Indigenous trap designs for monitor and sailfin lizards in Catanduanes Island, Philippines: Conservation and coexistence implications

Abstract

This study documents three indigenous lizard trap designs used by coastal communities in Bato, Catanduanes. Community-based interviews and trapping observations identified coconut-bark, bamboo-and-guava-slat, and dual-entrant bamboo designs. The study discusses their implications for population decline, introduces a Human–Halo Coexistence framework, and recommends community conservation education and university-led ecotourism as coexistence pathways.