My name is Kelsey Johnson and I had the incredible opportunity this summer to spend the months of June and July in Belize on the Special Research Projects and Service Learning program. My objective during my stay in Belize was to collect data concerning the biodiversity of mammals in the Billy Barquedier National Park using game cameras and small traps. I hiked through the jungle with my colleague Mersady Redding and our excellent guides. Throughout our journey we observed many different and exciting mammal species. I cannot think of a better way to have completed my honors thesis research!
My area of focus for my project was in Zone 1 of the national park surrounding a beautiful waterfall. This area of the park has the most human traffic and I was interested to see if that had an effect on the species I would observe compared to Mersady’s, who’s project focus was in the remote camping area of the jungle located in Zone 4.
In order to get to Mersady’s area of study we had to hike four miles into the jungle to reach the campsite. Once we arrived we had to set up camp, game cameras, and traps for small mammals. The entire trip was both physically and mentally challenging, which in turn made me a stronger person both physically and mentally. We would spend two to three nights in the jungle for each time we went out there. Our campsite consisted of a thatch hut with hammocks strung inside for all of us to sleep in, and a fire pit for cooking. Our guides cooked for us constantly out there so we were never hungry. Throughout our journey I learned that the jungle is both a peaceful and exciting place. As we hiked we could hear the birds constant calls and occasionally howler monkeys would yell at us from the treetops. Mersady and I were overwhelmed with excitement each time we witnessed a new species.
For our project we captured many incredible pictures of the mammals in Belize on our game cameras. Some of our most exciting pictures were of a puma, an ocelot, and Belize’s national animal, the Tapir. We also caught three species of rodents in our traps. One of the rodents was a Watson’s Climbing Rat (we named him Watson), who was our first trap. He ended up coming back to the same trap three times once he realized that he got to eat and then we would let him go. Mersady and I loved viewing our animal pictures but enjoyed seeing the animals in real life even more.
In order to see the animals we had been observing through a lens in person, we had the incredible opportunity to work with the CELA study abroad program that was working at the Belize Zoo. There we were able to go behind he scenes and see how the animals receive their veterinary care. We also met Cinco the baby peccary, who was very friendly and loved attention! Through the CELA program we even got the opportunity to explore some caves in Belize. Some of the caves had shockingly tall fixtures. Our study abroad group had the opportunity to go to several other exciting excursions during our time in Belize.
Our other excursions included going to Guatemala, a beach town called Hopkins, Lobster Fest in Placencia, the Blue Hole, Caye Caulker, Southwater Caye and Tobacco Caye. In most of these places we got to take off from our busy work schedules to relax on the beach or snorkel. In Guatemala we went to the Tikal Mayan Ruins, which were breathtakingly beautiful. The area was rich with culture and tradition. While we spent a lot of time in the jungle or traveling on excursions, our home base was located in Dangriga.
In Dangriga we were fortunate to meet a sweet lady named Tanisha aka Mama Bear. She was our mother during our stay in Belize. She cooked us delicious traditional Belizean meals including a Garifuna fish dish called Hudut that was to die for! I enjoyed my time spent with Tanisha and still talk to her through Facebook to this day. I hope to go back to Belize one day to see Tanisha, my guides, and the jungle that I spent this amazing summer in!