Community-Based Inventory and Assessment of Riverine and Riparian Ecosystems in the Northeastern Part of Mt. Malindang, Misamis Occidental Proserpina Gomez-Roxas Renato D. Boniao Erlinda M. Burton Annabella Gorospe-Villarino Sherwin S. Nacua Community-Based Inventory and Assessment of Riverine and Riparian Ecosystems in the Northeastern Part of Mt. Malindang, Misamis Occidental Proserpina Gomez-Roxas, Renato D. Boniao, Erlinda M. Burton, Annabella Gorospe-Villarino, Sherwin S. Nacua Biodiversity Research Programme (BRP) for Development in Mindanao: Focus on Mt. Malindang and Environs The Biodiversity Research Programme (BRP) for Development in Mindanao is a collaborative research programme on biodiversity management and conservation jointly undertaken by Filipino and Dutch researchers in Mt. Malindang and its environs, Misamis Occidental, Philippines. It is committed to undertake and promote participatory and interdisciplinary research that will promote sustainable use of biological resources, and effective decision-making on biodiversity conservation to improve livelihood and cultural opportunities. BRP aims to make biodiversity research more responsive to real-life problems and development needs of the local communities, by introducing a new mode of knowledge generation for biodiversity management and conservation, and to strengthen capacity for biodiversity research and decision-making by empowering the local research partners and other local stakeholders. Philippine Copyright 2005 by the Biodiversity Research Programme for Development in Mindanao: Focus on Mt. Malindang and Environs. SEAMEO SEARCA, College, Laguna. ISBN 971-560-116-2 Wildlife Gratuitous Permit No. 105 for the collection of wild floral and faunal specimens including planktons and benthos for taxonomic purposes, issued by DENR-PAWB, Diliman, Quezon City on 22 April 2002. Any views presented in this publication are solely of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of SEARCA, SEAMEO, or any of the member governments of SEAMEO. Funding for BRP is provided by the Netherlands Ministry for Development Cooperation (DGIS) through the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA). Table of Contents Introduction 1 Background 1 The Biodiversity Research Programme in Mindanao: Focus on Mt. Malindang (BRP) 1 Riparian Ecosystems 1 Rationale 2 Objectives 2 Limitations of the Study 3 Review of Related Literature 4 The Riverine and Riparian Ecosystems 4 Factors Affecting River Systems 4 Role of Water in an Aquatic Ecosystem 5 Land and Water Interrelationship 5 Soils and the Riparian Areas 6 Organic matter 6 Soil pH in H2O and KCl 6 Bulk Density 7 Riparian Flora and Biodiversity 7 Streamside Vegetation 7 Riparian Forests 8 Riparian Vascular Flora 8 Diatoms 9 River and Riparian Fauna 9 Vertebrates 9 Cryptozoans 10 Macroinvertebrates as Water Quality Indicators 11 Coliform Load 13 Microorganisms in Water 14 Riparian Management and Development 15 Participatory Approach in Riparian Management 16 Community Socioeconomic Condition and Environmental Sustainability 17 Materials and Methods 19 Entry Protocols 19 Participatory Approach 19 Assessment of Riparian Soils and Biodiversity 20 Soil Sampling 20 Laboratory Analyses 20 Soil pH (pH-H2O and pH-KCl) 20 Organic Matter (Loss on Ignition) 21 Bulk density 21 Floral Diversity 21 Establishment of Belts 21 Collection of Taxonomic Data and Identification of the Plant 21 Analysis of Data 22 Community-Based Inventory and Assessment of Riverine and Riparian Ecosystems in the Northeastern Part of Mt. Malindang iii Faunal Survey 22 Survey of Birds 22 Terrestrial, Amphibian and Aquatic Fauna 23 Terrestrial Fauna 23 Amphibians and Reptiles 24 Aquatic Animals 24 Cryptozoans 25 Macroinvertebrates 25 Coliform Load 26 Collection of Water Samples 26 Laboratory Analysis 26 Test for Coliform Bacteria 26 Procedure 26 IMViC Tests 27 Methyl Red Test 27 Voges-Proskauer Test 27 Indole Test 27 Simmon Citrate Test 27 Socioeconomic Characteristics 28 Research Strategies 28 Description of the Population and Sample 28 Instruments Used in the Study 28 Administration of Survey and Conduct of Focus Group Discussions 29 Questionnaire Survey 28 Focus Group Discussions 29 Collation and Analysis of Data 29 Results and Discussion 30 Physical, Social and Cultural Settings 30 Physical Landscape 30 Cultural and Political Settings 31 Physiological Characteristics: Riverine and Riparian Soils 31 Soil pH 31 Organic Matter 32 Bulk Density 33 Biological Characteristics: Diversity of Organisms 33 Vascular Flora 33 River and Riparian Fauna of the Langaran River 37 Birds 37 Amphibians and Reptiles 41 Mammals 43 Aquatic Fauna 43 Macroinvertebrates 47 Cryptozoans 51 Coliform Load of the Water in Langaran River 52 Socioeconomic