Biodiversity Research Laboratory

18/05/2026

Happy International Museum Day! Check out the UP Diliman Institute of Biology's Biodiversity Hub and our natural history collections at the Museum of Vertebrate Diversity and the Jose Vera Santos Memorial Herbarium.

Contact the Institute of Biology for Biodiversity Hub visits and tours!

17/05/2026

🌳🌿🪻🏵️🌸 𝓕𝓵𝓸𝓻𝓪 𝓲𝓼 𝓛𝓲𝓯𝓮 🌸🏵️🪻🌿🌳

16/05/2026

Because of the nocturnal habit of a lot of amphibians and reptiles, we spend a significant amount of time walking around at night to document their presence in a site.

As important is the collection of a few voucher specimens to be stored in our museum, serving as reference of our identifications and observations.

Come herping with us sometime?

15/05/2026

Do you want the camp tour?

17/12/2025

The Biodiversity Research Laboratory wishes everyone a wonderfully wild holiday season!

May your Christmas trees be as towering as our forests’ majestic dipterocarps, your tables as brimming as our bountiful seas, and your homes as warm as a tarsier's snuggle on a cool night. See you all in the field next year!

30/07/2025

12/07/2025

Scrat is that you? Can't find any acorns there, can you?

This Mindanao Treeshrew (𝑇𝑢𝑝𝑎𝑖𝑎 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑖), while a real-life lookalike, is a different mammal, but just as cute and full of energy! We caught this cutie darting across the surreal and enchanting bonsai forest atop Mt. Redondo, Dinagat Island's highest peak. Unlike his Ice Age lookalike, though, he won't find a lot of acorns in this one-of-a-kind, high-elevation habitat.

Our lab has just completed the first leg of field surveys documenting the unique mammalian fauna of Dinagat Island, and this clip is just a sneak peek on the fantastic diversity we are now starting to comprehensively document. Learn more about our project in Iloilo City this August, as we showcase some of our findings in the 32nd Philippine Biodiversity Symposium!

04/07/2025

04/07/2025

Sending our biggest congratulations to the Biodiversity Research Laboratory's Abigail Garrino for being part of the 2025 cohort of ZSL EDGE Fellows! Her project will be on "Conserving Gomphandra coi: A legacy of conservation pioneers and community guardians."

Congrats Abi! We're very proud of you! 🥳🥳🥳

We are excited to introduce the new 2025 cohort of EDGE Fellows!

Over the next two years, these 12 inspiring conservation leaders will work to protect some of the world’s most unique, extraordinary, and overlooked species, from mammals and birds to trees, amphibians, reptiles and sharks! It’s a privilege to share their journey and support their work.

Join us for the next six weeks to see who they are and what extraordinary species they are working hard to protect.

Their Fellowships are generously supported by several of our partners including Fondation Segré, On the Edge, Fondation Franklinia & The Peregrine Fund as well as several private donors.

27/03/2025

17/03/2025

UP Biologists found Philippine Tarsier behaviors that defy expectations, and could suggest a new species. Found along the coast of Northern Mindanao, the 50-hectare Initao-Libertad Protected Landscape and Seascape (ILPLS) in Misamis Oriental may seem like an unlikely place to study wildlife. This li...