CAGAYAN de Oro City — A young Philippine eagle was electrocuted by a power line in Salay, Misamis Oriental, highlighting the danger that electricity infrastructure can pose to one of the country’s most threatened wildlife species.
A veterinary necropsy confirmed that the juvenile female eagle died from high-voltage electrocution after residents found its carcass near an electrical post in Barangay Guinalaban, Salay, Misamis Oriental, on Oct. 1, 2026.
Residents of Sitio Panghaon reported the dead eagle to local forest officers after noticing that the bird had been flying in the area the day before.
Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF) resident veterinarian Dr. Danielle Kirsten D. Pasion conducted the necropsy on Oct. 2.
The examination found distinct burn marks on the eagle’s foot pads, with no other external signs of trauma. Despite challenges caused by advanced decomposition, internal tissue findings and the burns supported electrocution as the cause of death.
The un-ringed female was estimated to be less than 5 years old and weighed 5.25 kilograms.
PEF conservationists said the death underscores the risks facing the species, particularly as eagles move through areas where power infrastructure crosses forest habitats.
“For a species as rare as the Philippine Eagle, one dead bird is not simply one dead bird,” PEF conservationists said, describing the incident as a warning about environmental and habitat risks.
The Philippine eagle is critically endangered, with fewer than 400 breeding pairs estimated to remain nationwide. The loss of a young female also removes a potential future breeder from the population.
Following the confirmed electrocution, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Northern Mindanao (DENR-10) and local forest protection teams are coordinating with regional electric cooperatives to inspect power lines crossing forest corridors in Salay, Misamis Oriental.
The teams are also looking at insulation retrofits and other measures aimed at reducing the risk of wildlife electrocution along power lines.
The incident underscores the need to make power infrastructure safer in areas where endangered wildlife move, as conservation efforts extend beyond protecting forests to addressing hazards within wildlife habitats.
