BELIZE NATIONAL PARKS, NATURAL RESERVES, & WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES

BACALAR CHICO

ESTABLISHMENT HISTORY
Following the perceived success of Hol Chan Marine Reserve in attracting tourists, in the late 1980s village leaders in Sarteneja began lobbying for a reserve at Bacalar Chico, an area accessible to them. A resulting 1991 site visit by NYZS and ITCF established the conservation value of the site and both have subsequently provided technical input for the preparation of its designation. The Fisheries Department has also been collecting and collating data, and declaration is anticipated for 1996.

CURRENT AREA
A boundary is in the process of being defined for this site.

JUSTIFICATION
The site is also important for salt marsh, mangrove, mixed mangrove formations and coastal beach scrubs, which harbour many Yucatan endemics. It has the potential for a trans-national reserve as it lies on the border with Mexico. The site adjoins private land which includes important features, specifically the principal Belizean nesting areas for Loggerhead and Green Turtles, and at Rocky Point; the only place on the mainland where the barrier reef touches the coastline.

HABITATS
Littoral forest, mangrove, seagrass beds and reef

ZOOGEOGRAPHICAL AFFINITIES
Yucatan.

MARINE REGION
Outer Platform Division of the Ambergris Region.

WILDLIFE
Preliminary terrestrial data is presented by Dotherm (1995), following an 11 day bird, mammal and reptile survey. Birds recorded included numerous Yucatan endemics and other species of some interest, and a major waterfowl mangrove caye roost was identified in the Laguna de Cantena. Over 1400 birds of 10 species were counted over a period of only I hour during the October study. Of the reptiles recorded, of particular note was the nesting of Green and Loggerhead Turtles between Rocky Point and Robles. More Loggerheads nest. here than all the other known sites in Belize, and for Green Turtles the only other known nesting site at Half Mom Caye has only a few nests. Further information on terrestrial wildlife is given by Somerville (1995), who provides up dated species lists for birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates recorded or likely to occur. In addition, crocodile population survey results are included. The 187 bird species recorded are listed and further information is provided on bird nesting sites. 40 mammal, 58 reptile, 22 amphibian and 171 invertebrate species are listed. The vegetation in the area displays high diversity, and includes numerous species near the southern limit of their range. Collections by CIQRO (1991) amounted to 254 species, who devised an 11 category community breakdown. Somerville (1995) provides a brief discussion on introduced plant species.

LOCAL POPULATION
A small number of second and retirement homes are strung along the east coast ridge, but the only large settlement is roughly 17 miles to the south, at San Pedro.

PHYSICAL FEATURES & CLIMATE
The site covers an Pleistocene limestone platform, on which, during times of higher sea levels, reefs were deposited. Fossilized outcrops of these are found throughout the area, and at Rocky Point the old reef crest and back reef facies are exposed, forming a nationally important geological site. Rocky Point is also the only place in Belize where the barrier reef touches the shore of the mainland. Modern sediments around the site include sandy-muds in inland lagoons (composed mainly of peneroplid foraminifera) and on the windward side, a 3.3 yard raised beach 44-98 yards wide, of calcareous sand. Robles Point is probably the highest natural elevation on the caye, where coral boulders have been piled into a 4.5 yard high storm ridge. Inland lagoons associated with the reserve average 1-2 yards in depth, and water in the leeward lagoons are similar, rarely exceeding 2.2 yards. On the windward coast, tidal range is 15-18 inches on exposed areas, less on the leeward side, and 0-6 inches in the lagoons. The prevailing direction of the surface current within the reef lagoon and Chetumal Bay is southerly, and there are strong currents in the reef channels. Salinity in the reef lagoon averages 37.2 ppt and 40.9 ppt in the internal lagoons. Highest salinities are found in the supratidal ponds which 123.8 ppt. Here temperatures may reach 42C. A thin freshwater lens lies 1-2.7 yards under the east coast ridge. Surface water stands in the supratidal flats for 8-9 months but disappear in the dry season when the water table drops approximately I yard. Surface freshwater sources (presumably extremely important for wildlife) still occur in the dry season, in some cenotes and mangrove swamps. Tidal fluctuations seen in some sinkholes suggest connections to the sea. Minimum and maximum temperatures are 22.8-26.1C in summer and 27.8-31.1C in winter. They can however, be much higher in inland savannas and supratidal flats in summer. The dry season runs from January/February to May/June, usually accompanies by strong (highly desiccating) southeasterly winds. The rest of the year has an average of 50 inches of rain with easterly but variable winds, and often a drier period in August. September, October and November are usually the months with most rainfall, although there are wide variations between years. Cold winds and temperatures (locally called northers) often occur between October and February. Until May, winds tend to be strong and fairly constant, averaging 10- 15 miles per hour.

