Abstract

Residents in Placencia Village, southern Belize, recognized the unique marine bounty and beauty at Laughing Bird Caye and successfully lobbied the government in 1994 to have it declared a National Park. Under this designation all 4096 hectares of the unique faro atoll are protected as “No-Take” status. In 1996 it was declared part of the Belize Barrier Reef System World Heritage site and has had full-time ranger presence since 2003 (management by SEA, formally Friends of Nature). In 2007, five adult Queen conch, Strombus gigas aggregations were mapped and measured and revealed an average total length of 214mm with an astounding average lip thickness of 19mm (n=178). Adult conch density average for these five sites was 0.32ind/m² (3200ind/hectare). These results prove the effectiveness of a No-Take marine zone and show not only are conch as “common as sand” at Laughing Bird Caye National Park but years of protection have also allowed them to grow old as “antiques” (local creole proverbs).

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