Monday, July 25, 2011
Thursday, June 30, 2011
A GLIMPSE OF TAGUM CITY
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| TAGUM CITY WELCOME PYLON |
Cited as one of the 20 most viable and most competitive business sites in the Philippines in 2005 by the Philippine Cities Competitiveness Ranking Project, it is one of the fastest-growing cities in Mindanao and in the Philippines. Tagum City has become a bustling center of culture, commerce, health services, and entertainment in the Davao Region, in Mindanao and in the southern Philippine region.
According to the actual 2010 census, more than 256,069 people live in 43,193 households. In 2006, Tagum City became the Palm Tree City of the Philippines. It also holds an unofficial record for having the tallest Christmas tree in the Philippines. At 153 feet tall, the stunning structure erected at the Freedom Park at the back of the City Hall rivaled Puerto Princesa City's 100 feet tall Christmas tree. Tagum City is also the home of the world's biggest wooden rosary, made out of ironwood, located at the Christ The King Cathedral, also one of the region's biggest Catholic churches.
Since 2000, Tagum City annually hosts the Musikahan Festival aimed at showcasing the musical talents of Tagumeños, Mindanaoans and Filipinos in general, draws thousands of visitors both locally and internationally. Currently, the city is the only one in the Philippines to have a direct joint agreement with Venezuela for cultural exchange, in line with the 11th Musikahan sa Tagum in 2011, thus supporting the City's claim as the "Cultural Center of Mindanao," and as affirmed by the University of the Philippines Diliman College of Music and College of Arts and Letters.
Tagum City hosted three major national competitions in recent years, to wit, the National English Jazz Chants Festival, the National Schools Press Conference and the 9th Musikahan Festival. The 3rd International Rondalla Festival, the first international competition Tagum City hosted, implanted the city into the roster of cultural hubs in Southeast Asia.
Tagum City has a total land area of 19,580 hectares, which is predominantly occupied by agricultural lands utilized in various kinds of crops like coconut, rice, Cavendish banana, fruit trees and other non-commercial agricultural crops.
Tagum City, from being a purely agricultural city, has become Mindanao's fastest-rising urban city due to its strategic location, being in the crossroads between the rural areas of Davao del Norte and Compostela Valley and the urban Metro Davao. Blessed with developed public infrastructure, the city manages to infiltrate the export industry with goods such as wood chips, veneer plywood, and wood lumber; however, fresh bananas remain as the chief export product of banana plantations in the city.
The rise of human resources, thanks to the influx of people from the countryside of Davao del Norte and Compostela Valley, has helped so much in the revenue generation of the City Local Government Unit (LGU).
Lately, tourism has also become of the city's main economic powerhouse. With 15 festivals in the city's calendar, the SMEs and the transportation sector has benefited with the rapid influx of domestic and international visitors visiting the various festivals conducted in the City.
DAANG MAHARLIKA (Km. 55 Tagum City)
It is located 55 kilometers north of Davao City, the main economic and administrative center of Region XI. As such, it is about 1 hour and 30 minutes travel time to Davao City. The city lies between 7°26′ N latitude and 125°48' E Longitude. It is bounded by the Municipalities of Asuncion, New Corella, and Mawab on the north, Maco on the east, and B.E. Dujali on the west. Carmen lies on its southwestern borders, while it faces the Davao Gulf directly to the south.
MAGUGPO CROSSING
Tagum City is part of Metropolitan Davao (Metro Davao), and is the crossroad among major cities in Northern Mindanao, Eastern Mindanao, and Southern Mindanao.
The city is strategically located at the northern part of southern Mindanao where it lies in the intersection of three (3) major road network system namely: the Phil-Japan Friendship Highway, the Davao-Mati, Davao-Agusan road and (soon to finished) Davao-Bukidnon road that connects the city to other major destinations in the region and in the entire Mindanao. With this, the city serves as a vital economic crossroad not only for the province, but for the entire Davao Region as well, linking Davao City to the northern city of Butuan (in Agusan del Norte), to Mati (in Davao Oriental) and the Surigao provinces.
