Philippine pangolin 2015 stamp of the Philippines

The Philippine pangolin or Palawan pangolin (''Manis culionensis''), also locally known as ''balintong'', is a

pangolin Pangolins, sometimes known as scaly anteaters, are mammals of the order Pholidota (, from Ancient Greek ϕολιδωτός – "clad in scales"). The one extant family, the Manidae, has three genera: ''Manis'', ''Phataginus'', and ''Smutsia' ...

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to the

Palawan Palawan (), officially the Province of Palawan ( cyo, Probinsya i'ang Palawan; tl, Lalawigan ng Palawan), is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in t ...

province of the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. Its habitat includes primary and secondary forests, as well as surrounding grasslands. This species is moderately common within its limited range, but is at risk due to heavy hunting because of its valued scales and meat. This species is distinguished from the closely related Sunda pangolin by its smaller body-to-tail ratio, smaller scales, and a shorter head. It is listed as ''Critically Endangered'' by the IUCN, and ''Critically Endangered'' by the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development (PCSD).

Taxonomy

Taxidermied_Philippine_Pangolin_displayed_at_Philippine_National_Museum

The species was first described by Casto de Elera in 1885; it was also mentioned by de Elera in an 1895 work. In the past, this species has been included with the

Sunda pangolin The Sunda pangolin (''Manis javanica''), also known as the Malayan or Javan pangolin, is a species of pangolin. It is found throughout Southeast Asia, including Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, and the islands of ...

, ''Manis javanica'', but has been considered a distinct species since 1998. Five distinct morphological characteristics involving the skull and the scales have been identified which separate it from the closely related ''M. javanica''. Both ''M. javanica'' and ''M. culionensis'' are grouped in

subgenus In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between t ...

''Paramanis''. Genetic isolation leading to the

speciation Speciation is the evolutionary process by which populations evolve to become distinct species. The biologist Orator F. Cook coined the term in 1906 for cladogenesis, the splitting of lineages, as opposed to anagenesis, phyletic evolution within ...

between these species is hypothesized to have been caused by rising sea levels severing a

land bridge In biogeography, a land bridge is an isthmus or wider land connection between otherwise separate areas, over which animals and plants are able to cross and colonize new lands. A land bridge can be created by marine regression, in which sea lev ...

from

Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and ea ...

in the

Early Pleistocene The Early Pleistocene is an unofficial sub-epoch in the international geologic timescale in chronostratigraphy, being the earliest division of the Pleistocene Epoch within the ongoing Quaternary Period. It is currently estimated to span the time ...

. The generic name ''Manis'' is from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

chthonic deity

Manes In ancient Roman religion, the ''Manes'' (, , ) or ''Di Manes'' are chthonic deities sometimes thought to represent souls of deceased loved ones. They were associated with the ''Lares'', '' Lemures,'' '' Genii'', and '' Di Penates'' as deities (' ...

, while the specific name ''culionensis'' refers to the island of

Culion Culion, officially the Municipality of Culion ( tgl, Bayan ng Culion), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Palawan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 23,213 people. Culion consists primarily of Culion ...

. The local name '' balintong'' (also or ) means "one who rolls over" or "one who somersaults" in the

Visayan Visayans (Visayan: ''mga Bisaya''; ) or Visayan people are a Philippine ethnolinguistic group or metaethnicity native to the Visayas, the southernmost islands of Luzon and a significant portion of Mindanao. When taken as a single ethnic group, ...

Cuyonon language Cuyonon is a regional Bisayan language spoken on the coast of Palawan and the Cuyo Islands in the Philippines.Palawan language, it is also known as (also spelled ), also with the same meaning.

Description

The Philippine pangolin is roughly long, plus a tail. It weighs . Philippine pangolins in captivity can live up to approximately 20 years. It is covered in small triangular scales made of

keratin Keratin () is one of a family of structural fibrous proteins also known as ''scleroproteins''. Alpha-keratin (α-keratin) is a type of keratin found in vertebrates. It is the key structural material making up scales, hair, nails, feathers, ho ...

everywhere except the underbelly and face, making up at least 20% of the body weight. It regrows new scales when they are lost and always has the same number of scales throughout their lifespan. The scales come in shades of brown, yellow and olive, making for adequate camouflage at night. Newer offspring have much softer scales than adults and tend to weight about . Areas of the body without scales are covered in a layer of hair. The Philippine pangolin has five sharp claws per foot and powerful appendages used for digging. However, these claws are not used as weapons for attacking or defending other animals. Pangolins can also run solely on their hind legs for a duration, using their tail for balance. Its tail is

prehensile Prehensility is the quality of an appendage or organ that has adapted for grasping or holding. The word is derived from the Latin term ''prehendere'', meaning "to grasp". The ability to grasp is likely derived from a number of different origi ...

