Tarsier Reserve in Bohol

See tarsiers up close in this place. The tarsier is the smallest primate/mammal in the world and they eat insects (so are they called insectivores?). Seeing them up close is so interesting but they are really quite small that if you have your photo taken with them, you end up having pictures with what seem like small brown furry balls.

Some things we picked up about tarsiers during the trip:

1. They only have one baby a year. (Very wise compared to other animals?) Mating season is every December.

2. In the first three months of a tarsier's life (that's before adulthood - so you are an adult at three months! - very wise talaga), the mother and the baby stay away from the father. At this stage, the father may be a carnivore and may end up eating the baby. After three months, the tarsier offspring is now strong enough so the risk that it will be eaten by the father is greatly reduced.

3. Tarsiers cannot move their eyes. They have to move their entire head to see around them but they can move their heads 180 degrees.

4. Tarsiers are not meant to be kept as pets. If put in a cage (as a pet), they will turn suicidal and bang their heads on the cage until they die. The tarsier's head is very soft.

My kids (not to mention my husband and I) enjoyed themselves immensely looking at the tarsiers. It's also very nice that you can have your digital photo taken there and this can be printed on a souvenir t-shirt. The shirt costs P450, regardless of size. It takes a few minutes to get the shirt ready. In our case, we ordered two shirts, took the Loboc River Cruise and when we were done, our shirts were already there waiting for us in our rented van.

Next week: The Loboc River Cruise and Mang Medik