Mount Kitanglad Range Natural Park

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BACKGROUND

The Mount Kitanglad Range Natural Park (MKRNP), with a total land area of 47,270 hectares, is located in northern Mindanao in the province of Bukidnon in Region 10. Mount Kitanglad is one of five peaks in the Kitanglad Mountain Range at 2,899 meters above sea level. MKRNP was declared a Protected Area through Republic Act No. 8978 in 2000. It was also declared as ASEAN Heritage Park in 2009.

MKRNP occupies portions of 8 municipalities in Bukidnon and provides various ecosystem services (e.g., water for domestic, agricultural, industrial, and commercial use, source for power generation) to over 100,000 households, and also to nearby provinces and cities like Cagayan de Oro City. It is prominently known as the ancestral domain of three major indigenous tribes, namely the Talaandig, Higaonon, and Bukidnon. 

Mount Kitanglad hosts over 600 rare and endemic species, among them the critically endangered Philippine Eagle and the conservation-dependent Philippine Tarsier. Mount Kitanglad is also home to Rafflesia schadenbergiana, the second largest flower in the world.

In 2010, total forest cover in MKRNP was at 43,900 hectares or 93% of total land area. The Protected Area is one of the top performing in all B+WISER priority sites, given its higher rate of forest gain against forest loss. However, deforestation and continued forest and habitat degradation are still prevalent, caused by slash and burn farming, unsustainable charcoal production, illegal tree cutting, and forest fires. About 1,100 hectares of forest degrade annually, based on 2003-2010 data. The degradation is particularly evident in the headwaters of Mt. Kitanglad watersheds that drain into the Cagayan de Oro River basin. This river drains into Macajalar Bay in Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental.