• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The Cadiz City government is enforcing “no entry” to the Giant Clam Village within the vicinity of Lakawon Marine Protected Area (MPA) in Barangay Cadiz Viejo, Cadiz City, Negros Occidental, following the discovery of the extraction of 33 giant clams on December 25.
Cadiz City Mayor Salvador Escalante Jr. said they have already started deployment of marker buoys in some portions of the Lakawon MPA.
The Cadiz City government has offered a cash reward against the sea poachers who forcibly extracted the giant clams from inside the 9.2 hectare Giant Clam (GC) Village within the vicinity of Lakawon Island.
The poachers, whose identities are yet to be known, forcibly extracted the 33 bivalves out of GC Ville and shucked their meat before leaving the empty shells.
More than 2,400 giant clams are being raised inside the GC Village.
Aside from offering a P20,000 cash reward to those who could give vital information leading to the arrest and prosecution of the suspects, Escalante also cast a promise of no repeat of such an “environmental terrorism” in their city.
“You gave us the hardest lesson. We will give you the hardest retribution just in case,” the mayor warned the suspects.
Under Republic Act No. 10654 (Philippine Fisheries Code), anyone who will be proven guilty of poaching or “killing” any of the protected marine species will face either criminal or criminal liabilities, and be fined P300,000 to P3 million.
Escalante disclosed that stringent security measures have been drawn out, and GC Ville will be guarded by Cadiz’ sea vanguards (Bantay Dagat operatives), 24/7.
BEST FINDS
Giant clams in Cadiz were the “best finds” of Ilongga Hereliza “Yhen” Osorio, a former resort staff at Lakawon Island Resort during the height of corona virus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic five years ago.
While in lockdown, Osorio just accidentally found three tiny bivalves along the Lakawon seashore.
Out of curiosity, she kept and took good care of them through a small glass container.
Later, she found formidable support from the Cadiz Agriculture Office that led to the kick off of the city’s conservation effort in 2021 with her as lead caretaker take-slash-conservationist.
Four years later, Osorio found herself truly immersed with giant clams’ broadcast spawning, supervising their massive reproduction to more than a couple of thousands now.
At present, GC Ville is home to four species of giant clams that include Tridacna squamosa, Tridacna crosea, Hippopus hippopus, and Tridacna maxima.
In the Philippines, places with giant clams conservation areas only include: Samal Island, Davao del Norte; Silaki Island, Bolinao, Pangasinan; Binduyan and Ulugan, Palawan; Sinandigan, Ubay, Bohol; Sitabgkai, Tawi-Tawi; and Cadiz Viejo, Cadiz City, Negros Occidental.*
