Hol Chan Marine Reserve
IUCN Category IV (Habitat/Species Management Area)
Corals lining the Hol Chan Cut
Location:	Gulf of Honduras
Nearest city:	San Pedro Town
Area:	18 km² (4,448 acres)
Established:	1987
Visitation:	36,887 (in 2001)
Governing body:	Hol Chan Marine Reserve Trust Fund Commitee

Hol Chan Marine Reserve is a marine reserve close to Ambergris Caye and Caye Caulker, off the coast of Belize. It covers approximately 18 km² (4,448 acres) of coral reefs, seagrass beds, and mangrove forest. The World Conservation Union or International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) is an international organization dedicated to natural resource conservation. ... Missing image Map of Belize, showing the Gulf of Honduras The Gulf or Bay of Honduras is a large inlet of the Caribbean Sea, indenting the coasts of Belize, Honduras and Guatemala. ... San Pedro Town is a town in the Belize District of the nation of Belize, Central America. ... San Pedro on Ambergris Caye Ambergris Caye is the largest island of Belize located northeast of the country in the Caribbean Sea. ... Caye Caulker is a small limestone coral island off the coast of Belize in the Caribbean Sea measuring about 5 miles (North to South) by less than 1 mile (East to West). ... Some of the biodiversity of a coral reef. ... Halophila johnsonii (Johnsons seagrass) in the coast of Florida Seagrass (or sea-grass in British English) are flowering plants from four plant families (Posidoniaceae, Zosteraceae, Hydrocharitaceae and Cymodoceaceae) that grow in the marine saline environment. ... Above and below water view at the edge of the mangal. ...

History

In the early 1980s fish stocks in the area around Hol Chan began to dwindle and at the same time tourism to the Cayes began to increase. Disputes arose over access to the Hol Chan Cut, a natural break in the reef, which was a productive fishing area but also popular with snorkellers and divers. Proposed fishing bans were rejected and in the mid 1980s public consulation over establishing a marine protected area began. The reserve was established in July 1987 with funding from WWF and USAID, after the draft management plan was approved by the Fisheries ministery and the local fishermen's co-operative. Active enforcement of the regulations began in 1989 and charging for entrance to Zone A started in 1990. The reserve was originally divided into three areas: Snorkeling is the practice of swimming at the surface of a body of water (typically of the sea) equipped with a mask and a short tube called a snorkel, to explore the underwater environment. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Professional diving. ... The term Marine Protected Area is often used as an umbrella term covering a wide range of marine areas with some level of restriction to protect living, non-living, cultural, and/or historic resources. ... The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is an international non-governmental organisation for the conservation, research and restoration of the natural environment, formerly named the World Wildlife Fund, which remains its official name in the United States and Canada. ... The United States Agency for International Development (or USAID) is the US government organization responsible for most non-military foreign aid. ...

• Zone A which includes the inside and outside of the reef (part of the Belize Barrier Reef). No fishing is permitted in this area, but snorkelling and diving are permitted on payment of a fee.
• Zone B covers the seagrass beds inside the reef. Both commercial and sport fishing are allowed in this area with a license.
• Zone C covers the mangroves swamps of southern Ambergris Caye. No commercial fishing is allowed in this zone, but sport fishing may be carried out under license.

In 1999 the adjoining area of Shark Ray Alley was added as zone D of the reserve. This is a second charged snorkelling area, but commercial and sport fishing are permitted in some parts of this zone on obtaining a license. The coastal area of Belize is an outstanding natural system consisting of the largest barrier reef in the northern hemisphere, offshore atolls, several hundred sand cays, mangrove forests, coastal lagoons and estuaries. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Angling. ...

Features

Nurse sharks and Southern stingrays are a draw for tourists.

Many species of fish shelter amongst the rocky outcrops in Hol Chan Cut.

Zone A mostly consists of the Hol Chan Cut, a natural break in the reef. The cut is approximately 23 m (75 ft) wide and 9 m (30 ft) deep (Hol Chan is Mayan for "little channel"), and is rich in marine life. Around the cut the sea can be as shallow 1.5 m (5 ft). On the outside of the reef the channel slopes into the Caribbean, and on the inside of the reef tails off into the shallows. Zone B has Boca Ciega Blue Hole, a sinkhole, which opens into a larger underwater cavern. It is dangerous for inexperienced divers, so is not regularly visited. Zone D, Shark Ray Alley, is a shallow sandy-bottomed area inside the reef, unremarkable except that it is a gathering place for sharks and stingrays. It was an area traditionally used by fisherman to clean their nets before returning to port, and the abundance of food that entered the water as a result attracted the sharks and rays to feed. The presence of these fish was actively encouraged as a tourist attraction — being fed by local tour guides; the shallow clear waters make it an ideal spot for snorkellers to observe the creatures. Yucatec Maya (or Yukatek in the revised orthography of the Academia de Lenguas Mayas, now preferred by scholars) is a Mayan language spoken in the Yucatán Peninsula, northern Belize and parts of Guatemala. ... West Indian redirects here. ... Orders Carcharhiniformes Heterodontiformes Hexanchiformes Lamniformes Orectolobiformes Pristiophoriformes Squaliformes Squatiniformes Symmoriida(extinct) Sharks (superorder Selachimorpha) are fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton[1] and a streamlined body. ... Genera Dasyatis Himantura Pastinachus Pteroplatytrygon Taeniura Urogymnus See text for species. ...

Wildlife

Spotted eagle rays are common in the Hol Chan Cut.

