Data Zone
Country/territory: Philippines
IBA criteria met: A1, A2 (2001)
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 4,000 ha
Site description (2001 baseline)
This IBA includes a group of forest remnants on a limestone ridge adjacent to Iglit-Baco National Park, a few kilometres to the south of Siburan (PH042). The ridge peaks at just below 1,000 m, and is forested for several kilometres. Clearance has been very recent here, such that many big trees and residual patches of forest exist in the lowlands, especially along field edges and watercourses. Continuous forest is now only found on the sides of steep, narrow ridges. Here the forest was on very irregular broken ground, creating heterogeneous forest types with many areas of scrubby thickets and few tracts of tall shady forest.
Key biodiversity
All of the endemic lowland forest species of the Mindoro Endemic Bird Area have recently been recorded at Malpalon, although Mindoro Bleeding-heart is known from there only by unconfirmed reports. It is therefore of considerable conservation importance, despite the limited amount of undisturbed forest that remains there.
Non-bird biodiversity: A species of wild pig occurs at Malpalon, and Tamaraw Bubalus mindorensis was present there in the past and still occurs nearby.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Malpalon (Philippines). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/malpalon-iba-philippines on 22/11/2024.