MAGUGPO CROSSING
CENTER ISLAND
NEW PUBLIC MARKET
TAGUM OVERLAND TRANSPORT INTEGRATED TERMINAL
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| NIGHT MARKET |
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| NEW CITY HALL OF TAGUM |
TAGUM CITY PUBLIC CEMETERY
( BARANGAY LA FILIPINA)
ENERGY PARK
( BARANGAY APOKON )
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| NEW CHRIST THE KING CATHEDRAL |
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| PARISH OF CHRIST THE EUCHARISTIC KING |
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| REGINA ROSARII SHRINE |
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| MARYS WOODS |
( BARANGAY MAGDUM )
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| The Rosary World’s Largest Rosary. Weighing 2,815 kilos, this rosary at the Christ the King Cathedral in City of Tagum, Davao del Norte, Island Mindanao, Philippines – could make it to the Guinness Book of World Records as the Largest Roman Catholic Rosary in the whole world. This project of the Knight of Columbus – Christ the King Assembly has a length of 85.5 meters and is made of Magcomo (Iron Wood), native to the mountain of Davao Oriental and Surigao. Felicisimo Luta, faithful navigator of the K of C – Christ the King Assembly, said “this project was in commemoration of the 25th Anniversary of the Diocese of City of Tagum in 2005.” |
OTHER DESTINATIONS
AND
COASTAL AREAS
BIRDS AND WILD LIFE
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| Kingdom : Animalia Class : Aves Order : Psittaciformes Family : Psittacidae Genus : Lorius Species : L. garrulus The Chattering Lory, Loriusgarrulus is a forest-dwelling parrot endemic to North Maluku, Indonesia. It is considered vulnerable, the main threat being from trapping for the cage-bird trade. The race L. g. flavopalliatus is known as the Yellow-backed Lorikeet. The Chattering Lory is 30 cm (12 in) long. It is mostly red with an all-red head and an orange beak. The eyerings are grey and the irises are orange-red. The wings are mainly green and the angle of the wing is yellow. Its thighs are green. The tail is tipped with dark green. It has dark grey legs. It may or may not have a yellow area on its back depending on the subspecies. |
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Scientific Classification
Kingdom : Animalia
Phylum : Chordata
Class : Aves
Order : Falconiformes
Family : Accipitridae
Genus : Nisaetus
Species : N. philippensis
Binomial name
Nisaetus philippensis
Gould, 1863
Synonyms
Spizaetus philippensis
Description
The Philippine Hawk-eagle, known in French as aigle des Philippines and in Spanish as aguila-azor Filipina (Nisaetus philippensis earlier treated under Spizaetus is a species of bird of prey in the Accipitridae family. The subspecies pinskeri may be a candidate for raising to full species. It is endemic to the Philippines.
Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Scientific classification
Kingdom : Animalia
Phylum : Chordata
Class : Aves
Order : Falconiformes
Family : Accipitridae
Genus : Buteo
Species : Buteo platypterus
Binomial name
Buteo platypterus
(Vieillot, 1823)
Description
The Broad-winged hawk (Buteo platypterus) is a small hawk of the Buteo genus. During the summer they are distributed over most of eastern North America, to as far west as the Alberta province and Texas; they then migrate south to winter in the neotropics from Mexico down to Southern Brazil. Many of the subspecies in the Caribbean are endemic and most do not migrate.
Adult birds range in size from 34 to 45 cm (13 to 18 in), weigh from 265 to 560 g (9.4 oz to 1.2 lbs) and have a wingspan from 81 to 100 cm (32 to 40 in). As in most raptors, females are slightly larger than males. Adults have dark brown upper parts and evenly spaced black and white bands on the tail. Light morphs are pale on the underparts and underwing and have thick cinnamon bars across the belly. The light morph is most likely to be confused with the Red-shouldered Hawk, but that species has a longer, more heavily barred tail and the barred wings and solid rufous color of adult Red-shoulders are usually distinctive. Dark morphs are a darker brown on both upperparts and underparts. They are much less common than the light-coloured variant. Dark-morph Short-tailed Hawks are similar but are whitish under the tail with a single subterminal band. Broad-winged Hawks' wings are relatively short and broad with a tapered, somewhat pointed appearance unique to this species.
