12/11/2025
A rare visitor found shelter in Baguio’s pine forest
By Mia Magdalena Fokno
At the height of Typhoon Uwan on November 10, two security personnel patrolling Camp John Hay’s Yellow Trail spotted something unusual on the damp forest floor. A young Red-tailed Tropicbird, tired, disoriented, and far from home.
The Red-tailed Tropicbird (Phaethon rubricauda) is a seabird, known for its long white tail streamers tipped in red and its habit of gliding over tropical oceans, rarely appearing inland. To see one in the middle of a pine woodland more than 1,400 meters above sea level is extraordinary.
But storms change the map for wildlife.
The security personnel, recognizing the bird’s weakened state, carefully secured it and turned it over to the Environment and Asset Management Department (EAMD) of the John Hay Management Corporation. The EAMD then coordinated with the DENR Conservation Development Division to ensure the proper handling and rehabilitation of the young seabird.
The DENR said incidents like this illustrate how extreme weather events can displace marine species, pushing them far from their natural ranges as they seek shelter from strong winds and heavy rains.
Camp John Hay’s Yellow Trail is known among birdwatchers for its rich avian diversity, from the mountain shrike to the collared kingfisher. The unexpected arrival of the tropicbird, a creature of open sea rather than mossy forest, is a reminder of how climate and weather patterns shape the lives of animals as much as they shape ours.
For now, the seabird is under care, with hopes it will recover enough strength to be returned to the waters where it belongs.
Photo by John Hay Management Corporation.