Candaba Swamp

Location:

l5°05'N, 120°53'E; near the towns of Candaba, San Miguel and San Ildefonso, 50 km NNW of Metro Manila, Pampanga and Bulacan Provinces, central Luzon.

Area:

32,000 ha.

Altitude:

11 m.

Description of site:

A complex of freshwater ponds, swamps and marshes with surrounding areas of seasonally flooded grassland, arable land and palm savanna on a vast alluvial flood plain. The entire area is usually flooded in the wet season, but most of it dries out during the dry season (late November to April) and is converted into rice fields and plantations of water melons. The main area for waterfowl is an impoundment of about 300 ha, with a mixture of open shallow water, small islands, and rafts of floating vegetation, adjacent to the Pampanga River about nine km north of Baliuag. The impoundment is used as a fish pond during the rainy season, and then drained in January or February to be used for agriculture. Candaba Swamp acts as a natural flood retention basin holding wet season overflow from the Maasim, San Miguel, Garlang, Bulu and Peñaranda Rivers, and draining into the Pampanga River. The natural retention capacity is estimated at approximately 1.5 billion cubic meters. The average depth of water is l-2m, and the maximum about 5m.

Climatic conditions:

Tropical climate with a pronounced dry season from November to May and a pronounced wet season from June to October.

Principal vegetation:

Most of the flood plain is under cultivation for rice and other crops, and there are some patches of Nypa fruticans and mangroves in surrounding areas.

Land tenure:

A small part of the swamp is state owned and has been classified as "alienable and disposable"; the remainder is privately owned by many individuals.

Conservation measures taken:

The swamp has been declared a bird sanctuary and the municipal government under Mayor Jerry Pelayo with the support of the national government and private organizations is undertaking measures to rehabilitate and conserve the swamp and its diverse wildlife for the future generations.  Hunting has been banned and shift of land use is being strictly regulated.

Land use:

Aquaculture (fish ponds) and agriculture (mainly rice and water melons); fish ponds and cultivation of rice in surrounding areas.  Mayor Jerry Pelayo with the support of other land title holders is consolidating some 500 hectares for a permanent bird and wildlife sanctuary.

Possible changes in land use:

The swamp may be converted into a retention basin for routing peak discharges.  Mayor Jerry Pelayo is working for the building of mini dams and retention ponds at strategic places to benefit both the farmers and the conservation effort.

Disturbances and threats:

Some siltation is occurring, but this is unlikely to be very serious in the short term unless drastic erosion takes place in the Sierra Madre Range. However, some portions of the marsh have been converted into fishponds while other areas have been drained for agricultural purposes. Large areas are planted with water melons during the dry season, and there is a possibility that water levels may be controlled so that crops can be grown all year round.  The municipal government has also embarked on a serious campaign against pollution especially piggery effluent that has caused fishkill in the area.  Electric fishing and the use of chemicals harmful to wildlife are now being prohibited.

Economic and social values:

The swamp is important for agricultural and fisheries production (mainly Chanos chanos), for flood control, and as a source of water for irrigation. It is a favorite spot for local and visiting bird-watchers and naturalists, and has great potential for nature-oriented outdoor recreation and conservation education as there are few other places so close to the metropolitan area of Manila that support so much wildlife.

Fauna:

An extremely important staging and wintering area for ducks, especially in October and November when the swamp regularly supports between 5,000 and 10,000 birds. In 1982, about 100,000 ducks were observed in a single day. No other site in the Philippines is known to support such large concentrations of Anatidae. The two most abundant species are Anas luzonica and A. querquedula; A. acuta is common, and Dendrocygna arcuata, Anas penelope, A. clypeata, Aythya ferina and A. fuligula occur in significant numbers. Anas strepera and Aythya baeri were recorded in 1978 and 1979 respectively, the first observations of these species in the Philippines. The area is also very important for wintering egrets; about 3,000-5,000 Egretta alba were observed in January 1987. The reed-beds at Candaba and in the surrounding areas are one of the few known wintering areas of the Speckled Reed Warbler Acrocephalus sorghophilus, a very local species which breeds in northeastern China. The marshes support breeding populations of several Rallidae, notably Rallus zorquatus and Porphyrio porphyrio, and some ducks may breed. In all, about 60 species of birds use the marsh for feeding and roosting.

In the last three years since 2002 officially sighted by the Wild Bird Club of the Philippines and other enthusiasts  were: Philippine Duck ,Asian Golden Plover, Bittern, Black Bittern, Black Crowned Night Heron, Black Winged Stilt, Blue Tailed Bee Eater, Bright-capped Cisticola, Brown Shrike, Buff-banded Rail, Chestnut-breasted Munia, Cinnamon Bittern, Clamorous Reed Wabler, Common Green Shank, Common Kingfisher, Common Moorhen, Common Red Shank, Common Sandpiper, Common Snipe, Eastern Marsh Harrier, Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Garganey, Grassbird Striated, Grassowl, Great Egret, Greater-painted Snipe, Grey Heron, Intermediate Egret, Island-collared Dove, Kentish Plover, Lesser Coucal, Little-ringed Plover, Little Egret, Little Grebe, Long-toed Stint, Marsh Sandpiper, Middendorf’s Grasshopper Warbler, Olive-backed Sunbird, Oriental Pratincole, Oriental Skylark, Pacific Swallow, Peregrine Falcon, Pheasant-tailed Jacana, Pied Bushchat, Pied Fantail, Purple Heron, Richards Pipit, Spotted Dove, Scalt-breasted Munia, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Tawny Grassbird, Watercock, Whiskered Tern, White-breasted Waterhen, White-browed Crake, White-winged Blacktern, White-winged Blacktern, Wood Sandpiper, Yellow Bittern, Yellow-vented Bulbul, Yellow-vented Bulbul, Yellow Wagtail, Zebradove, Zitting Cisticola, Northern Shoveler, Northern Pintail , Oriental Reed Warbler, Tufted Duck , White-collared Kingfisher, Cattle Egret, Chinese Pond Heron, Coot and Purple Gallinule.

References:

Alonzo-Pasicolan (1987); Alvarez (1984); Glass et al. (1979); Karpowicz (1985); Kennedy & Dickinson (1980); Tahal Consulting Engineers (1978); Municipal Government of Candaba; Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau-DENR; Wild Bird Club of the Philippines, Haribon Foundation; Conserve Candaba Swamp Foundation; Candaba Swamp Migratory Birds and Wildlife Foundation Inc., Kaakbay sa Kalikasan, Romy Ocon.