Macal River
Encyclopedia
The Macal River is a river
running through Cayo District
in western Belize
. Sites along the river include the ancient Mayan
town of Cahal Pech
and the Belize Botanic Gardens
. The Macal River discharges to the Belize River
. There are several tributaries to the Macal River including the following streams: Privassion, Rio On, Rio Frio, Mollejon and Cacao Camp.
The size of the Macal River catchment basin is approximately 1492 square kilometers. The Macal River rises in a rugged portion of the Maya Mountains
and flows in a northerly direction where it joins with the Mopan River
to form the Belize River. Lying to the east of the Macal River Basin is the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary
, the premier sanctuary established specifically for conservation
of the jaguar
.
Due to the steep terrain of the headwaters region and the high rainfall of the upper Macal Basin, the Macal River is subject to rapid stage height rise, contributing significantly to the downstream flooding of the Belize River. By legend, the river is named after a beautiful young girl Macall, an uncommon name. The lower river is navigated year-around with canoe
s.
catchment. The soils in the upper watershed tend to be shallow and rocky, leading to rapid runoff. All of the upper catchment tributaries join the mainstem channel considerably before Guacamayo, the approximate join point of the two connecting sub-sheds of the Macal River. Peak flows follow the rainy season of June to August, with tailing rains until February; lowest flows are in the dry season from March to May.
For the lower Macal River catchment (or Mountain Pine Ridge area), tributary streams are arranged radially to feed the mainstem; principal lower basin rivers are the Privassion, Rio On, Rio Frio, Mollejon, Chaa Creek
and Cacao Camp. In the lower catchment basin, there is considerable overland friction to surface runoff due to the dense terrestrial detrititus and understory
on the forest floor, even though the forest canopy itself is sometimes sparse. The retarded runoff of this lower sub-watershed allows the rapid peak runoff of the upper watershed to overtake the flow within Mountain Pine Ridge, forming an effective single massive peak wave, which exacerbates downstream flooding in the Belize River, and, in fact, controls the flood stage of the larger Belize River. This effect of simultaneous peak flow is further enhanced by the radial geometry of the lower Macal Basin tributaries, encouraging all sub-basin flow to reach the mainstem at approximately the same time.
is found within the Macal River catchment basin, including megafauna
, avafauna, fish, reptile
s, amphibian
s, as well as smaller mammal
s, arthropod
s and plants.
The Macal watershed
is habitat
to over a dozen rare
and endangered species
. Two Important threatened megafauna found here are the jaguar, Panthera onca, and Belize's largest land animal, Baird's Tapir
, Tapirus bairdii, which is also the national animal of Belize.
There is abundant birdlife in the Macal Basin; for example, in the Mountain Pine Ridge sub-watershed alone are found: the Rufous-capped Warbler
, Crossbill
, Pine Siskin
and Eastern Bluebird
. Between Autumn and Spring, the Hepatic Tanager
and Chipping Sparrow
are also evident. Raptor
s hunt among the valleys of Mountain Pine Ridge, and affords the most probable location in Belize to observe the Orange-breasted Falcon
.
. Several regional habitations are identifiable, including the Cahal Pech
site and the unexcavated site at Chaa Creek
. These sites were centroids for larger farming populations, and are deemed to be satellite cities that may have been under the influence of Tikal
or Caracol
. The Mayan urban society collapsed in this watershed in the ninth century AD, likely related to the exhaustion of agricultural resources, or reaching of the limited carrying capacity
of this region of nutrient poor soils, with possible aggravation of social factors.
, a national Park of Belize. In addition to hiking trails into the wilderness, this reach is the location of Belize's largest limestone
caverns, which allow subsurface exploration by tube flotation on the clear aquifers which are illuminated by occasional vertical lightshafts reaching the surface. The most extensive of these aqueous caverns is the Rio Frio area.
In the lowest reach there are a number of jungle resorts which offer access to the banks of the Macal for flotation or canoe
trips to San Ignacio
. Except for the peak flow periods of June to October, it is feasible to canoe upstream against the current in this reach. There are several rapids in the lower reach, but overall canoeing difficulty is only moderate. There is a replica working Mayan farm and a Morpho butterfly preserve as well as a small Mayan museum in the lower watershed on the western side of the Macal River.
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
running through Cayo District
Cayo District
Cayo District is a district in the west of the nation of Belize. The District capital is the town of San Ignacio.- Geography :The Cayo District is the largest district in Belize. It is located on the western side of the country which borders Guatemala. The nation's capital, Belmopan, is...
in western Belize
Belize
Belize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
. Sites along the river include the ancient Mayan
Maya civilization
The Maya is a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian Americas, as well as for its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. Initially established during the Pre-Classic period The Maya is a Mesoamerican...
town of Cahal Pech
Cahal Pech
Cahal Pech is a Maya site located near the Town of San Ignacio in the Cayo District of Belize. The site was a hilltop palacio home for an elite Maya family, and though most major construction dates to the Classic period, evidence of continuous habitation has been dated to as far back as far as 1200...
and the Belize Botanic Gardens
Belize Botanic Gardens
Belize Botanic Gardens, BBG, is of native and exotic plants growing in the Cayo district of western Belize. The garden is in a valley on the banks of the Macal River, surrounded by the Maya Mountain foothills....
