Breathtaking

TEP worked with New Mexico State University to coordinate two programs late March. This article is a short glimpse into the field and extra curricular activities organized for one program. Lookout for the program videos on our various social media networks.

During the last week of March a group of University students from New Mexico State University visited Belize accompanied by Dr. Kathy Hanley. The students were participating in a Tropical Field Ecology program.

The first part of their program was spent at Chaa Creek’s magnificent Macal River Camp, a tranquil location in the middle of pristine jungle. This incredibly beautiful part of Belize is home to a diverse range of flora and fauna.

One team was studying the bird life of the area, the incredible variety of birds seen in the area was described by one student as ‘breathtaking’.

Keel Billed Toucans, Aracaris, various magnificently colored warblers, seed-eaters, birds of prey and hummingbirds were just some mentioned. Belize really is a paradise for ornithologists.

At night, the students were entertained by the sounds of the jungle, every night they heard the incredibly loud calls of the Howler Monkeys passing overhead in the jungle canopy.

On the Sunday morning, like most mornings there was an early morning field study session to take advantage of the relatively cooler air and more active wildlife. Then, to provide a cultural and historical perspective, the group went for a visit to Xunantunich Mayan site before cooling off in the crystal clear Mopan river at Clarissa falls.

The Clarissa Falls resort was the location for lunch, this was a selection of local, freshly prepared Mestizo food.  Salbutes, Tacos, Empanadas, Bollos were some of the eagerly devoured dishes accompanied by Ms. Chena’s hot pepper sauce. It was noted that many of the students from New Mexico are pepper sauce enthusiasts and they much appreciated this home-made spicy sauce.

The group then moved to Monkey Bay Wildlife Sanctuary which was to be their home for a few days. The teams continued their studies there, conducting some mist netting, night time camera traps, amongst other scientific studies.

The great surprise was getting a picture of an Ocelot at night, it passed by very close to the cabana’s, it is one of the most beautiful of the feline species.  The team who collected samples of insects have quite a big task to identify each of them because there are tens of thousands of species in Belize. One of the students remarked that the experience reminded her of how much she loves to be outdoors carrying out real research, away from the laboratory.

The university group will spend two days on one of the cayes on the barrier reef to complete their visit, that experience is sure to be an exciting one, from jungle to barrier reef within hours.