The Community Baboon Sanctuary Protection for the Black Howler Monkey
The first time I visited the Community Baboon Sanctuary it was from my front room, watching a nature program represented by Bill Oddie. The land belongs to local farmers and land owners at Bermudian landing, who are collectively committed to preserving the habitat on some of their land, for the protection of the troop of black howler monkeys existing there.
It was years later when I actually visited for real. As it happens; it was Russel, the same guide who appeared on that program that took us on the tour of the sanctuary. He really knows his stuff! Demonstrating how leaf cutter ants protect their nest, he beat a nearby tree with a piece of wood and out swarmed all these ants. They were soon on the guide himself, so we quickly vacated that area.
We were amazed how the local natives had used these ants` pincers to serve as clips to keep a wound closed. The amusing part was how they got the pincers on in the first place. They would hold the ant by the body and let it pinch the wound. Because the ant has such a strong hold they would then pull the body leaving only the ants` head and pincers behind. They then served as stitches. Novel!
You are educated on the fauna and flora, and the wild life that roam the Community Baboon Sanctuary. It wasn’t long before we came across a family of black howler monkeys swinging in the canopy above us. They certainly put on a show, but at first we were concerned that perhaps they would attack to protect their young. The guide assured us that we were quite safe.
As you can see in this video, a camcorder is ideal because the monkeys don’t “hang around” for long to get their picture taken.
There is a small history museum and visitors` centre near the entrance at Bermudian Landing village where you can browse around.
We stayed in one of the Cabanas within the grounds of the sanctuary. When evening came we dined with the family living in the house a few yards away. They had many a funny yarn to tell us after dinner. We really enjoyed their company but it was late and we needed to get some sleep as we were rising early.
That night we encountered torrential rain and an electrical storm. It knocked out all the lighting so we were in pitch blackness which was like a cloak around us. It was a very strange experience.
In the morning we said our goodbyes and left laden with oranges and homemade cashew nut wine. Slurp!
How to get there
The Community Baboon Sanctuary is located at Bermudian Landing, in the Belize District. Follow the Northern Highway until you come to Burrel Boom where you take the turn. It will lead you to the sanctuary.
We stayed in one of the Cabanas within the grounds of the sanctuary. When evening came we dined with the family living in the house a few yards away. They had many a funny yarn to tell us after dinner. We really enjoyed their company but it was late and we needed to get some sleep as we were rising early.