. The Macal River discharges to the Belize River
Belize River
Belize River is a 180-mile river in Belize that drains more than one-quarter of the country as it winds along the northern edge of the Maya Mountains across the center of the country to the sea just north of Belize City . However, the Belize River/Mopan River Catchment contains over 45 percent of...
. There are several tributaries to the Macal River including the following streams: Privassion, Rio On, Rio Frio, Mollejon and Cacao Camp.
The size of the Macal River catchment basin is approximately 1492 square kilometers. The Macal River rises in a rugged portion of the Maya Mountains
Maya Mountains
The Maya Mountains are a mountain range in Belize and eastern Guatemala. The highest peaks are Doyle's Delight at and Victoria Peak at . The Maya Mountains and associated foothills contain a number of important Mayan ruins including the sites of Lubaantun, Nim Li Punit, Cahal Pech, and Chaa Creek;...
and flows in a northerly direction where it joins with the Mopan River
Mopan River
Mopan River is a river in Guatemala and the Cayo district in western Belize near the border with Guatemala. The Mopan River discharges to the Belize River as the Mopan merges with the Macal River; the Belize River in turn terminates at the Caribbean Sea. The Belize River/Mopan River Catchment...
to form the Belize River. Lying to the east of the Macal River Basin is the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary
Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary
The Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary is a nature reserve in south-central Belize established to protect the forests, fauna and watersheds of an approximately 400 square kilometre area of the eastern slopes of the Maya Mountains...
, the premier sanctuary established specifically for conservation
Conservation biology
Conservation biology is the scientific study of the nature and status of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction...
of the jaguar
Jaguar
The jaguar is a big cat, a feline in the Panthera genus, and is the only Panthera species found in the Americas. The jaguar is the third-largest feline after the tiger and the lion, and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. The jaguar's present range extends from Southern United States and Mexico...
.
Due to the steep terrain of the headwaters region and the high rainfall of the upper Macal Basin, the Macal River is subject to rapid stage height rise, contributing significantly to the downstream flooding of the Belize River. By legend, the river is named after a beautiful young girl Macall, an uncommon name. The lower river is navigated year-around with canoe
Canoe
A canoe or Canadian canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over A canoe (North American English) or Canadian...
s.
Hydrology
The Macal Rivershed is divided into two sub catchment basins. The headwaters and upper basin comprise about 1000 square kilometers and rest in the southern Maya Mountains, whilst the lower basin is known as the Mountain Pine Ridgecatchment. The soils in the upper watershed tend to be shallow and rocky, leading to rapid runoff. All of the upper catchment tributaries join the mainstem channel considerably before Guacamayo, the approximate join point of the two connecting sub-sheds of the Macal River. Peak flows follow the rainy season of June to August, with tailing rains until February; lowest flows are in the dry season from March to May.
For the lower Macal River catchment (or Mountain Pine Ridge area), tributary streams are arranged radially to feed the mainstem; principal lower basin rivers are the Privassion, Rio On, Rio Frio, Mollejon, Chaa Creek
Chaa Creek
Chaa Creek is a tributary of the Macal River in the Cayo District in western Belize. One of the official gauging stations of the Macal is located near the confluence with Chaa Creek. There are also Maya ruins that remain largely unexcavated in the Chaa Creek catchment basin; certain early...
and Cacao Camp. In the lower catchment basin, there is considerable overland friction to surface runoff due to the dense terrestrial detrititus and understory
Understory
Understory is the term for the area of a forest which grows at the lowest height level below the forest canopy. Plants in the understory consist of a mixture of seedlings and saplings of canopy trees together with understory shrubs and herbs...
on the forest floor, even though the forest canopy itself is sometimes sparse. The retarded runoff of this lower sub-watershed allows the rapid peak runoff of the upper watershed to overtake the flow within Mountain Pine Ridge, forming an effective single massive peak wave, which exacerbates downstream flooding in the Belize River, and, in fact, controls the flood stage of the larger Belize River. This effect of simultaneous peak flow is further enhanced by the radial geometry of the lower Macal Basin tributaries, encouraging all sub-basin flow to reach the mainstem at approximately the same time.
Ecology
The Macal River winds through large expanses of primary and secondary growth broadleaf tropical forest, including a substantial tract of the Chiquibul Forest Reserve and National Park The watershed consists of closed canopy upland forests as well as a fertile floodplain, which is often overgrown with dense jungle vegetation trailing into the verges of the river itself. Considerable biodiversityBiodiversity
Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or an entire planet. Biodiversity is a measure of the health of ecosystems. Biodiversity is in part a function of climate. In terrestrial habitats, tropical regions are typically rich whereas polar regions...
is found within the Macal River catchment basin, including megafauna
Megafauna
In terrestrial zoology, megafauna are "giant", "very large" or "large" animals. The most common thresholds used are or...
