The jewel of Central America, Belize boasts aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems that have captured the world’s attention. Belize is located southeast of Mexico on the Caribbean Sea, encompassing an area of about 9000 square miles. The largest barrier coral reef in the Western Hemisphere, measuring 185 miles in length, is found off the coast of Belize. Moving inland, the land rises to 3000 feet above sea level, and biologically diverse tropical forests cover large areas of the country.

Belize is one of the most important manatee sites in the world. The manatee population is estimated at about 1000 individuals. West Indian manatees (Trichechus manatus) inhabit rivers, lagoons, estuaries and coastal areas of tropical and subtropical regions of the northwest Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern coasts of the U.S. to Brazil. Belize is also home to the largest world population of two subspecies, the Florida manatee (T. manatus latirostris) and the Antillean manatee (T. manatus manatus). These large, plant-eating marine mammals are listed as endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and as vulnerable to extinction by the World Conservation Union. To help ensure manatee survival, scientific studies aimed at understanding their biology are needed.

The aim of this study is to provide information to the relevant government and non-government organizations in Belize that will assist with the development of manatee conservation and management actions. Our research is also being used to develop practices that will ensure that ecotourism based on manatee viewing does not negatively impact this species in places such as Southern Lagoon. Our work is endorsed by the Belize Ministry of Natural Resources, Local Government and Environment.

Most of the information we have on manatees is from studies conducted on the Florida subspecies. This research allows scientists to make comparisons with what is known about Florida manatees and those that are less influenced by cold weather and disturbed by boats and development. Through this work, Wildlife Trust scientists and field teams are able to obtain valuable information on manatee reproductive biology, movements and habits in their more typical tropical habitat.

One of the primary research activities is following West Indian manatees living in Belize by satellite tracking using the ARGOS system. Service ARGOS is a cooperative venture under the joint management of France's Center of National Space Studies and the United States of America's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and its National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The purpose of ARGOS is to allow citizens to remotely collect environmental data on a wide range of subjects including meteorology, oceanography and animal ecology.

To track each manatee, a special transmitter placed in a waterproof container is attached by a four-foot tether to the manatee's tail. The towed transmitter broadcasts to polar orbiting satellites. A computer on the satellite records signals from the transmitters during each overpass. The satellite, in turn, relays the manatee data to Earth-based listening stations where ARGOS computers determine the location of the manatee. Finally, the locations are sent to the project scientists via the Internet. The locations of the manatees are accurate to about 0.6 mile.

In addition to location information, the transmitters also record and relay to the scientists via the ARGOS satellite link information concerning the manatees' diving behavior (dive number and dive duration), local water temperature and the transmitter's battery status. Currently, Wildlife Trust scientists are tracking 10 manatees in Southern Lagoon and one in the Belize City Cays.

Major threats to manatee conservation are poaching for food, collision with boats, entanglement in fishing nets and loss of feeding habitats. In Belize and the U.S., up to 30 percent of manatee deaths are caused directly by humans.

Wildlife Trust’s Coastal Conservation Program encompasses various other types of long- and short-term research and management projects. We conduct seasonal aquatic vegetation sampling and increase our database on daily water quality data.

We are enhancing our research initiatives to have a more comprehensive, ecological approach to wildlife conservation. The Rapid Ecological Assessment is one tool we employed to identify other species and systems of special interest to address in the near future. Permanent mangrove plots to measure community composition have been established using MBRS (2003) protocol. We also conducted reef and fish surveys using these protocols in the Bluefield Range, approximately fifteen miles directly eastward of Southern Lagoon. Click here to read the full report.

Our management initiative for the Southern Lagoon Wildlife Sanctuary is done in collaboration with the Gales Point Wildlife Sanctuary Community Management Team. We are implementing a boat speed zone system for the lagoon, and will be doing the same for the Corozal Bay (Manatee) Wildlife Sanctuary and the Swallow Cay (Manatee Wildlife Sanctuary.)

If you would like to find out how you can support this project please contact Wildlife Trust.

Project Team Members

Dr. James Powell – VP of National and Aquatic Programs

Nicole Auil – Belize Program Manager / Conservation Biologist

Kevin Andrewin – Field Assistant

Jamal Galves – Field Assistant

Robert Bonde of the Sirenia Project of the USGS/Biological Resources Division