| Fast Facts |
location
north of Guatemala City; 30 minutes by plane
ecoregion
Petén-Veracruz Moist Forest
project size
4 million acres
protected areas
The Maya Biosphere Reserve, which includes: four National Parks - Tikal, Sierra del Lacandón Laguna del Tigre, and Mirador-Rio Azul, three wildlife preserves, a multiple use zone that covers half of the Maya Biosphere Reserve
partners
Defensores de la Naturaleza, Consejo Nacional de Areas Protegidas, Dirección General de Patrimonio Cultural y Natural del Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes de Guatemala
natural events
at the Mayan ruins of Uaxactun, observe equinoxes and solstices at the temples of the Astronomical Complex | |
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| The Maya Forest, nearly destroyed by ancient Mayan civilization a thousand years ago, faces a new wave of overuse from modern-day settlers. |
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Temples, Tikal National Park.
© David Hiser/Network Aspen |
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From a bird's-eye view, the Maya Biosphere Reserve appears as a vast sea of leafy green stretching across northern Guatemala. Dense forests containing chicle, mahogany and spanish cedar among 78 other tree species sprout from the region's karstic soils. When the rains come, swampy, seasonal freshwater wetlands, or bajos, can cover as much as 40 percent of the reserve.
The Maya Biosphere Reserve is the heart of the greater Maya Forest, which is the Americas' largest contiguous tropical forest north of the Amazon, covering parts of Guatemala, Mexico and Belize. In Guatemala, the 4 million acres of forest contained in the reserve protects habitat for jaguar, puma, ocelot, the giant anteater and 90 other mammal species. Bright flashes of color glimpsed through the canopy and a constant cacophony of sound reveals the presence of scarlet macaws, toucans and approximately 400 other bird species. |
Jaguar.
© Art Wolfe |
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The Maya established some of their most powerful cities here, beginning over 2,500 years ago. Within the embrace of the Maya Biosphere Reserve are at least 175 reported ancient Mayan cities including Tikal, a spectacular World Heritage Site. Although some sites have been studied and excavated, many structures remain obscured by the dense forest with-- only the crumbling ruins of temple towers escaping roots and vines to peek through the upper canopy. | |
Some scientists believe that widespread deforestation and the associated depletion of soils from agriculture likely caused the collapse and abandonment of these Mayan cities in 930 A.D., only 1,500 years after the first settlements were established. A thousand years later, people are following the same path of the ancient Mayans, but at a much more accelerated rate, clearing the land for agriculture and ranching, which threatens to destroy the forest ecosystems. The Nature Conservancy and local partner Defensores de la Naturaleza, are working to improve the management and protection of Sierra del Lacandón National Park-the second largest within the Reserve and Guatemala and one of the most important in terms of its biodiversity and strategic location within the greater Maya Forest. To date, The Nature Conservancy has helped turn the park into a funcitonal protected area through planning, setting up a management system, helping Defensores purchase 22,500 acres within a critical area of the park and provided technical assistance to develop the Tikal National Park Master Plan (2004-2008).
Learn more about The Nature Conservancy's work in Guatemala. |
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| Conservation Profile |
targets
Terrestrial and fresh water ecosystems, jaguar, ocelot, puma, jaguarundi, tigrillo, giant anteater, howler and spider monkeys, tapir, scarlet macaw, harpy eagle, great curassow, black-billed cuckoo, jabiru stork among others, and Mayan cultural sites.
stresses
Forest Fires, oil exploration and drilling, incompatible farming and ranching practices, incompatible infrastructure (road and dam construction), unplanned human settlements, and looting of cultural resources.
strategies
Improve protected area planning and management capacity and promote ecoregional planning, promote ecologically compatible land-use practices and economic development, acquire key tracts of land and secure conservation easements, facilitate relocation of human settlements, promote sustainable income for protected areas
results
4 million acres in conservation management; 22,500 acres in Sierra del Lacandón National Park acquired | | | | |
