Baboon Sanctuary

The Baboon Sanctuary is located 35 miles northwest of Belize City. The sanctuary consists of approximately 20 square miles along the Belize River and embodies a combination of dense jungle, pasture, farmland, and small village life.

The sanctuary was established in 1985 in collaboration between primate biologist Rob Horwich and a group of local farmers, with the help of World Wildlife Fund for Nature. It represents a unique conservation effort that brought together eight villages to protect the population and habitats of Belize's Black Howler Monkey. These animals are locally called "baboons" or "saraguate" in Spanish.

In addition to providing sanctuary for the monkeys, the conservation program here includes protecting the trees that provide food for the monkeys, preserving the forest along the riverbanks to prevent erosion, and maintaining corridors of habitats around farms and pastures. The visitor Center is very educational, a jungle exhibit type museum that demonstrates the interesting facts and features of the area. The success of this program has led to the relocation of troops of the howlers (usually up to 8 monkeys), into other areas of Belize where previous populations have been diminished normally by hunting or diseases. Some 200 species of birds have been recorded here. Among these are Squirrel cuckoos, Black-throated Bobwhite, Quails, Plumbeous kites, Hook-billed kites, Gray Hawks, Acorn Woodpecker and common Black Hawks.

Howler population in the sanctuary now stands at around 1,500, roughly equal to that of the people in the surrounding villages. The Black Howler Monkey is the largest monkey in the Americas, and found only in small sections of Central America. A variety of other mammals are found in the reserve area, including Coati, Gibnut, Jaguarundi, and the Baird's Tapir. Reptiles include Morelet's Crocodile, Iguana and the Central American River Turtle. Occasionally white tailed deer can be seen in the pine oak forests.