Volunteer Opportunities Belize Manatee Rehabilitation Centre

Volunteer Opportunities
Belize
Manatee Rehabilitation Centre

Carers Urgently Required!!
Twiglet...An Introduction
Jamal Galves with Island Puppy
(“Twiglet”) when first rescued
(25/06/09)
Linda and John Searle of Sea Sports
Belize, who provided the logistical
support for the rescue
Twiglet has surface lacerations on
her nose, flippers and tail, thought
to have been caused by an
encounter with sharp coral
Rescued on the 25 th June, 2009, the manatee calf was initially
reported as a potential orphan by Sea Sports Belize, having been
spotted on her own in the shallow waters of Heusner Caye, near
the reef east of Belize City. A local fishermen, Mr. Lambey, based
from the caye, observed the calf for four hours, with no sign of the
mother, at which point the Belize Marine Mammal Stranding
Network, under Jamal Galves, swung into action. With the support
of Sea Sport, the crew was out at Heusner Caye by 4:00pm, and
after assessing the situation, quickly captured the calf and brought
it back into Belize City, and, as night fell, on to Sarteneja.
Given the official name of “Island Puppy” by Mr. Lambey (and
known affectionately as “Twiglet” or “Twiggy” by the Wildtracks
crew), this calf is a West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus), a
species that faces many threats throughout the Wider Caribbean,
and is classed as 'Vulnerable' under the IUCN Redlist system. The
Belize population is estimated at approximately 800, so every
individual counts ‐ particularly females ‐ making the survival of this
small calf a priority, with the emphasis on returning her to the wild
population when she is ready for release.
On arrival, Twiglet weighed in at 56lbs, with a tip of nose to tip of
tail length of 1.18m, and was estimated to be between 1 and 2
weeks old. She requires 24 hour care, and is fed on Esbilac, a milk
replacement formula ‐ like most young animals, she needs feeding
frequently, so is on a three hour feeding rota ‐ both day and night.
She is currently using two pools at the Rehab facility ‐ the smaller
intensive care pool at night, and the larger recovery pool during
the day. As manatee calves are very susceptible to cold, the water
temperature is maintained between 28 and 32 degrees centigrade,
and the pools are emptied and scrubbed down once or twice a day,
depending on need.
She has also just been introduced to the lagoon pool, where she
has spent short, supervised periods exploring the mangroves and
seagrass.
We would like to express our appreciation to
Save the Manatee Club for providing the milk
replacement formula

What Does a Manatee Volunteer
Carer Do?
Hilmar Salazar working with
Twiglet in the Recovery Pool
Work is shared between volunteers, and involves all aspects of
manatee care. This includes food preparation of the milk
replacement formula, bottle feeding in the water, followed by
clean‐up. Carers also spend time working with the calf, providing
companionship in the water in these early developmental stage,
and monitoring her behaviour.
Other essential activities include emptying, cleaning, filling and
maintenance of the pools – to ensure a clean environment, the
pools are scrubbed down once, and sometimes twice, a day,
depending on how clean the water is.
Katie Dyke (Wildtracks, Belize) and
Twiglet – introducing her to the
lagoon pool
The Lagoon Pool
As the calf grows older, and requires less individual attention,
there are also public awareness activities, increasing interest and
knowledge among local stakeholders towards support for
conservation of this threatened species. This includes visits to
schools in the idyllic local fishing community of Sarteneja, one of
the stakeholder communities of Corozal Bay Wildlife Sanctuary,
established by the Government of Belize for the protection of the
West Indian Manatee.
Volunteers are also asked to help Wildtracks respond to calf
strandings, should they occur elsewhere in Belize, whilst they are
stationed with the Rehabilitation Centre.
This call for volunteers is focused on covering the critical period
from September 1 st , 2009 to March 31 st , 2010. Volunteers will be
recruited from April onwards through Wildtracks partners ‘Global
Vision International’ (www.gvi.co.uk).
Wildtracks Volunteers – July, 2009

