Author: Charles Wency Gallo

You know my name, but when you call me. I'm not there anymore.

The Journey that never STOP!

Nothing liberates our greatness like our desire to help, desire to serve. – Miriam Williamson

Manila Ocean Park

-According to the RAMSAR Convention, Wetlands are defined as: “areas of marsh, fen, peatland or water, whether natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, with water that is static or flowing, fresh, brackish or salt, including area marine water the depth of which al low tide does not exceed six meters”. (Article 1.1)

Rivers are the “arteries of our planet”

-The steady flow of clean, freshwater is an essential element for vast ecosystem and the health and survival of billions of people. Rivers have played an important and life-sustaining role in human societies for thousands of years. The rivers continue to be a very important source of food with its tremendous supply of fish, rivers indirectly aid in cultivation with its supply of water for the crops.

Pasig River – is 26 km long, 50 meters wide and an average of four to six meters deep. The river basins include eight cities and three municipalities Pasig City, City of Manila, Pateros, Caloocan City, Marikina City, Pasay City, Taguig City, San Juan, Mandaluyong City and Makati City. The Pasig River basin is 570 square km.

Marikina River – waterway is connected to Pasig river. It has supported lives of people in Marikina through the abundance of the river. However, due to uncontrolled and indiscriminate disposal of domestic and industrial garbage, the water quality of Marikina River deteriorated. The river became a dumpsite and a vector of disease.

WATER FOR ALL – freshwater ecosystems sustain us all, humans and wildlife alike. Ancient civilizations emerged when mankind discovered agriculture which made permanent settlement possible. Farming all over the world has always relied upon a dependable water supply. This is the reason why these first great civilization emerged along riverbanks. Today, these ecosystems suffer from water depletion and water pollution. We need to gain a better understanding of these ecosystems to be able to create an ecologically compatible water management program and sustainable agricultural practices.

Freshwater Organism

1. RED-BELLED PACU (Piaractus Brachypomus) – originated in the amazon basin of south america. It is a tropical fish of the family serrasalminae which closely resembles a piranha in its juvenile stage.
2. ALLIGATOR GAR (Atractosteus spatula) – The alligator gar has a unique appearance and falls into the category of a ray-finned species. They are the only species of gar that has a row of very sharp region, giving their mouth the appearance of an alligator where the name was derived from
3. CICHLIDS – are mostly found in the rift lakes in africa. Most cichlids have a classical fish-shaped body design and they come in a rainbow of colors.
4. FRESHWATER ANGELFISH – also known as cichlids, is a type of ray-finned fish that can be found in the amazon river and various ponds and lakes. They have a silvery-blue colored and covered with dark, longitudinal stripes. They are not agile swimmers and they cannot cope with strong currents in the water.
5. GIANT GOURAMI / GIANT ALBINO GOURAMI (Osphronemus goramy) – can grow up to 2 feet (60 cm) in length. They are believed to have originated in java, and possibly sumatra, borneo, and other islands in the malay archipelago.
6. OSCAR (Astronotus ocellatus) – The oscar is a south american cichlid. They come in a wide variety of patterns and colors and are also known as tiger. Velvet or Marble cichlid.
7. KOI FISH – originated from Japan and represent love and friendship in japanese culture. They can reach up to 3 feet in length. Their color depends on the variety. They can be white, black, blue, red, cream and yellow in color. They are commonly covered with different spots.
8. OCELLATE RIVER STINGRAY (Potamotrygon motoro) – have an oval disc shaped body. The upper surface is grayish-brown with yellow-orange spots trimmed in black and the underside is white. Their eyes, positioned on the dorsal surface of their head. give them nearly 360 degrees field of vision. Their sense of smell is well-developed and around their mouth they have electrical sensors called ampullae of lorenzini that sense the natural electrical charges of potential prey and predators.

Marine Organism

1. STARFISH OR SEA STARS – have no brain and blood. They usually have five arms which they can regenerate. They are not true fish! They do not have gills, scales or fins like fish do.
2. PUFFERFISH – are brightly colored and move slowly, making them vulnerable to being eaten by larger fish, as a defense mechanism, they can take in so much air inside their stomachs that they bloat and turn into large , perfect balls.
3. STONEFISH – is the most venomous fish in the world. It has the ability to camouflage itself with the help of its grey and mottled color similar to a stone. It spits water and can live for almost 24 hours outside the water.
4. PACIFIC BLUE TANG – “Dory” in the movie ‘Finding NEMO’ and ‘Finding DORY’. keeps coral reefs healthy by eating algae which can suffocate the corals when not kept at a minimum.
5. WHITETIP REEF SHARK (Triaenodon obesus)

TRIVIA

Did you know that The Philippines’ rich marine biodiversity: 5,000 species of clams, snails and mollusks; 488 species of corals; 981 species of bottom-living algae; and thousands of other organisms. 5 out of seven sea turtle species known to exist in the world today occur in Philippine waters.

METRO MANILA!

retrieved from: https://www.google.com/search?biw=1536&bih=706&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=7QORXP6nKa-djLsPnsmukAw&q=soil+characteristics+in+manila&oq=soil+characteristics+&gs_l=img.1.0.35i39j0l2j0i30l2j0i5i30l5.3338.3338..4361…0.0..0.324.324.3-1……1….1..gws-wiz-img.WspskAoIuFA#imgrc=_gd7w4H_ZBVhLM:
retrieved from: https://www.google.com/search?biw=1536&bih=706&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=QwKRXJzRLNLggwfDu6LYCg&q=species+interactions&oq=species+interactions&gs_l=img.3..0l10.326181.331153..331935…0.0..0.659.7429.3-15j4j1……1….1..gws-wiz-img…….35i39j0i67.1o5cS3Vc0FA#imgrc=88fFuWmXZkU4rM:

Some ecological problems that Metro manila is encountering is the pollution. It is either air, noise, and etc. and also the excessive Global warming that manila can offer.

retrieved from: https://www.google.com/search?biw=1536&bih=706&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=IwSRXMrUKNa71fAPtsiDgA4&q=urban+metabolism&oq=urban+metabol&gs_l=img.1.0.0l4j0i5i30j0i24l5.152927.156368..157541…1.0..0.409.4731.3-13j1……1….1..gws-wiz-img…….35i39j0i67.KSyjKXvlpXI#imgrc=iXqR-6v9OSOLXM:

REFLECTION

In the tour i thought that everything i have learned in class will be somewhat examined during the tour but nevertheless some of it was proven and others are yet to be explored. for example, the Major ecosystems, Natural resources and their management, Wastes and their management that was discussed inside the classroom.

Some environmental principles that i have observed during the tour was the Nature knows best since they contribute to our living by giving natural resources essential for our daily activities, everything must go somewhere and in this principle our trashes that we throw in our society somewhat got to us and the consequence we also get from it, All forms of life are equally important like the penguin even we don’t come across them everyday they contribute to our society as equalizer of marine ecosystem, and other principles that are stated in the book.

I also observed the relationship between abiotic and biotic components of ecosystem since inside the aquarium of manila ocean park they always have to interact since it is their habitat.

Biogeochemical cycles is also observed in metro manila since they have a great numbers of gaseous waste that are being circulated in the are and also the factories contributing to the polution happening in the area.