VISITOR FACILITIES
None at present, although a visitor centre will be established at the Hol Chan office.

CULTURAL FEATURES
There are numerous Mayan sites in the area.

Ambergris Caye and the New Bacalar Chico National Park
by Peter Eltringham, author, Rough Guide to Belize

After visiting numerous offices in Belize City and Belmopan, I was eager to get back out to the cayes to see the new and proposed marine reserves. My first port of call was San Pedro on Ambergris Caye, where I headed to the Hol Chan Marine Reserve Office, on Caribe Street. Everyone going out to the reef should pay a visit here first. The staff consists of mostly young, highly educated Belizeans whose tremendous enthusiasm, together with the superb displays and news of the latest projects, will enable you to get the most out of your visit.

Dylan Gomez, a biologist working in the newly declared Bacalar Chico National Park, is helping develop the park's management plan. This will include provision for certain areas to be open to non-motor craft only. Visitors will transfer from larger skiffs to canoes, minimizing disturbance in the narrow, shallow mangrove lagoons and channels, Gomez says.

The park, which opened officially August 23, 1996, comprises a 15,000-acre marine reserve and 12,000 acres of terrestrial reserve. A headquarters building with office space for a marine biologist, a terrestrial biologist, and two marine rangers has been completed, and a visitor center (with composting toilets) is being built. The concrete jetty and walkway here are remnants of the former Pinkerton Estate which once held much of the land in this area.

At present the park is accessible only by sea, from points on Ambergris Caye, from Sarteneja and elsewhere on the mainland off the Bay of Chetumal (several hours by boat), and from the Mexican port town of X'calak, only about 25 minutes away by boat.

I joined Gomez on a visit to Bacalar Chico, calling at a remote fisheries monitoring station where officials check that catches are within legal limits. Green and loggerhead turtles come ashore to nest between Rocky Point and Robles Point. This alone would be sufficient reason to establish the reserve; more loggerheads nest here than anywhere else in Belize and the only other significant nesting site is a small area on Half Moon Caye. There are at least 187 species of birds, including many Yucatán endemics, and the 40 mammal species include all five of Belize's cats.

Many hope that the park rangers will be granted the powers of Fisheries Officers, providing much-needed support in monitoring and enforcement of the law.

The park also has several Maya sites. We visited the site of San Juan, near the northwest corner of Ambergris Caye. The site was an important transshipment point in Maya times, and the ancient sea wall is clearly visible beneath the surface. The beach must have been a scene of bustling activity at one time, as goods were unloaded from canoes paddled down the rich, heavily populated river valleys of Belize, and transferred to large trading canoes, capable of sea journeys. Plenty of goods must have been damaged, too - visitors will scrunch over an entire beach made of broken pottery. San Juan is set to be the site of the new ranger station and visitor center. The park's northern boundary is the Bacalar Chico channel, a narrow, mangrove-lined canal, dug and cleared by the Maya to avoid a long journey around the southern tip of the caye. Mexico, on the other bank, is so close that if you're in a boat you can almost touch the mangroves on either side - there is a strong chance that a comparable area of Quintana Roo will also be declared a national park by the Mexican government.

San Pedro's tour guides, who stand to benefit most from the park, are keen supporters, but fishermen also see the advantage of increased protection for vital breeding areas in the mangroves. Daniel Nuñez, who leads tours to Maya sites in the park says "We need more protected areas, and the rules need to be enforced. My brother is still a fisherman, and he's trying hard to save mangroves on his land, but people have come and cut them down, trying to squat on the land."

