Almost 30 years ago, Mount Pinatubo of the Philippines erupted. It became the second-most powerful volcanic eruption in the 20th century, which is equivalent to ten times the Mount Saint Helens' eruption, leaving a devastating mark in the area.

The volcano spewed lava and ash, covering 600 feet thick the Zambales Mountains. After the eruption, the country also experienced powerful typhoons and monsoon rains that triggered landslides in the areas, while the ash flow continued for months. Unfortunately, 800 people lost their lives, and the once lush forests have also been destroyed.

But what most people are unaware of, there are also some mammals that were greatly affected by that tragedy that killed all of their populations. Thirty years later, a new paper published in the Philippine Journal of Science revealed that scientists had rediscovered the extinct Pinatubo volcano mouse.

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Journey to Rediscovering the Extinct Pinatubo Volcano Mouse

According to a report by Phys.org, Field Museum researcher Danilo (Danny) Balete went to Mt. Pinatubo in early 2011 and in 2012 to study the volcano's mammal fauna. He and his team of field assistants, which includes local men of the Aeta tribe, surveyed the mammals on the bottom to near top of the forest where the eruption had disrupted it.

Although the volcano was not surveyed for mammals before the eruption, data from the US National Museum of Natural History revealed that the extinct Pinatubo volcano mouse once lived in the mountain's lower elevations. The mouse was first described in 1962, which they named Apomys sacobianus, the Pinatubo volcano mouse.

The conditions of Mount Pinatubo were very harsh that even after 20 years, the eruption in 1991 is still evident. As a result, the team finds it challenging to survey the area. Indeed, the environment is far from what it was before the eruption.

According to previous field surveys on Luzon, old-growth forests contain various active species and few non-native species. However, in heavily disturbed second-growth habitats, it is the reverse wherein non-native rats are more abundant than native species. The researchers noted that one of their motivations to scour Zambales mountains is to know what happened to the mouse, but they failed to find it.

Finally Finding the Extinct Pinatubo Volcano Mouse

But to their surprise, they were able to make significant discoveries in Mount Pinatubo. They were able to find a total of 17 species, which included eight bats, seven rodents, one wild pig, and a deer. Contrary to expectations, non-native species were not the most abundant in the Aeta croplands; instead, they found that native rodents were abundant everywhere.

According to SciTech Daily, the most surprising find is that the once extinct Pinatubo volcano mouse Apomys sacobianus is found to be abundant in the area. Far from being wiped out from the volcanic eruption in 1991.

As of now, Mount Pinatubo is still recovering from the damage of that eruption. Hopefully, the forests will return, and other species of animals will move in.

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