THE BLADEN BRANCH WILDERNESS Report and Recommendations of the Manomet Bird Observatory - Missouri Botanical Garden Investigation of the Upper Bladen Branch Watershed, Maya Mountains, Belize, March 1987 Nicholas V 1. Brokaw and Trevor 1. Lloyd-Evans Photographs by David C. Twichell Manomet Bird Observatory P.O, Box 936 Manomet, Massachusetts 02345 USA Many people and institutions figured importantly in our expedition to Bladen Branch and in the production of this report. We thank the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Belize, for permission to work in Bladen, especially the Honorable Dean Undo, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. We are grateful to Chief Forest Officer Henry Flowers and Principal Forest Officer Oscar Rosada, of the Belize Forestry Department, for their assistance. Mrs. Dora Weyer inspired this investigation, and her aid with preparations in Belize was critical. We greatly appreciated Mr. Tony Zabaneh's assistance with obtaning porters and guides. The expert woodsmen Andres Logan and Arturo Rubio taught and helped us much during our exploration of Bladen. Fred and Mary Jo Prost made our stay pleasant and our business ef- ficient in Belize City. The W. W. Brehm Fund, of the Vogelpark Walsrode, West Germany funded the bulk of this project. The Brehm Fund paid for the time, transportation, special equipment, sup- plies, and services needed by expedition members from the Manomet Bird Observatory to investigate Bladen and prepare this report. Mr. Charles Luthin, Conservation Director of the Brehm Fund, helped conceive and guide the project. The Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, USA, supported plant collecting by Dr. Gerrit Davidseand Alan Brandt in Bladen. Katy Ray, Ted Raymond, Frances Robbins, and Hanson Robbins did much of the work in Bladen. We thank them for their enthusiasm, vigor, and good company. They paid their own way and made up a deficit in trip funds; their work and financial suuport helped make the trip possible. Whitney Robbins organized excellent first-aid kits. John Kricher loaned first-aid equipment. Andrew Whitman designed menus, organized supplies, did 'considerable legwork in Belize City, and was an enterprising explorer in Bladen. Elizabeth Mallory planned many aspects of the trip, helped get things going smoothly in Bladen, and helped prepare maps for this report. Dave Twichell designed the layout of this report and supervised its pro- duction. Realization of this document depended on his energy and creativity. We thank the Controller of Her Britannic Majesty's Stationery Office for permission to reproduce British Crown Copyright maps in this report. Ms. Sue Stroud, in the Copyright Branch of the Ordnance Survey, Southampton, England, graciously arranged that permission. Howard and Dede Brokaw participated in a previous short reconnaissance of Bladen, a valuable pilot for the recent trip. The ultimate goal of our work is to help preserve the marvellous and necessary diversi- ty of organisms on earth. Reaching that goal depends on the efforts and generous finan- cial support of many people. Page Acknowledgments 2 Summary 4 Introduction . .. 7 I. AT RAL HISTORY 9 Environment of the Upper Bladen Branch Watershed 9 The Maya Mountains and Bladen Branch. .. 9 Cllinate . .. 9 Ph) sical features . .. 9 egetation . .. 11 The granitic northwest sector. .. 11 The limestone southeast sector . .. 15 Valuable timber species . .. 16 Birds . .. 18 Yfammals . .. 21 n. H MAN HISTORY 23 Mayan Ruins . .. 23 Human Use of Bladen 23 The Mayas . .. 23 Recent uses: chide, logging, agriculture . .. 24 Hunting. .. 24 Ill. A SUGGESTED BLADEN BRANCH NATURE PRESERVE . 25 Justification. .. 25 Purposes of the preserve . .. .. 25 Why Bladen is suitable for a preserve. .. 25 The potential for tourism. .. 26 Design of the Suggested Preserve . .. 29 Boundaries . .. 29 Preserve size and conservation goals. .. 29 Bladen in the larger context: Cockscomb, Trio, and Chiquibul . .. 31 Management of the Suggested Preserve . .. 31 Access, travel in the preserve. .. 31 Use of the preserve and involvement of local people . .. 33 Facilities 33 Future Work. .. 33 Appendices , . .. 35 A. People and Narrative of the Expedition . .. 35 B. Plant List 36 C. Birds: common names, abundance, distribution. .. 38 Literature Cited. .. 43 1. The Manomet Bird Observatory and the Missouri Botanical Garden made a biological survey of the upper Bladen Branch watershed (Bladen) in the Maya Mountains of Belize, during March, 1987. We report on the topography, vegetation, flora, birds, mammals, and land-uses in Bladen. We suggest a preliminary management plan for conservation and economic goals. 2. Bladen covers about 350 kilometers2 (135 miles2). It is uninhabited and little disturbed. It contains mature forest and many animals, including substantial populations of large species that are rare and endangered elsewhere. Bladen would make an valuable nature preserve that would attract tourists. 3. Scenery in Bladen is spectacular. Elevations range from 80 to 1000 meters. There are mountains, graceful limestone hills, rock outcrops, caves, sinkholes, and waterfalls. 