, allowing it to grab onto branches or stand on its hind legs, despite being covered in scales. The tail also aids the species with climbing and standing upright or to be used as a weapon to puncture enemies using its sharp scales. The Philippine pangolin's tongue can stretch up to 25 cm (10 inches) long and is coated in an adhesive saliva that is helpful for catching insects. Its head is cone shaped with a long snout and no teeth.

Diet

The Philippine pangolin is a myrmecophage, so has a diet consisting mainly of but not limited to termites and ants. It has in incredible sense of smell that it uses to find its food. The Philippine pangolin is seem to have strong preferences when it comes to the insects they eat, selectively consuming a certain species of ant or termite they like, or even actively avoiding certain species when there is enough of a food abundance to be picky. Its forefeet are used to dig into mounds and logs while its tongue harvests insects. The pangolin will only ever eat a portion of a termite or ant colony, leaving most of the mound/hill intact for the colony to regrow and act as a continuous food source for the pangolin later down the line. It consumes sand and small stones to help grind food in their stomachs.

Behavior

A pangolin in defensive posture, Horniman Museum, London

Philippine Pangolin Curled-up by Gregg Yan

The Philippine pangolin is

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

and reclusive, tending towards being solitary or in pairs. Because they are mainly active at night, their eyesight is below average. While their hearing is still only about average, they make up for their lack of vision with their extraordinary sense of smell. It generally travels slowly, but can move in a short burst towards safety when it becomes startled, and even has a limited ability to swim. Occasionally, it can be seen standing on its hind legs, balancing on its tail, to help detect nearby predators. While some of their time is spent on the ground foraging, Philippine pangolins are

arboreal Arboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some animals may scale trees only occasionally, but others are exclusively arboreal. The habitats pose nu ...

, and tend to stay in the tree canopy. When sleeping, they prefer to take refuge inside hollow trees. When threatened, they, like all pangolins, secrete a foul odor and roll into a ball, relying on the protection provided by their scales. Many even sleep rolled up into a ball to protect themselves while they are unaware.> They are not known for being territorial animals, but they may be seen leaving their scent to let others know they've taken refuge there for a while.

Reproduction

While little is known about the reproduction of Philippine pangolins, their mating habits are thought to be similar to those of the Sunda pangolin. Like most pangolins, Philippine pangolins mate in the spring. The same odorous secretion used as a self-defense mechanism is also used in mating habits. The secretion is used by males to assert against other males, attract a mate, and are used by the mother while nurturing their young. The young are born after a gestation period around 18 weeks and are suckled by their mothers about four months. Usually only one offspring is born at once, and they are carried around on the mothers back for a time. When sleeping or threatened, the mother tends to roll in a ball for defense like usual, but with the young cradled in a ball of their own, encompassed in the mother's ball. At the age of about 5 months, young will separate from their mother. Female pangolins even adopt lone young that have lost their own mother.

Hunting and conservation

The Philippine pangolin, much like every other species of pangolin, is considered threatened due to how sought after they are to hunters. Other than the meat, which is a delicacy in certain Asian cultures, the Philippine Pangolin is hunted for their scales, organs, and skin, which are used in traditional medicine. In 2016, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) listed the animal as protected under Appendix I (meaning commercial international trade was prohibited) due to how much international trade influenced pangolin hunting. The

Zoological Society of London The Zoological Society of London (ZSL) is a charity devoted to the worldwide conservation of animals and their habitats. It was founded in 1826. Since 1828, it has maintained the London Zoo, and since 1931 Whipsnade Park. History On 29 ...

has listed the mammal as an

EDGE species Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered (EDGE) species are animal species which have a high 'EDGE score', a metric combining endangered conservation status with the genetic distinctiveness of the particular taxon. Distinctive species have ...

References

External links

IUCN SSC Pangolin Specialist Group – Philippine pangolin
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1339663 Manis Pangolin, Philippine Mammals of the Philippines Endemic fauna of the Philippines Fauna of Palawan