Birding in Belize at the inland Blue Hole National Park, one of the many Belize’s National park managed by the Belize Audubon Society

Blue Hole National Park is a 575-acre protected area located along the southern Highway near Belize’s capital city of Belmopan. The park boasts many outstanding features, including the Blue Hole, a magnificent sink hole and its surrounding cave system. The Blue Hole is actually a short but deep stretch of underground rivers whose course is revealed by collapse of a limestone cavern. It flows on the surface for about 55 yards before disappearing beneath another rock face. This is a wonderful place for bird watching and swimming in Belize.

There are a number of trails to hike within the park. Some of the unusual birds known to this area include White Hawk, Spotted-Wood Quail, Crested Guans, Lovely Cotinga, Keel-Billed Toucans, Red-Legged Honey Creepers, Orange-billed Sparrows Green- backed Sparrows, Olive-backed Sparrows, Nightingale Wrens, White- collared Manakins, Great Antshrikes, Slaty-tailed Trogons just to name a few. We can end the tour with a refreshing dip in the pools. A number of stairs descend to this small spring. Its cool, turquoise waters, surrounded by dense forest, overhung with mosses, vines and ferns are the perfect spot for a cool and relaxing dip.

St. Herman’s Cave is part of Blue Hole National Park. It is a short hike from the parking area/visitor center to the cave entrance. Upon entering, visitors go down steps that were originally cut by the Maya. Once inside, people can clamber over rocks and splash through the water, while admiring stunning cave formations created over a millennium ago. After exploring the entrance of the cave, there is the option to hike a 2 ½ mile interpretive trail with observations that leads over the cave. For Belize birding tours we recommend early morning departures.