EXPLORE A BIRDER’S PARADISE – COCKSCOMB WILDLIFE SANCTUARY
Where would you go to birding if you were looking for a huge pristine area managed by the Audubon Society? The answer is Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary in Belize. Cockscomb is renowned for its bird population with hundreds of species.
The 126 000-acre Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary has great trails to follow in search of the 330 species of birds that inhabit or visit this jungle paradise. Originally established as a sanctuary for jaguars, most visitors come for the refreshing experience of getting back to nature.
No promises, but we will be looking for the scarlet macaw, the great curassow, the keel-billed toucan, tinamou, the king vulture, several hawk species, flycatchers, tanagers, etc, etc. Not only will you be looking, but also you will be listening for the sounds of the birds and trying to identify them from their “song”. One unusual one is the white-collared manakin which you may not see but the snap of its wings but it makes a sound like two stones being banged together.
In addition to jaguars, Cockscomb is home to four other wildcats–jaguarundi, puma, ocelot and margay.
While this tour is focused on birding, Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary has the world’s highest concentration of big cats in the world. In addition to jaguars Cockscomb is home to jaguarondis, pumas, ocelots and margays. There is also a lot of “cat food” to be found including pacas, armadillos, agouties and red-brocket deer. Other cool wildlife sightings are coatis, anteaters, kinkajous, tapirs, otters, peccaries and a troops of howler monkeys.
The tour leaves Placencia at 08:00 am and returns at around 4:30 pm.
Wear sturdy shoes, long sleeved shirt and long pants. Bring a camera, insect repellent, sunscreen, and plenty of water. Birders should bring binoculars as the jaguar preserve rain forest is quite dense. Bringing a change of clothing is recommended as you are likely to work up a good sweat.
Fitness Level Required: low to strenuous, depending upon the specific trail to be followed.
COCKSCOMB WILDLIFE SANCTUARY AND JAGUAR PRESERVE BACKGROUND AND HISTORY
The Cockscomb Wildlife Sanctuary and Jaguar Preserve is the worlds’ largest Jaguar Reserve, established in 1986. Dr Alan Rabinowitz came to Belize to study jaguars in the early 80’s and after doing an overview study of Belize, settled into a lumber camp in the Cockscomb basin. As a result of his studies and his determination to protect these magnificent animals, he convinced the Government of Belize to establish the preserve. The logging camp was removed and the Maya Indians moved to Maya Center with the understanding that the economic benefits from eco-tourism would be greater than the status quo. The Belize Audubon Society now manages the Preserve and most of the rangers and workers are Mayas.
With time, the Jaguar Preserve has been expanded and now covers about 130 000 acres. The Preserve now connects through the Maya Mountains to the Bladen Nature Reserve which results in a protected area of about 250 000 acres! Jaguar monitoring continues to this day, although much of the data gathering is done using motion detector operated cameras (you may get your picture taken if you trigger one of these).
Cockscomb has a very extensive trail network with enough variations in terrain and length to suit a wide range of hikers and naturalists. Victoria Peak is the second highest point in Belize but is the highest peak and is the mountain to climb in Belize. Outlier is also a challenging climb with great panoramas. Both mountains can only be climbed during the dry season.