taken out of the forest covers of the city, resulting in a dwindling of species that thrive on tree patches as their homes.
Baoanan recommended the city to have a longer moratorium on tree cutting, saying the city is already highly urbanized and all existing structures already answer to the needs of the people.