Injured PH Eagle moved to rehab in Davao City

PHILIPPINE Eagle Sawaga-Dalwangan inside the isolation cage at the Philippine Eagle Center in Malagos, Davao City. (Keith Bacongco)

By Keith Bacongco

Published Jul 17, 2026 09:57 pm

DAVAO CITY – Fifteen days since it was captured, critically endangered Philippine Eagle Sawaga-Dalwangan is fast recovering and transferred to an isolation and rehabilitation facility at the Philippine Eagle Center in Barangay Malagos, Davao City, on Thursday evening, July 16.

However, during the pre-transfer check up at Doc Bayani's Animal Wellness Clinic, veterinarian Bayani Vandenbroeck discovered a fresh entry wound from an air gun pellet on the left thigh.

Sawaga-Dalwangan was rescued by an indigenous farmer in the forests of Barangay Dalwangan in Malaybalay City, Bukidnon on July 3.

The indigenous farmer, Marvin Linoy, turned over the eagle to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) which then handed it over to the Philippine Eagle Foundation.

Vandenbroeck recalled that the raptor was really in bad shape when it arrived in his clinic from Bukidnon on July 3.

But after two weeks of intensive monitoring and treatment, the eagle gradually regained its strength and demeanor, he said.

“When the eagle arrived, it was in an extremely critical condition. The team’s immediate priority was to address the wing injuries and remove the maggots while minimizing handling to avoid additional stress and further compromise to the bird’s condition,” recounted Vandenbroeck, veterinary consultant of the PEF.

He disclosed that the eagle was already aggressive when approached inside its temporary holding cage a few days after receiving treatment.

During the X-ray scan, veterinarians discovered air gun pellets lodged on the right wing and left thigh of the eagle.

The pellet on the wing has been removed while the other on the thigh is buried deep in its muscles, requiring major surgery to be removed.

On Thursday afternoon, PEF Director of Operations Dr. Jayson Ibañez said that Sawaga-Dalwangan was cleared from Newcastle Disease and Avian Influenza.

Ibañez said that these laboratory tests were required before the raptor could be transferred to the PEC.

He explained that the air gun pellet’s entry wound was not immediately discovered during initial checkup because the raptor could not be restrained for an extended period.

“The protocol for handling the Philippine Eagle is that it should not be too long as it might stress the bird. That explains why the wound was not immediately located because the bird was also heavily soiled at that time,” the seasoned conservationist pointed out.

Vandenbroeck recalled that feathers around the thigh injury were heavily caked with mud and dirt when the eagle was rescued, making the wound difficult to detect.

“After the bird was carefully washed and blow-dried, and as it regained strength and resumed its natural preening behavior, the wound became much more visible. Its fresh appearance suggests the injury was inflicted only recently before the eagle’s rescue,” he said.

Ibañez said they are awaiting the results of the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) sexing test to confirm the gender of the rescued eagle.

With Sawaga-Dalwangan now in an isolation facility, the PEF said that human interaction will be kept to a minimum to reduce stress, support healing, and help maintain the eagle’s natural wild behavior and demeanor as it continues its recovery.

The PEF reiterated their call for a deeper investigation on Sawaga-Dalwangan's rescue.

DENR-10 Regional Wildlife Rescue Center veterinarian Rodner Tuquib said that he noted clinical signs of prolonged suffering on Sawaga-Dalwangan.

Based on his observation on the circulating photos of the eagle prior to turn over to the DENR in Bukidnon, Tuquib particularly noted the bird’s facial expression.

“The look on its face as if asking for help because it was not feeling well and the demeanor of an eagle with chronic wounds and myiasis,” the DENR resident veterinarian wrote on Facebook.

“It breaks my heart to see the photo of the Philippine Eagle in that condition and with reported maggot-infested wounds. The animal must have endured several days of suffering before intervention.”