Changa Paz, of Amigos del Mar dive shop, even suggests a moratorium on lobster and conch fishing, to allow stocks to recover, and hopes for a southward extension of Hol Chan Marine Reserve, to join with the proposed Caye Caulker Marine Reserve.

That is a sentiment echoed by Chris Allnatt of Blue Hole Dive Center. Both guides are determined to play their role in conservation on Ambergris Caye. Paz has installed dozens of mooring buoys near the reef (at US$250each), both at his own expense and helped by donations, and Allnatt recently organized a beach clean up. "The amount of plastic garbage was incredible," he says. "Although a lot of it is thrown overboard from passing ships, much is generated within the town. Proper enforcement of the new litter laws, with big fines, would make people respect the law, and the message would get across. The same message could be applied to the fishing regulations."

Other San Pedranos, who don't wish to be named for fear of repercussions, told me that in many cases the people who catch illegal fish and lobster are protected from prosecution by political and family influence. The clear message was that while most people support increased legislation to protect the marine environment, they felt that the government was not doing enough to enforce the existing laws.

This seems to be particularly relevant with respect to the Mangrove Regulations, 1989, which prohibit any "alteration" of mangroves on any land except with a permit. Simon Zisman, a British geographer working in Belize, has recently completed the second edition of his highly recommended Directory of Belizean Protected Areas and Sites of Nature Conservation Interest. In this book, whenever he writes that a site's mangroves are "protected by Forestry Department regulations" the statement is almost always accompanied by the words "although the relevant regulations are not being enforced." I would have thought by now that everyone in Belize was convinced of the importance of protecting mangroves. They provide essential breeding grounds and nurseries for commercially important fish; mangroves and the adjacent seagrass beds retain and filter sediment from river runoff, increasing the clarity of water on the reefs; they are the first line of storm defence, absorbing the power of the wind. For these and many other reasons studies have shown coastal mangroves to have a economic value ranging from US$9,000 to $25,000 per acre.

In Belize I've read leaflets, listened to seminars and workshops and even attended a week-long conference dedicated to showing the tourism industry the economic and conservation importance of mangroves, yet everywhere mangroves are cut indiscriminately. What's going wrong? I visited Rafael Manzanero, a senior Forest Officer, in the Conservation Division of the Ministry of Natural Resources in Belmopan, to find out. He said there is a need to raise public awareness: "This worked some years ago, when the Mangrove Regulations were initiated, but interest has slowed down recently. We're having a new, nationwide campaign on the need to apply for a permit before mangroves are cut, and at the same time the existing regulations are being strengthened, with higher application fees and heavier fines for non-compliance. At the moment the application fee does not cover the necessary site visit, costing us money we should be spending on conservation work."

In a workshop across from his office he showed me several huge new signs advising anyone thinking of cutting mangroves to get a permit first. The education campaign is under way. It remains to be seen if real enforcement will follow.

I'll let Simon Zisman have the last word on mangroves - for the moment. "Belize is globally important for its reef. There should, therefore, be a presumption against development in the coastal zone...unless it provides Belize with economic benefits that are high and sustainable in comparison to the value of mangroves and other coastal environments being converted."

For more on Bacalar Chico, click here.

BELIZE NATIONAL PARKS, NATURAL RESERVES, & WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES
Belize Parks Home / Bacalar Chico / Bird Sanctuaries / Burdon Canal Nature Reserve / Blue Hole National Park / Great Blue Hole, Lighthouse Reef / Chiquibul National Park and Caracol / Cockscomb Wildlife Sanctuary / Columbia River Forest Reserve / Community Baboon Sanctuary / Crooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary / Five Blues Lake National Park / Glover's Reef Marine Reserve / Guanacaste National Park / Half Moon Caye Natural Monument / Hol Chan Marine Reserve / Laughing Bird Caye / Marco Gonzales / Mexico Rocks / Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve / Payne's Creek National Park / Rio Bravo Conservation and Management Area / Shark Ray Alley / Shipstern Nature Reserve / Turneffe Atoll /

Commons Island Community History Visitor Center Goods & Services Search Messages AIM Info



Copyright by Casado Internet Group, Belize