Baby Philippine Eagle, Bayani, makes its debut

There's a new baby in the house.

The Philippine Eagle Foundation introduced Philippine Eagle chick 32, named Bayani, on March 10.

Now three months old, Bayani's parents are Philippine Eagles Dakila and Sinag. The baby eagle was produced through cooperative artificial insemination, a vital part of the Philippine Eagle Foundation's conservation breeding program.

Bayani's older sibling, Riley, was born on Jan. 16, 2025, but passed away months later. 

Sinag, Riley and Bayani's father, was the youngest captive-bred Philippine eagle being raised at the Philippine Eagle Center in Davao City in 2018. His image appears on the new P1,000 bill. Dakila, the eaglets' mother, is one of the Philippine Eagle Foundation's active breeders. 

According to the foundation, the Philippine eagle is considered critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. There are only about 400 pairs left in the wild, which can only be seen on four Philippine islands: Luzon, Samar, Leyte, and Mindanao.

The country's national bird is also its largest forest raptor and one of the world's rarest and most powerful birds of prey. With a wingspan of seven feet, it stands three feet in height. This rare eagle's talons are powerful enough to cut through prey. Its blue-grey eyes can see eight times better than humans.

Needing up to approximately 4,000 to 11,000 hectares of forest land to survive and thrive in the land, the Philippine eagle is threatened by deforestation and shooting.