On the International Day for Biological Diversity, under the theme “Harmony with Nature and Sustainable Development”, the project Resilient and Biodiverse Landscapes of Northern Mesoamerica (BLF) highlights progress in monitoring species whose presence, abundance, or absence reflects the ecological health of ecosystems.
Using data collected between 2020 and 2024, a baseline has been established for tracking 10 indicator species across the BLF’s forest landscapes: the Maya Forest (Guatemala and Belize), La Moskitia (Honduras), and Trifinio (El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala). Since 2023, BLF has supported data collection through camera traps, acoustic recorders, patrols, and community interviews, enabling technical teams to gather essential information on the ecological integrity of these territories.
What Species Tell Us About Forest Health
The findings combine encouraging signs with critical warnings. The jaguar, for example, maintains a strong presence—over 90% occupancy—in core areas of the Maya Forest such as Mirador-Río Azul National Park. In contrast, its presence is limited in fragmented areas of La Moskitia, reflecting increasing human pressure. Despite this, records confirm the occurrence of the giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla), also known as Winku Tara in the Miskito language, in La Moskitia.
The Baird’s tapir (Tapirus bairdii) and the white-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari), both highly sensitive to disturbance, were rarely recorded in degraded areas, confirming their value as bioindicators of forest decline: lower forest cover and quality correspond to lower encounter probabilities.
In the forest canopy, the scarlet macaw (Ara macao) and great green macaw (Ara ambiguus) reveal contrasting dynamics. In Guatemala, the scarlet macaw shows cyclical patterns in reproductive success, while La Moskitia stands out as a key refuge for the great green macaw, with notable densities in monitored sites.
In Belize, the Central American river turtle (Dermatemys mawii), critically endangered, showed signs of recovery. Monitoring data indicate a steady increase in catch-per-unit-effort rates in protected areas such as Cox Lagoon, suggesting potential local recovery under effective management conditions.
In the Trifinio region, acoustic sensors recorded the call of the horned guan (Penelopina nigra), an endemic cloud forest species, with occupancy probabilities reaching up to 94%, according to acoustic models.
The white-lipped frog (Leptodactylus silvanimbus), a species particularly vulnerable to habitat loss and climate change, was not detected during this sampling cycle. Its absence raises new questions about its distribution and population status.
These findings will help guide conservation, restoration, and climate finance decisions in a region that still harbors extraordinary biological richness—though increasingly under threat.
This information is drawn from institutional reports by consortium members: Belize Maya Forest Trust (BMFT), Friends for Conservation and Development (FCD), Fundación en Ciencias para el Estudio y Conservación de la Biodiversidad (INCEBIO), and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) programs in Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras, all of which are scaling up their research efforts under the project framework.