Hol Chan Cut is open to the sea beyond the reef, so allows marine creatures to travel from the outside of the reef to the inside and vice versa. Over 160 species of fish have been recorded in the reserve, along with forty types of coral, five species of sponge, two seagrasses, three species of sea turtle and three marine mammals: the Short-beaked Common Dolphin, Pantropical Spotted Dolphin and West Indian Manatee. Spotted eagle rays and Southern stingrays are common at the bottom of the channel. Lobsters, Moray eels and sea anemones live among the rocky outcrops and there are many corals including brain coral, with elkhorn coral, leaf coral and finger coral lining the sides of the cut. Jacks, Groupers, Snappers and Barracuda are all common. The mangrove forests act as nurseries for many fish species and adult Blue-striped grunts, French grunts, White grunts, Gray snappers, French angelfish, Gray angelfish and Seahorses may also be found among the mangroves. The seagrass beds have Parrot fish and Hogfish and occasional turtles. Manatees are rare visitors. Shark Ray Alley has Nurse sharks and Southern stingrays and occasionally other fish. Genera Family Cheloniidae (Oppel, 1811) Caretta Lepidochelys Chelonia Eretmochelys Natator Family Dermochelyidae Family Protostegidae (extinct) Family Toxochelyidae (extinct) Family Thalassemyidae (extinct) Sea turtles (Chelonioidea) are turtles found in all the worlds oceans with the exception of the Arctic Ocean, and some species travel between oceans. ... It has been suggested that this article be split into multiple articles accessible from a disambiguation page. ... Binomial name Stenella attenuata (Gray, 1846) Pantropical Spotted Dolphin range The Pantropical Spotted Dolphin (Stenella attenuata) is a species of dolphin found in all the worlds temperate and tropical oceans. ... Binomial name Trichechus manatus Linnaeus, 1758 A group of three West Indian manatees. ... PENIS! ... For the magazine, see Lobster (magazine) Subfamilies and Genera Neophoberinae Acanthacaris Thymopinae Nephropsis Nephropides Thymops Thymopsis Nephropinae Homarus Nephrops Homarinus Metanephrops Eunephrops Thymopides Clawed lobsters comprise a family (Nephropidae, sometimes also Homaridae) of large marine crustaceans. ... Genera See text. ... Families Many, see text. ... The brain coral Diploria labyrinthiformis Brain coral () is a collection of species of coral characterized by the spheroid shape of their colonies. ... A family of fishes which includes the Pompanos and Jacks Pilot fish - Naucrates ductor Categories: Fish stubs ... Genera Acanthistius Alphestes Anyperidon Caprodon Cephalopholis Cromileptes Dermatolepis Epinephelus Gonioplectrus Gracila HypoplectrodesLiopropoma Mycteroperca Niphon Paranthias Plectropomus Saloptia Triso Variola For the computer program, see Grouper (Windows application). ... Genera Aphareus Aprion Apsilus Etelis Hemilutjanus Hoplopagrus Lipocheilus Lutjanus Macolor Ocyurus Paracaesio Pinjalo Pristipomoides Randallichthys Rhomboplites Symphorus Snapper can also refer to the Snapping turtle. ... Species See text. ... Species See text for species. ... Genera Bolbometopon Calotomus Cetoscarus Chlorurus Cryptotomus Hipposcarus Leptoscarus Nicholsina Scarus Sparisoma Parrotfish are mostly tropical, perciform marine fish of the family Scaridae. ... Hogfish are plentiful in Pompano Beach and are good to eat. ... Binomial name Ginglymostoma cirratum (Bonnaterre, 1788) The nurse shark Ginglymostoma cirratum is a shark in the nurse sharks family and may reach a length of 4. ...

Management and conservation

Brain coral

The reserve is managed by the Hol Chan Marine Reserve Trust Fund Committee, which replaced the informal advisory committee which ran the reserve until 1994. The majority of the funds for the park's upkeep is generated from the fees charged to visitors for access to Zones A and D. These are not collected directly but instead via a yearly licensing scheme which applies to the boats of tour guides. Funding from the WWF ended in 1995. The establishment of the reserve in 1987 was down with four main goals in mind. These were: Brain coral is shown in an underwater photograph taken by Dlloyd using a digital camera in Belize. ... Brain coral is shown in an underwater photograph taken by Dlloyd using a digital camera in Belize. ... A Tour Guide is an occupation or vocation of someone who conducts tours usually within the tourism industry. ...

• Preserving an area of the coral reef ecosystem
• Providing recreational and tourist services while maintaining the utility of the area for fisheries
• Providing an opportunity for education and research within the park
• Conserving genetic resources

While fish stocks have increased, the fishing industry has continued to decline, and the management is faced with other problems: clearance of mangroves and other habitats in areas adjacent to the reserve, which affects the reserve but over which the committee has no control; increasing numbers of tourists, which although increasing revenue to the reserve through fees, puts pressure on the facilities both within the reserve and the nearby towns of San Pedro and Caye Caulker. An ecosystem, a contraction of ecological and system, refers to the collection of biotic and abiotic components and processes that comprise and govern the behavior of some defined subset of the biosphere. ...

References

• Hol Chan Marine Reserve. International Coral Reef Action Network. Retrieved on 1 February 2007.
• Garaway, C. and Esteban, N. (2002). The impact of marine protected areas on poorer communities living in and around them: institutional opportunities and constraints: Appendix 3 – case study of Hol Chan Marine Reserve, Belize. DFID. Retrieved on 1 February 2007.
• Hol Chan Marine Reserve. Retrieved on 1 February 2007.
• Shark Ray Alley annexed to Hol Chan. San Pedro Sun (1999-09-16). Retrieved on 1 February 2007.
• Hol Chan Marine Reserve Management Plan. Retrieved on 1 February 2007.
• Hol Chan Marine Preserve presentation. San Pedro Sun (1999-01-21). Retrieved on 1 February 2007.

February 1 is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... February 1 is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... February 1 is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... February 1 is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... February 1 is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ... February 1 is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini (common) era. ...