| |
 Belize
and its forests |
|
 |
Belize is a small country in Central America
with a population of only about 240,000. About a third of
the people make their living from some kind of agriculture.
Much of the food is eaten locally, but Belize also exports
food. The main export crops are bananas, sugar cane and citrus
fruits (although some people suggest that marijuana
now brings in more foreign money). However, more than half
the land area is still covered with the original vegetation,
much of it tropical rainforest.
|
| Map showing the location of
Belize (click
for more detail) |
|
Pictures: Tapirs and jaguars are thriving
in Belize although they are now extinct in El Salvador and rare
in Honduras. Illustrations
© copyright Bruce Pearson, taken from the Collins Guide to
Rare Mammals of the World. |
|
 |
The Belize forest is particularly important as far
as plants and animals are concerned. Central America is a crossroads
between the temperate north and the tropical south. Animals from the
south include anteaters, possums, primates and rodents such as the
paca and agouti. Animals from the north include pumas, raccoons, deer,
peccaries and squirrels. There are over 130 species of mammal in Belize,
some of which are under threat in neighbouring countries where much
of the forest has disappeared. |
|
Belize
You
can find out more about 
