BALIKTANAW - Kasaysayan at Kalikasan Webinar: Dr. Leticia E. Afuang
Channel: UPLB MNH
Date: 2021-06-16

Video recording of the Baliktanaw: Kasaysayan at Kalikasan Webinar (16 June 2021) on "Herpetofaunal studies in the Philippines, a recall" by Dr. Leticia E. Afuang, curator for herpetofauna of the UPLB Museum of Natural History.

SUMMARY OF TALK

"With more than 1,500 accumulated references, the history of herpetological studies in the Philippines shall be unfolded. The recall starts with the very minimal 14th to the 18th century (1500 to 1700) record citations, to the birth of systematic records in the 1800s by a mix of various naturalists like Shaw, Kuhl, Boie, Weigmann, Dumeril, Gunther, Boulenger, Boettger and others. This period is highlighted by the establishment of the systematic catalog of all the Philippine fauna and the first museum of natural history in the Philippines at the University of Santo Tomas.
The 20th century records from 1901-1950 starts slow with relatively limited number of herpetologists but whose studies serve as the rich baseline for the next generation. This is primarily highlighted by the works of Taylor which were then housed in the Bureau of Science in Manila but was burned in 1945 during the war with Japan.  This period was augmented by Griffin, Boulenger, Tubangui, Villadolid, Myers, Herre and others. The latter half of the century (1951-2000) boasts of the collections of Dioscoro S. Rabor, regarded as the Father of Philippine wildlife conservation, and the publications of Angel C. Alcala, the father of Philippine Herpetology and his adviser and collaborator, Walter C. Brown. Their works and those of Leviton, Inger, Gaulke, Auffenberg, and Ota plus the emerging tandem of Arvin C. Diesmos and Rafe M. Brown beefed up the almost five hundred publications during that period.

In the 21st century until today, we see more Filipinos joining the bandwagon for Philippine Herpetological studies. Diesmos and Brown continue to lead this generation but several young Filipino herpetologists trained at the University of the Philippines Los Baños are emerging. Local and international collaborative outputs from Sierra Madre, Caraballos, Cordilleras, Ilocos, Mindanao and Visayas, and other parts of the country are now confidently shared to the world. These studies are not only on the very rich, unique and still to be described species but also on trafficking, ecology and biology of the herpetofauna of the Philippines."

Baliktanaw: Kasaysayan at Kalikasan Webinar is a component of the University of the Philippines System/University of the Philippines Los Baños "Gahum sa Buut" Quincentennial Commemoration activities.

No copyright infringement intended. Music used during the start of the webinar is a material endorsed for sharing and promotion by the National Quincentennial Committee Philippines in activities which are contributory to the whole Quincentennial Commemorations in 2021.

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"BAGANI Quincentennial Theme Song (Housewarming/Background Music)"
https://youtu.be/9_CKskcnCr0

Arrangement: Joel Cruz
Conducted by: Maestro Jiovanni Tabada
Produced by: The Cebu Philharmonic Orchestra