Habitat Assessment and Persistence of the endangered, Luzon- endemic liverwort Drepanolejeunea bakeri Herzog in Mount Bulusan, the Philippines

Drepanolejeunea bakeri is classified as Endangered (B1, 2cd) by the IUCN SSC Bryophyte Specialist Group in 2000. Similarly, this species is classified as Endangered by the Philippines’ Department of Environment and Natural Resources in its Administrative Order No. 2017-11 (Updated National List of Threatened Philippine Plants and their Categories). This species thrives in moist rainforests and is currently known from only three localities in Luzon Island: Mt. Polis (Cordillera Administrative Region), Mt. Bulusan (Bicol Region), and the type locality, Mt. Makiling. In Mt. Makiling, the species is restricted to the tropical lower and tropical upper montane rainforests at 900 m to 1090 m asl (unpublished data). Meanwhile, older collections (>30 years ago) deposited in herbaria indicate that the species occurs in the same forest formations in Mt. Bulusan and Mt. Polis. Provided that information on its occurrence in the latter localities are from old records and considering the drastic changes in habitat quality in the past 20 years, conducting habitat assessments and species persistence studies in Mt. Bulusan are therefore needed in updating the conservation status of the target species and in crafting actions plans for its conservation. This project aims to: 1) conduct field studies and bryophyte collection work in the tropical rainforests of Mt. Bulusan using modified belt transects and Floristic Habitat Sampling; 2) analyze the distribution pattern of Drepanolejeunea bakeri and its relation to environmental parameters such as air temperature, relative humidity, and light intensity; 3) characterize, analyze, and assess the state and quality of the tropical lower and tropical upper montane rainforests of these mountains using the DENR BAMS for Terrestrial Ecosystems; 4) identify current and potential threats to the species and its severity; 5) disseminate information on the conservation of the tropical lower and tropical upper montane rainforests of these mountains through CEPA materials; and 6) propose the establishment of PBMAs for the effective conservation and monitoring of this species in the identified localities.