4. Forests cover the watershed, induding large areas of tall (main canopy 30 meters high), species-rich subtropical wet forest, as well as other forest types reflecting differences in soil, elevation, and disturbance. We give preliminary data on forest structure and an in- complete list of plant species. The most vlauable economic tree species, mahogany and spanish cedar, are uncommon in Bladen. Certain species of secondary value are locally somewhat common. 5. Between this and a previous trip we have recorded 194 bird species in Bladen, in- cluding 30 migrant species that breed in North America. Such large birds as Crested Guans and Great Curassows are common. 6. We saw mountain lions twice and herds of white-lipped peccaries twice. Tapirs seem to be common in Bladen. 7. In the Quebrada de Oro valley in Bladen we found uninvestigated Mayan ruins, mostly low rock mounds, but including one grouping that appeares to represent 'tombs' (8 meters high), 'courts', and an 'avenue'. 8. The impact of recent human uses of Bladen - the chicle trade, logging, small-scale agriculture, and hunting - has been slight. But as Belize grows, the forest and wildlife of Bladen will deteriorate without protective management. 9. We recommend establishment of a Bladen Branch nature preserve. Bladen is suitable for a preserve because: a) it is nearly pristine; b) it is biologically rich; c) no people need be displaced, since it is uninhabited; d) it would be easy to protect, since few people live nearby and access to the valley is limited; e) it would bring tourists and thus revenue for maintenance of the preserve and for the benefit of the Belizean economy. A Bladen Branch nature preserve would help build the large and growing industry of natural history tourism in Belize. An undisturbed Bladen is a natural resource that should be conserved. 10. The limits to the watershed, that is, all the land drained by the upper Bladen Branch, can be defined fairly easily and delimit the minimum area that should be included in a preserve. To increase the preserve's size, add a savanna habitat, and facilitate protection we suggest that preserve boundaries extend to the southeast beyond the strict limits of the watershed. 11. Bladen is large enough to support populations of many plants and animals, but the area of Bladen alone is not enough to sustain populations of some large animals, wide- ranging animals, and perhaps some successional plant species with dependent animals. These species are essential for the maintenance of an intact ecosystem and some are a primary attraction for tourists. To provide an area large enough for these species we recommend that a Bladen preserve be one component of a wider conservation region, including the Trio, Cockscomb, and Chiquibul areas, parts of which could be managed for sustained yield of forest products but still retain their wild character. 12. We urge that Bladen be reserved for tourist, scientific, and educational activity. Only foot and boat travel should be permitted in Bladen. One permanently-manned guard post and patrols would protect the preserve at this time. Little development is necessary. Local people can be employed as guards, guides, boatmen, and trail crew. 13. To establish a well-managed Bladen Branch nature preserve, embedded in a larger con- servation region, the next steps would be: (1) designation of the upper Bladen Branch watershed as an inviolate nature preserve, (2) preparation of a detailed and comprehensive management plan for Bladen by an experienced park or reserve planner, (3) continued basic studies on the natural history of Bladen, (4) biological exploration of the Trio and Chiquibul areas. ..' , .............. 30mi i ' 40km Belize , "'f f, \ I :J J:::> • J ; a,' .,' J : " • ,I .".I . .., { I "# I \ ,, \ , , # , I Figure 1-Map of Belize showing the location of Bladen Branch and the upper Bladen Branch watershed. 5 10 "1,,, I This report contains the results and recommendations of the Manomet Bird Observatory - Missouri Botanical Garden investigation of the upper Bladen Branch watershed (Bladen) in the Maya Mountains, Belize. The waterhsed is currently part of a Forestry Reserve, administered by the Belize Forestry Department. Our immediate purpose was to survey the vegetation, flora, and birdlife of Bladen. Our utlirnate purpose was to assess the value of this area as a nature preserve and to make recommendations toward further protecting Bladen if we found the area worthy. Indeed, we found that Bladen is little disturbed, is biolgically rich, is scenic, contains inter- esting Mayan ruins, and would make a valuable preserve that would attract tourism and con- tribute to the economy of Belize. In the following pages we describe the natural and human history of Bladen, and present a plan for the design and management of a Bladen Branch na- ture preserve. The Bladen plan is formed in the context of a conservation strategy for a wider area in the southern Maya Mountains. We explored the upper Bladen Branch watershed on foot from February 28 to March 29, 1987.