Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary, Protected area in Stann Creek District, Belize.
Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary is a large protected rainforest area in eastern Belize, covering a wide expanse of land across varying elevations. The landscape features dense forest, flowing streams, and mountain ridges that create diverse environments within the reserve.
The reserve was established in 1986 as the first protected area created to safeguard the jaguar, and it is regarded as a leading site for jaguar preservation worldwide. British expeditions reached the basin in 1888 and 1889, and logging of cedar and mahogany continued until 1984, just before a nationwide jaguar study began.
The reserve's name comes from the Cockscomb ridge, whose outline resembles a rooster's comb and is visible from the Caribbean coastal plain. Maya presence in the basin dates to at least 10,000 BCE; the Pearce Ruin was catalogued in a 1931 report to the British Museum but was not re-sighted until Dunham's 1995 surveys, which also documented Hun' Tul Mo' and Xa'a Yul Ha'.
The area can be explored on marked trails that lead to waterfalls, streams, and mountain peaks for different fitness levels. Plan visits during the drier season when paths are easier to navigate and weather conditions are more favorable.
Victoria Peak, at 1,160 m the highest point in Belize, rises at the southern end of the reserve. The British expeditions of 1888 and 1889 believed they had climbed it, but later reconstructions showed they had scaled a nearby peak instead.
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