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| Estuary in Punta de Manabique. Photo/© Knut Eisermann. |
Birding in Punta de Manabique is a tropical swamp forest area with a wealth of bird life. During an investigation of the avifauna in the area in 2000/2001, 314 bird species were recorded (Eisermann 2001). Manabique is a proposed protected area and RAMSAR wetland site on Guatemala's Caribbean coast and is the habitat of the Yellow-headed Parrot (Amazona oratrix guatemalensis), an endangered subspecies, and the Great Curassow (Crax rubra), a turkey-sized, mainly terrestrial Cracid. We will explore the protected area on the vast network of boardwalks through the swamp forest, which characterize the interior of the area's peninsula, and look for footprints of Tapir (Tapirus bairdii), Peccaries (Dicotyles pecari and Tayassu tajacu) and Jaguar (Panthera onca), which roam continuously throughout these woods. We will also explore the mangrove belt circling the 'La Graciosa' Bay and observe Mangrove Vireos (Vireo pallens), Grey-necked Wood-Rail (Aramides cajanea) and different kinds of herons: Bare-throated Tiger-Heron (Tigrisoma mexicanus), Yellow-crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax violaceus), Green Heron (Butorides virescens), Boat-billed Heron (Cochlearius cochlearius) Tri-colored Heron (Egretta tricolor) and others. For those interested the complete tour, we can take a boat tour out from Manabique where you may see dolphins and even possibly the shy West Indian Manatee (Trichechus manatus).
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Yellow-headed Parrot (Amazona oratrix). Photo/© Knut Eisermann. |
Manabique is alive with wildlife activity: it is a transit and wintering area for 25 nearctic shorebirds and the park's beaches are shared by the Green Iguana (Iguana iguana), which appear in February by the hundreds to lay eggs in the sand, and different kinds of sea turtles, which also use the beaches for burying their eggs. Montezuma Oropendulas (Psarocolius montezuma) raise their young in the coco palms along the beach of Manabique and from March to September Great Egrets (Egretta alba) maintain a mixed breeding colony together with the Anhingas (Anhinga anhinga) and Olivaceous Cormorants (Phalacrocorax brasilianus). Other fascinating sea birds like the magnificent Frigatebirds (Fregata magnificens) and Brown Pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis), as well as different Boobies, Terns and Gulls, also populate the protected area. We always make sure to have an updated species list of the birds recorded in Manabique ready for you when you arrive.
Accommodation: Manabique is not included in our tour packages (only costumized tours), since it is not easyly accessible and accomodation has expedition character.
The Manabique protected area is managed by the non-profit organization FUNDARY (Fundación Mario Dary). Within the protected area's premises Fundary maintains a biological station where guests can stay in rustic rooms with a shower, kitchen, purified water, and, best of all, a beach right nearby. Manabique is accessible only by boat- a 30 km trip from Puerto Barrios, which helps minimize human impact on the protected area. 
When is the best time for a visit in Manabique? The best time of year is from March to May. These months fall within the dry season and the sea is usually calm, a basic condition for access to the observation sites in the area.
How do you support conservation and development in Manabique? The local population in the Manabique area is made up of mostly Ladinos (people of Spanish decent), from Guatemala, Honduras and Belize. They have been living in this area for years, surviving by exploiting many of the area's natural resources, especially the fish. Approximately 2,000 people live within the protected area and the main species they fish for is "Manjua", an anchovy only a few centimeters long. While this has been a lucrative activity for decades, recent studies found that the species, which swims in big swarms through shallow waters, has been drastically over fished all along the coast of the Gulf of Honduras. To confront this problem, Guatemala, Honduras and Belize signed an international agreement to drastically reduce the fishing of this species, however it leaves locals in a difficult situation.
Your visit to Manabique will help support Fundary's conservation work in the area and help the local people transition to new income generating activities. One of Fundary's core principles is that local people should be a driving force for conservation in the protected area and, as such, Fundary works with the resident population to try and find alternative income sources, which do not harm the natural environment. The ecotourism program in Manabique is a perfect example of this type of alternative income source. While you visit the park, all of your services will be provided by local people (boat ride, meals, lodging). In this way, you will be helping the local people to earn a living without negatively impacting their natural environment.
