Birds of Belize and Central America:
Southern Districts

ABOVE: "The Tropical King Bird hanging out on a pasture fence. Seen all over Belize lenght about 20 cm. It has a grey head, white throat, brown wings, a yellow belly and a powerfull bill. It has a orange spot on its head but that is mostly unobservable.This flycatcher is found in open country with trees. There you see it sitting without moving to fly up to catch insects in a typical flycatacher way. It is as agressive against intruders like the great kiskadee and will chase after big birds like the yellow-headed caracara. Courtesy Eva W. Casey.

Punta Gorda in the south offers the Agua Caliente Nature Reserve near Laguna Village - it is a bird watching sanctuary. In Placencia, the Bladden River Reserve contains a great variety of birds, and a boat tour through mangroves and then five miles upriver to jungle trails will usually guarantee you the sight of a great variety of birds. Indeed, the entire Placencia Lagoon with its mangrove swamps, flora and fauna, also has many exotic birds.

Also in southern Belize , the Sittee River Tour offers the spectacular sight of tropical birds. Or, if you'd like, view flocks of the famous scarlet macaw in Red Bank Village, located about 30 minutes from a southern Maya village of Maya Center, and in the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary.

Many Belizean cayes, small islands, are also a bird watcher's dream. Bird Caye Bird Sanctuary, north of Gales Point will offer up choice bird watching of ibises, herons, egrets and other Northern Lagoon delights. The island of Caye Caulker has a small reserve dedicated to the black catbird. Man of War Caye is a haven for pelicans, frigate birds and brown booby birds. And, about 50 miles southeast of Belize City , in the region of the famous Blue Hole, a scuba diving delight, is Half Moon Caye. It is home to the region's only population of the red-footed booby bird.

ABOVE: " The Jabiru Stork ( Jabiru mycteria ) is also known locally in Belize as a "turk" or "fillymingo". They live in wetlands and feed on frogs, snails, fish, and have been known to eat snakes. They nest at the top of very tall trees with both male and females taking turns incubating the eggs. Photo Courtesy Eva W. Casey

Just about any area of Belize offers birdlife. Whether it's a talkative parrot in the jungles, or the evening twitter of blackbirds in Belize City , and the flocks of pigeons in downtown Battlefield Park , Belize is truly made for the bird lover. Indeed, over 120 species are found just in and around Belize City - for example, the nearby Maya ruin of Altun Ha, 31 miles north of Belize City, covers approximately 25 square miles, is a good place for birdwatchers, who can venture onto several jungle trails branching out from main plaza.

Exotic birds like the jabiru stork, scarlet macaw and keel-billed toucan are protected species. Other threatened or endangered species include the crested eagle, black catbird, chestnut bellied heron, muscovy duck, solitary eagle and ocellated turkey. Whether you have an hour, a day or a week in Belize, you're bound to spot numerous species without even trying.

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