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Wildlife Research in Belize |
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Conservation research on Belizean mammals |
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Dr Rebecca Foster & Dr Bart Harmsen Phone: (00501) 663-1505 or 665-7318 E-mail: R.Foster@soton.ac.uk | rfoster@panthera.org bartjh@soton.ac.uk | bharmsen@panthera.org |
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To contact us: |
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Field updates: Jan+ 2010 |
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Monthly updates, please scroll down for most recent entry |
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FEBRUARY 2010 Camera survey continues in Central Belize Corridor (CBC) The second camera-trap survey for jaguars comprising 20 camera stations continues to run smoothly. Data thus far show evidence of at least two ocelots crossing the highway that bisects the corridor.
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January saw the official launch of the Environmental Research Institute (ERI) at the University of Belize. The mission of the ERI is ‘To build national research capacity in order to provide sound science for decision making that leads to the effective management, sustainable use and conservation of Belize’s natural resources’.
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The event was well-attended by Government officials, local and national conservation NGOs, staff and students of the University of Belize and Galen University, and the press and media. The Honorable Gaspar Vega, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment, gave a formal address praising the great achievement of Dr Elma Kay and Dr Leandra Cho-Ricketts in founding the ERI, and looked with optimism to its future role in the management of Belize’s natural resources. |
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Dr Kay thanked Panthera, the UK Darwin Initiative, the Oak Foundation and Edulink for their support, and formally welcomed the new ERI staff. |
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ERI staff (from left): Mr Celso Cawich (Marine Biologist) , Mr German Lopez (Darwin-ERI Botanist), Mr Said Gutierrez (Darwin-ERI Wildlife Biologist), Dr Bart Harmsen (Panthera Wildlife Fellow), Mr Ian Sangster (Financial Director), Dr Leandra Cho-Ricketts (Marine Science Director), Dr Elma Kay (Terrestrial Science Director) |
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Cage traps deployed in CBC study area We have deployed and pre-baited 23 Tomahawk cage traps in the centre of the CBC, at the interface between the savannah and the forest. The traps will be used to live capture mammals so that we can fit them with radio collars and track their movements through the corridor. The traps are currently wired open so that the animals habituate to the traps and begin feeding on the bait. The traps are monitored with camera traps to determine which species are attracted to which bait. Already, the cameras show high activity of animals in and around the traps. |
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Pacas in cage trap |
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Wildlife Management course for UB students This year’s Natural Resource Management students have survived the 2010 Wildlife Management course run by Dr Bart Harmsen and Dr Rebecca Foster. The 18 students received training in wildlife ecology and conservation, and participated in a field trip to collect data on prey abundance in relation to habitat within the wildlife corridor study area. |
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Statistics workshop at UB Dr Patrick Doncaster, Darwin Initiative Project Leader, returned to Belize this month to give a two-day statistics workshop for staff and students at the University of Belize. The course was well received, attended by over 80 members of the University. |
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Statistics is fun! Dr Doncaster gives two-day workshop at the University of Belize |
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UB students collect habitat data and survey for signs of prey species in the corridor study area |