Kingdom : Animalia
Class : Aves
The White Cockatoo, Cacatua alba (also known as the Umbrella Cockatoo or U2), is a medium-sized, approximately 46-cm-long cockatoo endemic to the islands of Halmahera, Bacan, Ternate, Tidore, Kasiruta and Mandiole in North Maluku, Indonesia. It is a white parrot with brown or black eyes and a dark grey beak. When surprised, it extends a large and striking crest, which has a semicircular shape (similar to an umbrella, hence the alternative name). Pet White Cockatoos may raise their crests upon training, or when something catches their interest such as a new toy or person. The undersides of the wings and tail have a pale yellow or lemon color which flashes when they fly.
The White Cockatoo can live up to, and perhaps beyond, 80 years. The White Cockatoo is around 48 cm (19 in) long, and weighs about 400 grams for small females and up to 800 grams for big males. The male White Cockatoo usually has a broader head and a bigger beak than the female. During puberty, the female White Cockatoo can begin to develop a more reddish iris than the male.
The feathers of the White Cockatoo are mostly white. However, both upper and lower surfaces of the inner half of the trailing edge of the large wing feathers are a yellow color. The yellow color on the underside of the wings is most notable because the yellow portion of the upper surface of the feather is covered by the white of the feather immediately medial (nearer to the body) and above. Similarly, areas of larger tail feathers that are covered by other tail feathers – and the innermost covered areas of the larger crest feathers – are yellow. Short white feathers grow from and closely cover the upper legs.
Class : Aves
Order : Psittaciformes Family : Psittacidae
Genus : Eos
Species : E.reticulata
Binomial name : Eos reticulate
The Blue-streaked Lory, Eos reticulata, is also known as the Blue-necked Lory. It a medium size parrot (31 cm), primarily red with blue streaks from eye through ear coverts, brown-black tail, and black variegation on wing coverts.
It is found in the Tanimbar Islands and Babar, all in Indonesia. It was also introduced to the Kai Islands, but may be extinct there again. It inhabits mangrove, coconut groves, plantations and forests. Lories have unique "brush" tipped tongues, evolved for their diet of flower nectar and fruit. A highly active, gregarious bird known to travel in flocks and to sleep in their nests year round. Very social and affectionate, lorie have been kept as pets with growing popularity, their song is usually softer than other parrots except when alarmed or bored.
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World’s most dangerous bird According to the Guinness Book of Records, the Cassowaries are the world’s most dangerous birds, capable of dealing fatal blows. They are very unpredictable, aggressive creatures, especially if wounded or cornered. The Cassowary lives in the rain forests of Australia and New Guinea and are actually pretty shy animals if undisturbed, but if you get to close and it thinks you’re a threat you could receive a bone-breaking kick or get sliced by its dagger-like sharp claws. During WWII, soldiers stationed in New Guinea were warned to stay away from these birds, but some of them still became victims.The Cassowary is also one of the most difficult animals to keep in the Zoo because of the frequent injuries suffered by Zoo keepers that look after them. I like a bird that can take care of itself, but, unfortunately, this doesn’t seem to help it very much against human cruelty and it is on the endangered species list, along with so many others… |
Risso's dolphins, also known as Grampus, are one of the larger types of dolphins. Because of their size, they are usually in the deeper parts of the ocean rather than along the shores. They live in temperate and tropical waters worldwide.
They are easy to identify because of the crisscross scratch marks on their bodies. These markings increase over time and may be caused from teeth marks of other Risso's dolphins, squid bites and parasites.
Risso's dolphins are gray with a white underside. This white patch is shaped like an anchor. As they get older they become lighter in color because of all of their scratch marks. They are blunt-headed and beakless with a tall, pointed dorsal fin and flippers.
Baby Risso's (calves) are born light gray and darken as they get older. They are about 1.2-1.7 meters (4 - 5.5 feet) in length at birth.
Adult Risso's are roughly anywhere from 2.6 to 3.5 meters (8.5 to 11.5 feet) in length. They weigh and average of 300 - 500 kg (660 - 1100 lbs).
Risso's dolphins eat squid and fish. It is estimated that they live between 20 - 40 years.
These dolphins are sometimes seen in small groups (pods) of 3 - 50 individuals. But they have also been seen in very large groups of up to 4000 dolphins. Sometimes Risso's dolphins are found swimming with other types of dolphins, especially the Bottlenose dolphin.