Characteristics 55 Demographic Profile Religion 55 Ethnicity 55 Education 56 Sources of Income 56 Other Sources of Income 56 Activities of the Communities 58 Fishing for Subsistence 58 Farming 59 Quarrying 59 iv Technical Report Environmental Condition of the River 59 Community Environmental Awareness 60 Environmental Laws and Regulations 60 Community Problems 61 Education 61 Lack of Available Information and Training 61 Growing Population 62 Low Production and Income 62 Lack of Telecommunication Facilities 63 Unfavorable Political Conditions 63 Faulty Implementation of Laws and Ordinances 64 Gambling and Drug Addiction 64 Conflict between Groups 64 Opportunities 64 Information Dissemination 65 Improving the State of the River 65 Government Support 66 People’s Perceptions on Community-Based Management 67 Roles of Women 67 Attitudes toward Conservation and Management of the River and Riparian Areas 68 Summary and Conclusions 70 Conservation and Rehabilitation Issues and Concerns 70 Recommendations 74 Management Options and Strategies 74 BRP-Supported Strategies 75 Trainings on Alternative Technologies 75 Linkages with Government Agencies 76 Development of Appropriate Information System 76 References 77 Community-Based Inventory and Assessment of Riverine and Riparian Ecosystems in the Northeastern Part of Mt. Malindang v Tables Table 1 Soil pH of the Langaran River (riparian zones) within the studied 33 five barangays Table 2 Bulk density and organic matter values between barangays 33 Table 3 Characteristics of the plant community in each barangay 34 Table 4 Similarity indices to compare the vegetation of barangays along 36 the Langaran River Table 5 Comparison of the barangays in terms of indices (and 40 percentages relative to the total of the barangay) describing bird community Table 6 Sorensen’s Similarity Index (expressed as %) to compare 41 similarities among bird communities of the barangays Table 7 List of amphibians and reptiles recorded in the river and riparian 42 areas of the five barangays along the Langaran River from April to May 2002 Table 8 List of mammals surveyed in the riparian zones of five 44 barangays along the Langaran River from April to May 2002 Table 9 List of fishes caught in the waters within the five barangays 46 along Langaran River from April to May 2002 Table 10 List of unconfirmed fish species reported to be present in 47 Langaran River by locals during the community validation meeting but were not collected nor observed during fieldwork Table 11 Scoring of macroinvertebrates and the Water Quality Index of 49 the four study barangays of the Langaran River Table 12 Cryptozoans found in the five barangays along the Langaran 52 River Table 13 Bacterial density (most probable number or MPN per 100 ml 54 water sample) in each of the four barangays Table 14 Results of IMViC tests for water samples from the Langaran 54 River Table 15 Household population of the five barangays 57 Table 16 Age distribution of respondents per barangay 57 Table 17 Ethnic affiliation of respondents per barangay 57 Table 18 Educational attainment of respondents per barangay 57 Table 19 Main occupation of people per barangay 58 Table 20 Attitude and value orientation of the respondents on the 69 conservation and management of river and riparian resources Figures Figure 1 Diagrammatic representation of the issues and related factors in 71 the Langaran River Figure 2 Diagram showing the activities that threaten the Langaran River 73 vi Technical Report Appendices Appendix 1 Description of the local terms used by the local folks in 85 Ethnobotany Appendix 2 A Guide to Freshwater Invertebrates of Ponds and Streams in 86 Thailand Appendix 3 Preparation of Double Strength Lactose Bile Broth (LB) 91 Appendix 4 Preparation of Single Strength LB 91 Appendix 5 Preparation of Brilliant Green Lactose Broth (BGLB) 91 Appendix 6 Preparation of E. coli Broth (EC) 91 Appendix 7 Preparation of Mc Conkey Agar Plates 91 Appendix 8 MPN (Most Probable Number) Index for Various Combination of 92 Positive Results when Five Tubes are Used per Dilution (10 ml, 1.0 ml, .01 ml) Appendix 9 Preparation of Nutrient Broth Glucose (NBG) 93 Appendix 10 Preparation of 5% Alpha Naphthol 93 Appendix 11 Preparation of 40% Potassium Hydroxide (KOH) 93 Appendix 12 Preparation of Tryptone Broth (Indole) 93 Appendix 13 Preparation of Slants for Simmon Citrate Test 93 Appendix 14 DENR-AO 34 s. 1990. Coliform Standards (MPN/100 ml of water) 93 for freshwater of different usage Appendix Tables Appendix Table 1 List of plants found along the Langaran River 94 Appendix Table 2 Plant families and their component species found in the riparian 101 zones of the Langaran River Appendix Table 3 Checklist of riverine and riparian vascular flora found