‘Kagwangs’ not ‘aswangs’

Not human food, so don't hunt the Philippine flying lemur

A kagwang holds on to the trunk of a tree at the Raja Sikatuna Protected Landscape in Bohol. Philip Godfrery C. Jakosalem, Philippine Biodiversity Conservation Foundation Inc.

Not to be confused with your mythical evil creature “aswang”, the Philippine flying lemur is called “kagwang”.  

It sounds like “aswang”, really, but this creature is not flesh-eating mammal.  It eats young leaves and soft fruits. 

Hence, they are not guilty of the wild accusation that they kill animal livestock. 

The Philippine flying lemur or Philippine colugo is also not a bad omen so please stop spreading rumors that they bring bad luck. 

This nocturnal animal has the habit of jumping and gliding from one tree to the other that is why they are often mistaken as the dreaded “aswang”, which our oldies use to incite fear among the young who wants to wander around at night.

The kagwang is in fact a gentle creatures.   

They are hunted down by preys on top of the food chain, and are the favourite meal of the ultimate predator in the wild – the Philippine eagle, and humans who hunt them down because they believe they pose danger to humans and their animal livestock. 

Some have more hideous intention in hunting them down – they want to make bar chow out of these nocturnal mammals. Authorities say they are not human food so please, stop hunting them and leave them in peace.

In Bohol, the skin of the kagwang are made into fashion hats.  Others kill them for trophy, making them displays like other stuffed animals.

They are listed as “threatened” by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

Nobody knows much about their population in the wild but the DENR says they are threatened by extinction mainly because of massive destruction of the forest and hunting.

Kagwang is endemic to Southern Philippines, which means they can only be found in Mindanao and some parts of Visayas.

According to Director Mundita S. Lim, losing them means losing the species forever. 

There are only two of its kind in the world.  The other species can be found elsewhere in Southeast Asia.

So please, stop killing them and stop destroying their natural habitats.