Birding Belize
February
5-10, 2006
This tour of Belize is an excellent introduction to Neotropical birds and natural history in the American tropics. The small country of Belize is an attractive destination for eco-travelers for many good reasons. It is a safe, English-speaking country with the lowest population density in all of Central America. Conservation, eco-tourism, and habitat protection are all priorities in Belize and have been facilitated through partnerships with groups such as the Belize Audubon Society, the country’s pre-eminent environmental organization. In fact, more than a third of the country is protected by parks, wildlife sanctuaries, and nature reserves. Among many ecological attractions, Belize boasts highly accessible yet lightly visited Mayan ruin sites surrounded by large tracts of primary tropical rainforest, which harbor diverse wildlife communities.
Descending
by plane into Belize City, which lies on the Caribbean coast, one can
see the flat coastal plain comprised largely of mangroves and swamps
and wet coastal marshland bisected by numerous inter-coastal rivers.
First, we will head a short ways inland
to Crooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary (right photo), one of the many conservation areas
that the Belize Audubon Society administers.
Crooked Tree is an inland island surrounded by a freshwater
lagoon with about 300 bird species known to the area.
NORTHERN JACANA and GRAY-NECKED WOOD-RAIL forage along the
shoreline, LAUGHING FALCON, SNAIL KITE, KING VULTURE, and LESSER
YELLOW-HEADED VULTURE soar overhead, and thousands of WHITE IBIS and
LIMPKIN roost on the distant shore. We will take a boat tour through the lagoon and waterways to
see JABIRU STORK, AGAMI HERON, PYGMY KINGFISHER, and SUN GREBE.
The island also has an extensive network of trails winding
along the lagoon and through pine forest typical of northern Belize
where APLOMADO FALCON and YUCATAN WOODPECKER may be found.
BAT FALCON, VERMILLION FLYCATCHER, and FORK-TAILED FLYCATCHER
may be seen right from your front door.
The human inhabitants of this small community are predominantly
Belizean Creole making their living through eco-tourism, fishing, and
growing fruits and cashews.
Here the atmosphere is relaxed and the local naturalists very
knowledgeable.
From
Crooked Tree we’ll travel to the Maya Mountains (left photo), which dominates the southern half of Belize and
forms the highest and most rugged terrain in the country.
The tropical pine forest and pine savannah in this area makes
up less than 5% of the country by area and represents a unique habitat
type in Belize. Our
first destinations are Blue Hole National Park and Cockscomb
Basin's Jaguar Reserve, both in the eastern Maya Mountains. The
wildlife diversity in these areas is spectacular and we will search for
species such as WHITE HAWK, DUSKY ANTBIRD, and SLATE-HEADED TODY-FLYCATCHER.
With luck, we will even find a jaguar.
We will then travel deep into the Maya Mountains and Mountain Pine Ridge looking for specialties including KEEL-BILLED TOUCAN, COLLARED ARACARI, EMERALD TOUCANETTE, FERRUGINOUS PYGMY-OWL, and WHITE-NECKED JACOBIN. There is also much broadleaf forest, rivers, spectacular waterfalls, and bogs in this area and we will bird local areas including Hidden Valley Falls looking for species such as RED-LEGGED HONEYCREEPER, RED-THROATED ANT-TANAGER, and CRIMSON-COLLARED TANAGER.
Day 1: Arrive in Belize City late afternoon and travel to nearby Crooked Tree Wildlife sanctuary. Explore the island’s pine-oak savannah. Nighttime walk for owls and nightjars. Overnight in Crooked Tree.
Day
2: Explore Crooked Tree Lagoon and Spanish Creek by boat in morning and
boat up New River to the Mayan ruins of Lamanai in the afternoon.
Travel to Hummingbird Hwy. Overnight
at Cave’s Branch.
Day 3: Blue Hole National Park in the morning. Jaguar Reserve in the afternoon and nighttime walk for nocturnal mammals, owls, and nightjars Overnight at Cave’s Branch.
Day
4: Guanacaste National Park in morning.
Travel to Mountain Pine Ridge.
Hidden Valley Falls in the afternoon.
Overnight at Mountain Pine Ridge.
Day
5: Depart early to Caracol for the day.
Overnight at Mountain Pine Ridge.
Day
6: Morning birding around lodge. Travel
to Belize City for departing flight or extended stay.