Casa del Caballo Blanco, LLC is home to Casa Avian Support Alliance, LLC, NGO (CASA) a Belize based non-profit facility for birds that have been treated for illness, injury, or recently released from illegal captivity, to rehabilitate and be released back into the wild.  CASA is managed by Mr. Baldemir Ricky Manzanero, In-country Director.  As a Belizean and recognized to be among the top birders in the country, Mr. Manzanero oversees the daily care and feeding of patients residing at CASA.  With a volunteer staff Mr. Manzanero has helped to care for baby birds recovered following storm related damage related to Hurricane Dean, the care of injured owls and the ongoing and lifetime care of a red-lored parrot affectionately named Lored Captain Jack.  Captain Jack is non-releasable due to an eye injury he suffered as a hatchling and has been named 1st Ambassador to CASA. CASA has also undertaken a habitat restoration program.  15 of the 23 acres of CDCB were dedicated to habitat restoration in 2005; a partial reforestation to encourage nesting and foraging of avi-fauna has been completed by staff and student interns from Sacred Heart Community College, San Ignacio.  Habitat rebound is monitored through twice yearly visits by volunteer biologists from the
United States.  As we approach the second full year of the growth cycle numerous species are returning to the area.  Hence, the CASA/CDCB undertaking is a demonstration project that provides real time evidence that previously developed land can be returned to a natural state and that habitat replacement is a very real possibility.

The Casa Avian Support Alliance facilities, the habitat restoration achievements, and the re-use and re-cycle success during the construction phase of CDCB and CASA can all be found on-line at http://www.casaavian.org,  Select the Quarterly Newsletter page and review the quarterly newsletters.The CDCB and CASA initiatives are privately funded by Jodi and Vance Bente of Petaluma, CA.  The purchase of the property which was an abandoned ranchito and the subsequent planning and development of CDCB and CASA are approaching the end of year three planning cycle.  The acquisition, planning and development relied on the fundamental tenants of recycle and reuse.  Re-use and re-cycle are expressed in the conversion of pig-sties into principal structures for the ex-situ conservation facility, the donation of a tin roof and ceiling material to the Pentecostal church located in Cristo Rey, the use of 100% Belizean contractors and their crews from the local community, and extension of municipal water system from the main line approximately ½ mile to CDCB which provided the opportunity for local land and homeowners to have the benefit of the municipal water supply.  The water pipe installation cost $17,000 usd and was paid for by the Bentes.To further the efforts of CDCB relative to sustainable tourism, we encourage our staff to identify local artisans.  In this regard CDCB has established a strong on-going relationship with two sisters of Mayan descent located immediately adjacent to the site and has recently initiated a working agreement with Mayan craftsmen in the Peten in the vicinity of Tikal.  The furnishings and textiles selected and or designed for CDCB are of local manufacture by resident craftspeople and or were procured in local market places.  The decor of CDCB celebrates the Mayan and Hispanic heritage of Western Belize and adjacent Guatemala.  In support of a local cottage industry, the grounds-staff of CDCB collect fallen dried palm fronds to be used as fuel in the curing of banana leaves.  The cured banana leaves are used as wraps for bollos and tamales which are popular year round but particularly during the year end holiday season.CDCB provides La Sala (meeting room) on a complementary basis to like-minded NGOs and organizations for various functions, to include the Friends for Conservation and Development and The Cornerstone Foundation of San Ignacio, Belize.

In summary, CDCB as host to CASA provides the opportunity for visitors to Belize to practice volun-tourism at the local level.  Building toys and ladders for the CASA patients, assisting with trail maintenance, tree planting and garden cultivation  near the Tzunuun Trail are just a few ways that CDCB and CASA offer the opportunity and encourage individuals to act responsibly, sustainably, economically, resourcefully, and thoughtfully as they travel to sites around the world in search of and support of sustainability.
http://www.casacaballoblanco.com

The bird sanctuary has been closed.

A few days after settling in at Nakia Resort and Dive 
(http://www.nakiafiji.com), my brother and 
sister-in-law’s resort on the Fijian island of Taveuni, 
I began to think about getting up into the bush to see 
what we could find in the way of avian life.  

After making a phone call or two, my sister Joyce 
and I set out at 5 am on a quiet and cool June morning to 
look for forest birds.  Our birdwatching guide, Logi,  
knows the forests above his native village of Qeleni, 
so we headed first for the village and then up a steep, 
3-mile rocky path with an experienced bush driver as 
the sun was beginning to appear over the mountains.

The land we entered is owned by the village, and was 
once a large coconut plantation--back when copra 
was the major cash crop for the islands.  This large 
mountainous area is filled with rivers and scattered 
homesites, many belonging to villagers growing patches 
of dalo on the hillsides.  Dalo (a dry-land type 
of Taro) is Fiji’s new cash crop, an edible tuberous 
root that many Fijians grow on cleared hillsides to 
provide an income for the coming year. 

