Laughing Bird Caye is an

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

off the coast of

Placencia Placencia is a small village located in the Stann Creek District of Belize. History Prior to the European colonization of the Americas, the Placencia Peninsula was inhabited by the Maya. Archaeological evidence suggests that the Maya in this area ...

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

. On 21 December 1991, Laughing Bird Caye National Park was declared. It is spread over an area of . The island is named after a population of

laughing gull The laughing gull (''Leucophaeus atricilla'') is a medium-sized gull of North and South America. Named for its laugh-like call, it is an opportunistic omnivore and scavenger. It breeds in large colonies mostly along the Atlantic coast of North Am ...

s which previously bred there.

Location

Laughing Bird Caye is an island located off the coast of

village in the Stann Creek District of Belize on the western side of Victoria Channel. It is 3.5 miles south southwest of

Moho Caye Moho Caye, known locally as Wild Orchid Caye, is an 8.38 acre island located in the Caribbean Sea, off the coast of Belize. The island is located 12 miles east from Placencia, 9 miles from the Belize Barrier Reef The Belize Barrier Reef is a ...

and 7 miles north northwest of Ranguana Caye. The precise GPS coordinates of the island are 16°26'36" North latitude and 88°11'50" West longitude. Laughing Bird Caye is also the southernmost island in the central lagoon of the

Belize Barrier Reef The Belize Barrier Reef is a series of coral reefs straddling the coast of Belize, roughly offshore in the north and in the south within the country limits. The Belize Barrier Reef is a long section of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, ...

Geography

Laughing Bird Caye is a long island that sits on an unusually long narrow ridge of reef called a faro. A faro is an angular atoll on a continental shelf, which is also called a shelf atoll. Similar to other atolls, a faro has a steep drop off and has a central lagoon enclosed in the reef. This Laughing Bird Faro is separated from the mainland and the barrier reef by deep channels all around. The faro extends for south of the Caye.

History

This island is referred to as Laughing Bird Caye from the

Laughing gull The laughing gull (''Leucophaeus atricilla'') is a medium-sized gull of North and South America. Named for its laugh-like call, it is an opportunistic omnivore and scavenger. It breeds in large colonies mostly along the Atlantic coast of North Am ...

or ''Larus artricilla''. It was named after this bird because they used to breed on the island. However, due to an increase in human activity on the island the Laughing Gulls have moved to other islands that are more deserted and less affected by human presence. The uniqueness of the island, the faro, and the abundant diversity of coral and marine habitats led to the Caye being declared as a protected area in 1981 under the National Park Systems Act. Subsequently, Laughing Bird Caye was declared a national park in 1991. The

Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System The Belize Barrier Reef is a series of coral reefs straddling the coast of Belize, roughly offshore in the north and in the south within the country limits. The Belize Barrier Reef is a long section of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, ...

was then registered on the

World Heritage List A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

in 1996 with The Laughing Bird National Park designated as one of the premiere protected areas within the World Heritage Site.

References

* http://www.laughingbird.org/park1.html * http://ambergriscaye.com/pages/town/parklaughbird.html * http://seabelize.org/protected-areas/laughing-bird-caye-national-park/

External links

* {{authority control National parks of Belize Islands of Belize Protected areas established in 1991 Stann Creek District 1991 establishments in Belize Uninhabited islands of Belize Caribbean Sea