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| "Macaca fascicularis philippinensis" is the scientific name of Philippine Long-tailed Macaque. |
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White-collared Kingfisher
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| Philippine long-tailed macaque, a subspecies of the crab-eating macaque.It is found in most Philippine forests, but especially in the mangrove forests of western central Philippines, particularly on Palawan, and down to Visayas and Mindanao |
The Philippine sailfin lizard (Hydrosaurus pustulatus) is an oviparous lizard living only in the Philippines
The Sailfin lizard is an excellent swimmer and has flattened toes that enable it to run across water. It is omnivorous, feeding on fruit , leaves, flowers, insect and small animals It lives near rivers in the tropical forests of the Philippines. Males have a larger crest on their back than the females. The males also show a violet color as they grow older. Females are less colorful.
The Philippine sailfin lizard lives mainly beside water e.g. river, riverbanks, rice-fields etc. as these lizards love to swim. The adults may reach up to a meter in length. These lizards are found in the Philippine provinces such as Leyte, Negros, Panay Island, Samar and other nearby provinces.
Insects are a class within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antenna
Green sea turtles are reptiles whose ancestors evolved on land and returned to the sea to live about 150 million years ago. They are one of the few species so ancient that they watched the dinosaurs evolve and become extinct. The biological classification of the green sea turtle is listed below:
Kingdom Anamalia Phylum Chordata (vertebrates) Class Reptilia (reptiles) Order Chelonia (turtles and tortoises) Family Cheloniidae (true sea turtles) Genus Chelonia Species mydas sub-species aggazizi (Hawaiian population)
As reptiles, green sea turtles, like all other species of sea turtles, possess the following traits:
- They are cold-blooded, meaning that they get their body heat from the environment rather than making their own.
- They breathe air
- Their skin has scales
In addition to these reptilian traits, all species of turtles have evolved a bony outer shell which protects them from predators, as turtles are not known for their speed. The shell covers both the dorsal (back) and ventral (belly) surfaces and is considered the most highly developed protective armor of any vertebrate species to have ever lived. The dorsal portion of the shell is known as the carapace and is covered with large scale-like structures called scutes. The ventral portion of the shell is known as the plastron. The carapace and plastron are connected at the sides by hard-shelled plates known as lateral bridges. Openings exist between the carapace and plastron for the head, tail, and limbs. While most species of land turtles and tortoises are able to retract their heads into their shells for added protection, sea turtles are not able to do so, and their heads remain out at all times.
The sea turtle's body is wonderfully adapted to life in the ocean. Their shells are lighter and more streamlined than those of their terrestrial counterparts, and their front and rear limbs have evolved into flippers making them efficient and graceful swimmers, capable of swimming long distances in a relatively short period of time. Sea turtles have been known to move through the water as fast as 35 mph. When active, sea turtles swim to the surface every few minutes in order to breathe. When sleeping or resting, which usually occurs at night, adult sea turtles can remain underwater for more than 2 hours without breathing. This is due to the fact that turtles are capable of containing higher concentrations of carbon dioxide in their blood than most other air-breathing animals, enabling them to use their oxygen very efficiently. Both muscles and blood are able to store oxygen in large quantities, allowing sea turtles to remain underwater for such long periods of time. Juvenile sea turtles have not developed this ability as well as adults and must sleep afloat at the water's surface.
In addition to solving the problems of swimming and breathing, sea turtles have also come up with an ingenious way to rid their bodies of the salts they accumulate from the seawater in which they live. Just behind each eye is a salt gland. The salt glands help sea turtles to maintain a healthy water balance by shedding large "tears" of excess salt. If a sea turtle appears to be "crying" it is usually not cause for alarm, as the turtles are merely keeping their physiology in check. It is not because they are upset or sad.
In addition to solving the problems of swimming and breathing, sea turtles have also come up with an ingenious way to rid their bodies of the salts they accumulate from the seawater in which they live. Just behind each eye is a salt gland. The salt glands help sea turtles to maintain a healthy water balance by shedding large "tears" of excess salt. If a sea turtle appears to be "crying" it is usually not cause for alarm, as the turtles are merely keeping their physiology in check. It is not because they are upset or sad.
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