| Fast Facts |
location
80 miles northeast of Tegucigalpa, 50 miles south of San Pedro Sula
ecoregion
Central American Pine-Oak Forest
project size
192,247 acres
public lands
Cerro Azul Meambar National Park, Santa Bárbara Mountain National Park
partners
Association of Municipalities for the Protection of the Lake Yojoa (AMUPROLAGO)
natural events
dry season, verano, January -- May; wet season, invierno, June -- December | |
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Modern-day land protection methods are being tested on a Honduran landscape containing cultural artifacts dating to the beginning of the first millennium. |
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The calm waters of Lake Yojoa.
© Brenda J. Latvala/DDB Stock Photo |
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In the Central American isthmus, seasons are defined by rainfall rather than temperature. The wet season, invierno, can dump up to 200 inches of rain across Honduras.
Here in the rainiest western reaches of the country, the Lake Yojoa region is a product of the climate. Stretching for 10 miles and reaching depths of 50 feet, the lake is the largest natural lake in Honduras. Towering mountains surround the lake, trailing brooks and waterfalls from their slopes. Three kinds of forests - tropical, pine and cloud - blanket the lake's steep shore to the east, hosting motmots, toucans and parrots. The marshy western shore provides ideal habitat for tiger herons, wood storks, snail kites, black ducks and dozens of other water-loving species. |
Snail kite.
© Frans Lanting/Minden Pictures |
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Signs of the ancient Lenca people, who populated Lake Yojoa's shores as long ago as A.D. 200, abound. Ruins found here, including unexcavated pyramids, are attracting archeologists from all over the world and are expected to shed light on a period of pre-Coloumbian history that may be older than any explored to date. Although their native language |
| has long since disappeared, the descendents of the Lenca still dance the guancasco to celebrate friendship, build homes out of bamboo and clay, and observe other customs from a time when they coexisted with the great Mayan civilization. | |
The Lake Yojoa region today faces a battery of threats from expanding and unsustainable agriculture, forestry and development. In 2001, The Nature Conservancy and our partner AMUPROLAGO, an association of local municipalities, began working to safeguard at-risk private lands through conservation easements -- a U.S.-born conservation tool that is new to Latin America. Eight local landowners have agreed to limit development of their land in exchange for financial benefits from the local municipalities. Because working with municipalities is new to our work here, and the Lake Yojoa region is the first place in Honduras where conservation easements are being used, this will be a test case for the entire country.
Learn more about The Nature Conservancy's work in Honduras. |
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| Conservation Profile |
targets
jaguar, spider monkey, kingfishers, motmots, Mahonia glauca bush, several species of orchid found only in the Lake Yojoa region
stresses
unsustainable agriculture, forestry and grazing, pesticide use, natural resource extraction, development
strategies
secure conservation easements, promote ecologically compatible land-use practices, engage community in natural resource management, strengthen local partner organizations
results
created the first conservation easements in Honduras with eight landowners; concluded conservation planning that will guide a management plan for the entire watershed | | | | |
