Davao Life Is Here: D'Bone Collector Museum Inc.

D'Bone Collector Musuem Inc. is the first musuem in Mindanao to showcase relics and preserved skeletons from various animal species from all over the world including Canada, Russia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Philippines.

The museum is owned and managed by an American Bone Collector, Darrell D. Blatchley, who says that the musuem is the realization of his long-time childhood dream of collecting skeletal remains from various animals. D'Bone Collector was opened in public last January 2012 in the hopes of raising environmental awareness and wildlife education, not only to the citizens of Davao, but to each and every person living in this planet. The bones found inside the museum are from animals that died due to accidents, environmental toxins (sea garbage), irresponsible fishing, and what have you. This three-storey establishment houses bones from bears, whales, dolphins, deers, snakes, insects, and different fish species among others. Most were collected by Blatchley himself since he was 15, while some others were donated to him by concerned individuals and various organizations.

Below are some of the skeletal remains that you will find inside the museum.

Left: Tassled Scorpion Fish, Right: Oranged Stripped Triggerfish

Left: Stargazer Fish; Right: Titan Triggerfish

False Killer Whale!

Sharks! Yikes!

This little monster killed a dolphin!

Bones of a Snake

This is a Black Pacu, and it's a member of the Piranha Family! Uh-Oh!

Animals from the plains: Horses, Dogs, Rats, Cats

Cows, Tamaraws, Monkeys

Crocs!

These are monkey species

Sea Cow or Dugong

This is the most interesting piece inside the musuem.
It's a 41 ft. sperm whale that died due to a bottle cap (tansan). Imagine!

This is "Lost", a Blainville's Beaked Whale. She died due to a number of garbage
that settled in her stomach. She was named lost because she lost so much in the
Davao Gulf: Her baby, her food, her life! =(

I had the chance to visit this one-of-a-kind museum during the Davao Bloggers Tour. It was actually my first time and I was amazed by all the bones I've seen. The experience was fascinating and truly educational. However, I felt a little sad when I realized that most of the bones are from animals that died in the hands of humans. Most of the species, specifically the fishes, died due to garbage and other toxic materials found in the ocean. And who's to blame for that? Us! So please, the next time you throw something out on the sea, think about what it could do to the species living in the abyss.