Halfway up the bumpy road, Logi told our driver to stop as we 
spotted a pair of Masked (aka Musk) Shining Parrots 
flying across the canopy.  We climbed further and 
left the van at a high spot with lots of low-growing vines, 
grasses, and shrubs, and clusters of Rain Tree, 
Coconut Palm, Flame Tree, Acacia, Hibiscus, and Breadfruit.  
Most of the birds we spotted have multiple names in both 
English and Fijian.  Where I could, I took the 
names from Dick Watling’s Guide to the Birds of Fiji and 
Western Polynesia, a recognized standard, 
but not readily available.  Logi used an older edition of 
Fergus Clunie, Birds of the Fiji Bush.  Many of 
the birds we saw are forest birds that have been identified 
as threatened or endangered by Vilikesa T. Masibalavu 
and Guy Dutson in Important Birds Areas in Fiji. We heard 
and got a good look at a Barking Pigeon (whose call could also 
be mistaken for an owl), Polynesian Triller, 
Lesser Shrikebill, Spotted Fantail, Golden Whistler, Vanikoro Broadbill, 
Ogea Flycatcher, Wattled Honeyeater, Red Junglefowl, White-collared 
Kingfisher, Polynesian Starling, a pair of Lorikeets (brief glimpse), 
Pacific Harrier, Yellow (orange-)breasted Honeyeater, and many White-rumped 
Swiftlets darting for insects.  

As we walked back down the trail, the mountains 
were full of bird calls, the sun had risen over the ocean, 
and the air was still cool with a touch of fog approaching 
from the north. 

Over the next two weeks of my stay on Taveuni, I watched Fruit Bats fly over the

Somosomo Strait from south to north every evening, and learned to listen for the 
resort’s magpies chortling high up in the palms.  At the island’s more agriculturally 
developed southern end, I saw an Orange-Breasted Myzomela, more parrots 
(probably Red Shining parrot), Brown Quail (with chicks), Collared Lory, either a 
Fiji White-Eye or Silvereye, and several sea birds. 

The Fijian government recognizes that these birds are a treasure.  
It has been encouraging Fijians to preserve bird habitat, but 
that habitat is also the source of many Fijians’ income for the year.  
Deforestation and bush clearing for planting dalo are 
endangering many of these birds, including the Silktail, which 
many birders hope to see when they visit.  

While I didn’t get a glimpse of either the Silktail or the spectacular 
Orange Dove, a must-see for many visitors, it was awesome to view 
and hear these beautiful birds living easily and in close proximity to 
human dwellings. Like so many eco-tourist destinations today, 
Fiji is trying to convince its people to sacrifice income from a cash 
crop (dalo) to protect the future of its most vulnerable and unique 
natural resources. 

I left the island hoping that the work and warnings of dedicated 
researchers and enthusiasts, together with the income from ecotourism, 
will create the will to celebrate, protect, and extend the future of these 
beautiful native birds. 

 

Here are some ways we strive to promote sustainable tourism: 

1. Light Bulbs are exclusively Compact Flourescents.  These bulbs

–         Last longer (many of these bulbs have been in these houses for 6 years.

–         Burn with less heat, very important in a hot climate.

–         Use 70% less electricity (kwh cost in Chicago .08, in

St. Croix .23).

2. Bathroom showers use low-flow/stop devices and

– Optional outdoor showers water nearby vegetation.

3. Landscaping is eco-friendly because

            – Large trees and understory plantings are cultivated.

– Mowing is limited to once monthly and is not done under trees.

– Native plants/trees are cultivated and preserved.

– Herbicides and pesticides are not used.

– Watering is unnecessary because of the type of plants that are nurtured.

4. Hot water  – Electric small capacity heaters use timers to limit power drain.
5. Ceiling Fans, screened windows, and shade trees keep temperatures low inside the houses, therefore air-conditioning is unnecessary.
6. Wash and Rinse dishpans are provided for dishwashing.  Guests are invited to dispose of gray water outside on vegetation.

In addition,

The water used in each house is rainwater – a renewable resource.

We commit to recycling the following:

      Cardboard

      Aluminum

      Compost

      Glass

All the houses use a septic system – a septic will break down waste naturally as long as bleach is not encountered in the system.  We do not use bleach in our houses. 

Cleaning materials used in the houses are natural biodegradable products.  White vinegar and biodegradable dish detergent are the primary cleaning products.  Linens are washed in a front loading, high-efficiency washing machine.  They are line-dried in the sun.  Linens are made from cotton or bamboo.  Bamboo is a highly-sustainable product and is grown in developing countries as a natural resource.  Bamboo returns 35% more oxygen than most other  plant-life.    

Ginger Brown Vanderveer

Northside Valley, U.S. Virgin Islands

http://www.northsidevalley.com