Cockscomb Jaguar Reserve, Dangriga, Belize
Early in the morning we had tied our ship to the dock near Dangriga, a Garifuna town on the Placencia Peninsula, and headed by bus to this very special wildlife reserve in Belize. We set off on different walks, short or long, and had the opportunity to explore a good stand of primary tropical rainforest. Some of the trees were simply out of sight! A good number of birds were seen, and even more were heard in the dense jungle. Among them were white-collared and red-capped manakins, black-headed trogons, gray-headed kites and a king vulture. We saw lianas as thick as a big tree trunk, disappearing into the canopy, to meld with the numerous air plants among the upper branches of the trees. Some of us walked into the jungle along a riverside path, only to jump onto inner tubes and float down the refreshing waters to our starting point. In so doing, we were able to see the jungle from another perspective. Back on board, we repositioned our ship to the mouth of the Sittee River, which drains the Cockscomb Basin. On Zodiacs we traveled upstream, admiring the riparian forest and searching for interesting plant species and wildlife. We found huge colorful iguanas high in the trees, and a riot of dense vegetation, including three species of mangroves – red, black and white. These salt-tolerant, broad-leafed trees are the hatchery zone for innumerable invertebrates and economically important fish. The birders were in Heaven! On this day, they identified over 100 species of tropical birds.
Early in the morning we had tied our ship to the dock near Dangriga, a Garifuna town on the Placencia Peninsula, and headed by bus to this very special wildlife reserve in Belize. We set off on different walks, short or long, and had the opportunity to explore a good stand of primary tropical rainforest. Some of the trees were simply out of sight! A good number of birds were seen, and even more were heard in the dense jungle. Among them were white-collared and red-capped manakins, black-headed trogons, gray-headed kites and a king vulture. We saw lianas as thick as a big tree trunk, disappearing into the canopy, to meld with the numerous air plants among the upper branches of the trees. Some of us walked into the jungle along a riverside path, only to jump onto inner tubes and float down the refreshing waters to our starting point. In so doing, we were able to see the jungle from another perspective. Back on board, we repositioned our ship to the mouth of the Sittee River, which drains the Cockscomb Basin. On Zodiacs we traveled upstream, admiring the riparian forest and searching for interesting plant species and wildlife. We found huge colorful iguanas high in the trees, and a riot of dense vegetation, including three species of mangroves – red, black and white. These salt-tolerant, broad-leafed trees are the hatchery zone for innumerable invertebrates and economically important fish. The birders were in Heaven! On this day, they identified over 100 species of tropical birds.
