The Mati Protected Landscape is a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

located in Davao Oriental on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao. It protects the watershed in

Mati Mati may refer to: Geography * Mati, Davao Oriental, Philippines, a city ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Mati ** Mati Protected Landscape, a protected area in Davao Oriental, Philippines ** Mati Airport, Davao Oriental, Philippines *Mati, a barangay ...

which is the source of water supply for the city's Mati Waterworks System. The protected area was established in 1967 when of forest in Central Mati was proclaimed as the Mati Watershed Forest Reserve through Proclamation No. 222 issued by President

Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. ( , , ; September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, dictator, and kleptocrat who was the 10th president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled under martial ...

. Under the National Integrated Protected Areas System, the area was reclassified as a protected landscape with the signing of Proclamation No. 912 in 2005 by President Gloria Arroyo.

Description

The Mati Protected Landscape covers an area of and a buffer zone of in '' Barangay'' Central in Mati. It straddles the coastal '' sitios'' of Sudlon and Ugilan containing the headwaters that supply the city's water, namely Banahaw Creek, Binuangan Creek, Licop Creek and the Bitanagan River. Its topography is mountainous and hilly, with slopes varying from flat to undulating and steep. The area's soil is characterized as sandy

clay loam Loam (in geology and soil science) is soil composed mostly of sand (particle size > ), silt (particle size > ), and a smaller amount of clay (particle size < ). By weight, its mineral composition is about 40–40–20% concentration of sand–sil ...

belonging to the Camansa series. The Mati City Proper borders the protected area and its peripheral zone to the north, the

Pujada Bay Pujada Bay, sometimes (usually historically) called Pujaga Bay, is a bay on the Pacific coast of the southern Philippine island of Mindanao. It is an arm of the Philippine Sea in Davao Oriental province formed by the Guanguan Peninsula which sep ...

to the east, the barangay of Badas to the south, and the northern foothills of the Hamiguitan Range to the west. It is accessible via a barangay road from the city proper where the Mati Airport is located. It can also be reached via a highway from Davao City, the region's capital and largest city.

Flora and fauna

The protected area is known to harbor several bird species, some of which are endemic to the region, such as the

Philippine collared dove The Philippine collared dove (''Streptopelia dusumieri'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It was formerly considered a subspecies of the island collared dove (''S. bitorquata''). The species occurs in the Philippines where it is ...

, white-eared brown dove,

Philippine serpent-eagle The Philippine serpent eagle (''Spilornis holospilus'') is an eagle found in the major islands of the Philippines. It is sometimes treated as a race of the crested serpent eagle (''Spilornis cheela''). This species is usually found in forest clea ...

Philippine spine-tailed swift The Philippine spinetail (''Mearnsia picina''), also known as the Philippine needletail or Philippine spine-tailed swift, is a species of swift in the family Apodidae. It is endemic to the Philippines found in the islands of Mindanao and Visaya ...

lowland white-eye The lowland white-eye (''Zosterops meyeni'') is a species of bird in the family Zosteropidae. It is endemic to the northern part of the Philippines and the Taiwanese islands of Lüdao and Lanyu. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical m ...

, Philippine bulbul, Philippine falconet,

rufous coucal The rufous coucal (''Centropus unirufus'') is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae. It is found in Luzon and proximate islands in the Philippines. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest. It is threatened by h ...

, as well as

olive-backed sunbird The olive-backed sunbird (''Cinnyris jugularis''), also known as the yellow-bellied sunbird, is a species of sunbird found from Southern Asia to Australia. Taxonomy In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description ...

chestnut-headed bee-eater The chestnut-headed bee-eater (''Merops leschenaulti''), or bay-headed bee-eater, is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family Meropidae. It is a resident breeder in the Indian subcontinent and adjoining regions, ranging from India east to ...

, rufous-tailed jungle flycatcher, long-tailed shrike and

black-naped oriole The black-naped oriole (''Oriolus chinensis'') is a passerine bird in the oriole family that is found in many parts of Asia. There are several distinctive populations within the wide distribution range of this species and in the past the slende ...

. Its flora include common agricultural plants such as coconuts, some fruit trees and ''

ipil-ipil ''Leucaena leucocephala'' is a small fast-growing Mimosoideae, mimosoid tree native to southern Mexico and northern Central America (Belize and Guatemala) and is now naturalized throughout the tropics including parts of Asia. Common names inc ...

''.

References

{{Protected areas in the Davao Region Protected landscapes of the Philippines Geography of Davao Oriental Protected areas established in 1967 1967 establishments in the Philippines