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Belize's feathered rainbow
From December to April travelers can experience
the world of the Scarlet Macaw.
It is one of the most endangered and colorful birds in the world living in the verdant greenery of Belize's millennium old rainforest – the Scarlet Macaw.
This vibrant member of the Parrot Family is one of the world's most grievously imperiled birds, due in great part to poaching for the pet trade. In the early 1990's, it was thought that there were only 24 of the birds left in Belize, and then a small pocket of 100 birds was found in the Chiquibul rainforest in 1996.
“This is one of the rarest birds in Central America,” states Sharon Matola, founder of the Belize Zoo and Tropical Education Center, “We've determined there are far fewer than 200 of them in the country. As a result we started education programs, with a number of instructors who go to schools and teach children about how to treat the Scarlet Macaw.”
The public can now see as well as learn of the plight of these exceptional birds in the wild and make a donation to Wildlife Trust, whose objective is to empower local conservation scientists to protect nature, safeguard the ecosystem, and human health.
The large red, blue, and yellow parrot lives in the tropical lowland forests of Central and South America. Macaws have long, pointed tails and huge bills, usually measuring just shy of one meter (3 feet) in length from head to tail and weighing in at about 1 kilogram (2.5 pounds).
And they are scary smart.
Scarlet macaws are among the worlds' most intelligent birds. Among the attributes that make this bird extremely sought after as a pet is the ability to learn to solve fairly complex problems, and how to talk.
The Scarlet Macaw Project allows nests to be monitored and migration to be tracked, in an effort to better understand and to save brilliantly hued scarlet macaw. The project is progressing quite well, under sponsorship from Wildlife Trust. Project leader Matola and her assistants are exploring the remote area of western Belize to locate nesting sites and to study macaw ecology, having already documented the transmigration of the scarlet macaw between one side of the Maya Divide and the other, and found it to be vital towards the birds' survival.
Matola states the project is also collaborating with Wildlife Trust, supporting macaw research in Costa Rica and Guatemala.
“Wildlife Trust's ultimate goal is to help the region's ornithologists develop a strategy for the conservation of Central American scarlet macaws,” Matola explains. “By taking the scarlet macaw tour, and experiencing this magnificent creature in its habitat, the public can see just how valuable this bird is and help to preserve it for future generations.”
Belize is no more than two hours from three gateways in the United States. It is located in Central America, between Mexico and Guatemala on the Caribbean Coast. It covers an area of almost 9,000 square miles (14,400 km), including 266 square miles (425 km) of islands. Belize has a population of only 280,000, and the official language is English.
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