Welcome to day 2 in Sarteneja. Today, we took a beautiful boat trip to collect seagrass and measure data, then visited a rehabilitation center for manatees and monkeys.
We woke up to the beautiful sounds of birds chirping outside of our cabana, and we were all extra ecstatic to pursue the adventures of the day that lay ahead of us. To begin our morning, we indulged in traditional Belizean cuisine for breakfast, including and not limited to eggs, waffles, and plantains.
After fueling up, we headed down to the docks to board our boat. The engine roared as we sped across the turquoise water, everyone’s eyes peeled for any sign of dolphins. We were pleasantly surprised to see a few surface while en route to our destination. Once we reached our target site, after about 30 minutes on the water, we became scientific researchers for the morning, diving in to collect seagrass samples. We spent the rest of the morning carefully measuring seagrass patches and taking lots of notes and data points, knowing our efforts were directly contributing to the conservation of this beautiful ecosystem.
Our visit to the Wild Tracks rehabilitation center was a truly amazing experience. We were split into two groups to help with the rehabilitation efforts, which gave us a hands-on look at the dedicated work required to support the local wildlife.
Some of us helped with the manatee conservation, taking the seagrass we collected during the morning and placing them into frames to help reflect a real feeding environment for when the manatees are released into the wild. Others worked on creating enrichment toys for the monkeys, using simple materials like banana leaves, palm fronds, flowers, and prune jam to simulate natural food sources and behaviours. Seeing the care and commitment involved in helping these animals thrive was incredibly inspiring and left us with a much deeper appreciation for the conservation work happening here.
To conclude, the day didn’t just teach us about conservation, it connected us to Sarteneja. Every moment felt like a step toward understanding local marine and jungle life. As the sun set, we returned to our cabanas exhausted, discussing the day’s events and readying ourselves for a day filled with exploring a river estuary, Mayan ruins and supporting mangrove conservation tomorrow.