The Manatee Rehabilitation Centre – Belize
Previous temporary Manatee
Rehab Facilities – Inflatable Pool
Manatee Rehab Facilities ‐
Screened Intensive Care Pool
Manatee Rehab Facilities ‐
Screened Intensive Care Pool
The Manatee Rehabilitation Centre was established in 1999 by
Wildtracks, under the Belize Marine Mammal Stranding Network
and the National Manatee Working Group, to care for orphaned or
injured manatees found in Belizean waters.
Temporary facilities were established at Wildtracks, with inflatable
pools (and the associated stresses of keeping them inflated). The
other major constraint was the scale of human resources required
for the 24‐hour intensive care of young and injured manatee calves,
addressed partially through a partnership with Global Vision
International.
In 2007, a grant from Busch Gardens, through The Nature
Conservancy, matched Wildtracks funds for support of the
upgrading of the original, temporary manatee facilities to
permanent purpose‐built facilities that significantly enhance day‐today
and long‐term operation of the Centre, and the effectiveness of
the Rehabilitation Programme.
The associated refurbishment of the Manatee Building, with a
purpose‐built manatee food preparation area, bathroom and
overnight facilities for volunteers on night duty, focuses on
streamlining manatee‐associated activities and making life more
comfortable for the volunteer care team. The screened enclosure
provides protection from biting insects, not only for the volunteers
but also for the manatee, and is lit to facilitate night feeding and
monitoring.
Manatee Rehab Facilities ‐
Recovery Pool
The upgrade of the Manatee Rehabilitation Centre was made possible through funding from Wildtracks, Busch Gardens
Conservation Fund, and The Nature Conservancy

Past Manatee Rehabilitation Successes
Woody ‐ May, 2001
In the wild manatee calves stay with their mothers for up to two
years. Here at Wildtracks they are reared until they are old
enough and strong enough to be released back into the wild, and
considered able to reintegrate with wild manatees at their
release site.
Since the establishment of the temporary facilities at Wildtracks
in 1999, the majority of manatee calf rescues have resulted in
successful rehabilitation back to join the wild populations of the
Gales Point Wildlife Sanctuary (Southern Lagoon), after an
average of 18 months care. Post‐release monitoring has been
under the Wildlife Trust manatee tracking programme.
Woody (Rescued in 1999 – Released in 2001)
Tiny on arrival at the Rehabilitation
Centre (September, 2003)
Woody was an abandoned calf, rescued in the canal system of
Buttonwood Bay, Belize City. He was a learning experience, and taught
us much about rearing and rehabilitating manatees. He was released
Gales Point Wildlife Sanctuary (Southern Lagoon) where he has lived for
the past nine years, integrated into the wild population.
Tiny (Rescued in 2003 – Released in April, 2005)
Tiny was discovered in stormy weather, bobbing in the water under the
Hugh Parkey dock, in an area of high boat activity in front of Belize City.
She was estimated to be about two weeks old, and had been apart
from her mother for a significant period of time, as she was extremely
thin. She made a full recovery before her release in 2005, at 350lbs.
Buttons and Tiny ‐ February, 2005
Buttons (Rescued in 2004 – Released in April, 2005)
Buttons was another manatee found in the Buttonwood Bay area. She
was estimated to be about 7 months old, with open wounds from an
outboard impact. She had been abandoned by her mother, and was not
only injured but also very thin. She made a full recovery before her
release in 2005.
Tiny being prepared for release at
Gales Point, April, 2005
Sadly, it isn’t possible to save all manatees that come into
rehabilitation ‐ Two calves with life‐threatening injuries from
suspected boat collisions died within days of being rescued,
despite the intensive care provided ‐ reinforcing the need to
broaden the Rehabilitation Centre's outputs towards reducing
such anthropogenic impacts in key areas.

