Information on species richness and community structure is invaluable for guiding conservation and management of biodiversity, but is rarely available in the megadiverse biodiversity conservation hotspot of Philippines – particularly for amphibians and reptiles. This study provides the first report and characterisation of amphibians and reptile communities across primary habitat types of the Victoria-Anepahan Mountain Range on Palawan Island along the western edge of the archipelago. A total of 41 amphibian and reptile species were recorded throughout our sampling sites (n = 27 species) or in targeted habitat searches (14 species). A species richness estimator predicted that 35 species may be present in our sampling sites, suggesting that a significant proportion of secretive species may continue to be unrecorded, especially for reptiles. Higher species richness was found in secondary growth than in mixed-use agricultural areas or even pristine forest. The low species richness recorded from pristine forest types may be due to these forests now being restricted to higher elevations where species diversity has been documented to decrease. Our results also show that complex community structures (species assemblages) are to be equally expected in both secondary growth and pristine forests. Together, our results show how species richness and community assemblages may vary across habitats, highlighting that old growth forest does not always support higher species richness, particularly in high elevations.

Abstract. Despite extensive surveys conducted in the past, many remote areas in the Philippines remain unexplored and many species are unknown to science. The Mount Hamiguitan Range (MHR) is among these areas, containing large remaining forests tracts. In this study, we report new records of amphibians and reptiles from MHR and propose removing two species from the previously listed species from this mountain range. We used standardized techniques to sample populations of amphibians and reptiles in fragmented forests of Mt. Hamiguitan. Our survey resulted in 16 new records of species (four frogs, three lizards and nine snakes). Combining our results with previous studies, the known species diversity from the MHR is now increased to a total of 61 taxa. Our results highlight the underestimated diversity of herpetofauna of Mt. Hamiguitan, and we discuss the importance of repeated surveys for determining species occurrences and assessing their conservation status.

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The municipality of Santa Ignacia in the Province of Tarlac is highly dependent on groundwater as its major water supply for various purposes, but there is inconsistency in monitoring groundwater quality in the area which may impact the health of consumers. This study presented the preliminary assessment of groundwater quality through the application of spatial mapping. Out of 6,815 wells in the municipality, groundwater samples were collected from 274 hand pump wells. The measurements of selected groundwater quality parameters such as pH, conductivity, nitrate, nitrite, and iron of groundwater samples were determined on-site. The geographical coordinates of sampled wells and measurements of groundwater quality parameters were used in Geographic Information System software, QGIS, to construct the spatial distribution and spatial variation maps. The values of measured parameters were interpolated using the inverse distance weighted technique to predict the parameters at other sites in Santa Ignacia. Spatial variation maps revealed that the groundwater quality parameters varied in the municipality. All measured parameters, except the nitrite content, were within the acceptable limits set by the World Health Organization for drinking water. The high level of nitrite content in groundwater may be attributed to the application of fertilizers during agricultural activities. The nitrite content of groundwater, which exceeded the permissible limit, may cause long-term public health problems. Hence, an upscale evaluation and monitoring of groundwater quality and existing anthropological activities in the municipality are highly recommended. The identification of other possible source(s) of nitrite is necessary to lessen possible contamination risk and to protect the groundwater sources in the municipality. The results of this preliminary study would be useful in prospect studies of groundwater quality in the study area and in other provinces in the Philippines.