Workshop designs strategy to safeguard long-term survival of the Hicatee turtle in Belize

On February 25-26, 2016, Belize Foundation for Research and Environmental Education (BFREE) in collaboration with Turtle Survival Alliance, the Belize Fisheries Department, and the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens hosted the 2nd Hicatee Conservation Forum and Workshop at the BFREE Field Station in southern Belize.  Unique to Belize, Guatemala and Mexico, the Central American River Turtle,…

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Cacao-based Agroforestry Handbook

Now in its 3rd year, the Belize Cacao-based Agroforestry Project (BCARP) is on the path to broadening its reach by producing an illustrated guidebook to be distributed around the country.  The BCARP seeks to expand habitat for over-wintering neotropical migratory birds and other wildlife by converting environments such as farmland and secondary growth forest to…

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First captive bred Hicatee Turtles hatch at HCRC

Six months after a clutch of eight Hicatee eggs was found buried at the waters’ edge at the Hicatee Conservation and Research Center (HCRC) in December of 2014, hatchlings began to emerge from their eggs.  These are the first hatchlings in the captive breeding program established by the Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA) and BFREE at…

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Oecologia article considers the winter ecology of Wood Thrushes

Emily McKinnon, bird biologist and Research Affiliate in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Manitoba, conducted a significant portion of her doctoral field research at the BFREE field station. In her May 27 blog post, “Jungle life is not always easy for Wood Thrushes,”  McKinnon summarized her research and announced the resulting Oecologia article.…

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USFWS feature BFREE Pen Pal collaboration on their blog

After a visit to Belize this spring, Molly Sperduto of the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and Heather Barrett of BFREE helped establish pen pal relationships between a primary school in Golden Stream, Belize and another in Canterbury, New Hampshire, USA. Recently, a blog article on the USFWS website was recently posted that describes…

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