Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Reserve And Man Of War Caye
The morning found us leaving the Sea Voyager and taking a journey into the interior of Belize. Our destination was the large wildlife reserve called Cockscomb. This is critical habitat for the endangered jaguar and is also great for several species of mammals and birds. We had no expectation of seeing the rare jaguar, especially since they are nocturnal, but it was great to walk the trails through the semidry tropical rainforest. There was a great diversity of plants and birds, and it was a treat to see the interior of Belize. The afternoon was a relaxing one with some of us opting to take a walk along the beach or go swimming. A longer Zodiac trip to a great snorkel site called Man of War Caye was also offered. One of the nicknames for the frigatebird is man of war and this small mangrove island was appropriately named as a couple hundred frigatebirds use this as a roosting and nesting site. Various stages of nesting were seen; including a few chicks and several males displaying their inflated gular pouches in the hopes of attracting a mate to their nest site. It was a relaxing and reflective afternoon, sadly our last aboard the Sea Voyager, but it has been an exciting, enjoyable and educational expedition from the San Blas Islands of Panama to the second longest barrier reef in the world, off the coast of Belize.
The morning found us leaving the Sea Voyager and taking a journey into the interior of Belize. Our destination was the large wildlife reserve called Cockscomb. This is critical habitat for the endangered jaguar and is also great for several species of mammals and birds. We had no expectation of seeing the rare jaguar, especially since they are nocturnal, but it was great to walk the trails through the semidry tropical rainforest. There was a great diversity of plants and birds, and it was a treat to see the interior of Belize. The afternoon was a relaxing one with some of us opting to take a walk along the beach or go swimming. A longer Zodiac trip to a great snorkel site called Man of War Caye was also offered. One of the nicknames for the frigatebird is man of war and this small mangrove island was appropriately named as a couple hundred frigatebirds use this as a roosting and nesting site. Various stages of nesting were seen; including a few chicks and several males displaying their inflated gular pouches in the hopes of attracting a mate to their nest site. It was a relaxing and reflective afternoon, sadly our last aboard the Sea Voyager, but it has been an exciting, enjoyable and educational expedition from the San Blas Islands of Panama to the second longest barrier reef in the world, off the coast of Belize.