Wildtracks
Wildtracks was registered as a Belize non‐profit conservation
organization in 1996, and has been working since then in four
programme areas:
• Wildtracks Conservation Programme
• Wildtracks Research Programme
• Wildtracks Sustainable Development Programme
• Wildtracks Outreach Programme
Development of a baseline for the
National Amphibian Species
Conservation Action Plan ‐ Wildtracks
Conservation Programme
Agalychnis moreletii – a Critically
Endangered species targeted under
the Wildtracks Conservation
Programme
The Manatee Rehabilitation Centre falls under the Wildtracks
Conservation Programme, which has as its objective the long
term protection of biodiversity of Belize. The Centre is
managed in partnership with the Belize Marine Mammal
Stranding Network, overseen by the National Manatee
Working Group.
Wildtracks funds the majority of its activities through its
consultancy wing, focused on projects that fall within the
overall mission and objectives of the organization. Where
necessary, however, Wildtracks also seeks grants to fund
specific projects.
Wildtracks Consultancy Programme
provides a sustainability mechanism
through paid consultancies such as the
development of conservation
management and action plans
Working to increase awareness in
local schools ‐ Wildtracks Outreach
Programme
Working with local fishermen towards alternative
livelihoods and conservation of local resources ‐
Wildtracks Sustainable Development Programme

Location
Sarteneja seafront, overlooking
Corozal Bay Wildlife Sanctuary
Wildtracks, and the Manatee Rehabilitation Centre, are located in
the north east corner of Belize (Central America), approximately
two miles south of Sarteneja, an idyllic lobster fishing village
situated on the shore of Corozal Bay.
Chetumal
MEXICO
Sarteneja
Corozal
Bay
Accommodation is in shared
thatched cabanas
BELIZE
Meals are a social occasion, and
take pace in the main house
Accommodation is basic, with shared thatched, screened cabanas
(sorry ‐ no air conditioning or fans!), with adjoining bathrooms.
However, there is generally a breeze coming off the lagoon, keeping
temperatures lower than further inland. Food preparation and
consumption are both social occasions, with everyone contributing
towards cooking and washing up. Both vegetarians and nonvegetarians
are welcome.
Below: Sunrise overlooking Shipstern
Lagoon, from the Manatee
Rehabilitation facilities

Contact Details:
Paul and Zoe Walker
Post:
c/o Wildtracks
P.O. Box 278
Belize City
Belize
E‐mail:
office@wildtracksbelize.org
Telephone:
House: (00 501) 614‐8244
Mobile: (00 501) 670‐0088
To Reach Sarteneja:
By Boat
Water taxi from Corozal and
San Pedro
By Bus:
The Sarteneja buses leave each
afternoon (apart from Sunday)
from beside the Courthouse in
Belize City.
There is also a bus that leaves
Chetumal (Mexico) at mid‐day
and travels direct to Sarteneja
By Air:
Tropic Air has two flights a day
on the San Pedro / Corozal run
that will stop at the Sarteneja
airstrip on request.
Essential Information
What do I need to bring?
On top of the usual travel gear for the tropics, we suggest that you
ensure you have two sets of wet clothes for working in the pools –
these can be as simple as old shorts and t‐shirts (you will never be
able to get the smell of manatee out of them afterwards!) or, if you
have one, a wetsuit. A dedicated towel for use in the manatee
building shower would also be a good idea.
You will also need a torch/flashlight for walking around at night, and
whilst the cabanas are screened, you may feel more comfortable
with a mosquito net.
The closest village, Sarteneja, has basic supplies (batteries, insect
repellent, shampoo etc), but doesn’t extend as far as sunscreen
lotion.
If you can’t afford to be without your laptop, there is wireless
internet, though as the house is on solar power, access time is
limited to daylight hours. Unfortunately, the general use laptop has
just crashed, and may not be back up and running for the near
future.
Drinking water is filtered rainwater, and is available in the house,
whilst washing water in both the house and the cabanas comes
from a nearby well. Bottled drinking water is available from the
village shops.
Please ensure you have adequate travel insurance!
Arrival Details
Where possible, for those flying in from abroad, we will try to
ensure that we are able to meet you at the airport. If, however, you
are unable to arrive on the pre‐set arrival date, we will need to ask
you to make your own way to Sarteneja, and will meet you in the
village.
However you arrive, once you
reach Sarteneja, we can pick
you up from the seafront
Telephone:
(00 501) 614‐8244