, avafauna, fish, reptile
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
s, amphibian
Amphibian
Amphibians , are a class of vertebrate animals including animals such as toads, frogs, caecilians, and salamanders. They are characterized as non-amniote ectothermic tetrapods...
s, as well as smaller mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
s, arthropod
Arthropod
An arthropod is an invertebrate animal having an exoskeleton , a segmented body, and jointed appendages. Arthropods are members of the phylum Arthropoda , and include the insects, arachnids, crustaceans, and others...
s and plants.
The Macal watershed
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
is habitat
Habitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
to over a dozen rare
Rare species
A rare species is a group of organisms that are very uncommon or scarce. This designation may be applied to either a plant or animal taxon, and may be distinct from the term "endangered" or "threatened species" but not "extinct"....
and endangered species
Endangered species
An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
. Two Important threatened megafauna found here are the jaguar, Panthera onca, and Belize's largest land animal, Baird's Tapir
Baird's Tapir
Baird’s Tapir is a species of tapir that is native to Central America and northern South America. It is one of three Latin American species of tapir.-Names:...
, Tapirus bairdii, which is also the national animal of Belize.
There is abundant birdlife in the Macal Basin; for example, in the Mountain Pine Ridge sub-watershed alone are found: the Rufous-capped Warbler
Rufous-capped Warbler
The Rufous-capped Warbler is a New World warbler native from Mexico south to much of Central America, rarely occurring as far north as southeastern Arizona and south Texas....
, Crossbill
Crossbill
The crossbill is a bird in the finch family . The three to five species are all classified in the genus Loxia. These birds are characterised by the mandibles crossing at their tips, which gives the group its English name...
, Pine Siskin
Pine Siskin
The Pine Siskin is a North American bird in the finch family. It is a migratory bird with an extremely sporadic winter range.-Description:...
and Eastern Bluebird
Eastern Bluebird
The Eastern Bluebird, Sialia sialis, is a small thrush found in open woodlands, farmlands and orchards, and most recently can be spotted in suburban areas. It is the state bird of Missouri and New York....
. Between Autumn and Spring, the Hepatic Tanager
Hepatic Tanager
The Hepatic Tanager, Piranga flava, is a medium-sized American songbird. Formerly placed in the tanager family , it and other members of its genus are now classified in the cardinal family...
and Chipping Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
The Chipping Sparrow is a species of American sparrow in the family Emberizidae. It is widespread, fairly tame, and common across most of its North American range.-Description:...
are also evident. Raptor
Bird of prey
Birds of prey are birds that hunt for food primarily on the wing, using their keen senses, especially vision. They are defined as birds that primarily hunt vertebrates, including other birds. Their talons and beaks tend to be relatively large, powerful and adapted for tearing and/or piercing flesh....
s hunt among the valleys of Mountain Pine Ridge, and affords the most probable location in Belize to observe the Orange-breasted Falcon
Orange-breasted Falcon
The Orange-breasted Falcon is a bird of the falcon family. It is probably closely related to and looks like a larger version of the Bat Falcon. These two, in turn, are probably closest to the Aplomado Falcon and constitute a rather old American lineage of Falcos.It is found from southern Mexico to...
.
Prehistory
The lower portions of the Macal Watershed were extensively occupied by the ancient MayaMaya civilization
The Maya is a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian Americas, as well as for its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. Initially established during the Pre-Classic period The Maya is a Mesoamerican...
. Several regional habitations are identifiable, including the Cahal Pech
Cahal Pech
Cahal Pech is a Maya site located near the Town of San Ignacio in the Cayo District of Belize. The site was a hilltop palacio home for an elite Maya family, and though most major construction dates to the Classic period, evidence of continuous habitation has been dated to as far back as far as 1200...
site and the unexcavated site at Chaa Creek
Chaa Creek
Chaa Creek is a tributary of the Macal River in the Cayo District in western Belize. One of the official gauging stations of the Macal is located near the confluence with Chaa Creek. There are also Maya ruins that remain largely unexcavated in the Chaa Creek catchment basin; certain early...
. These sites were centroids for larger farming populations, and are deemed to be satellite cities that may have been under the influence of Tikal
Tikal
Tikal is one of the largest archaeological sites and urban centres of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. It is located in the archaeological region of the Petén Basin in what is now northern Guatemala...
or Caracol
Caracol
Caracol is the name given to a large ancient Maya archaeological site, located in what is now the Cayo District of Belize. It is situated approximately 40 kilometres south of Xunantunich and the town of San Ignacio Cayo, and 15 kilometers away from the Macal River. It rests on the Vaca Plateau at...
. The Mayan urban society collapsed in this watershed in the ninth century AD, likely related to the exhaustion of agricultural resources, or reaching of the limited carrying capacity
Carrying capacity
The carrying capacity of a biological species in an environment is the maximum population size of the species that the environment can sustain indefinitely, given the food, habitat, water and other necessities available in the environment...
of this region of nutrient poor soils, with possible aggravation of social factors.
Ecotourism
Whilst the highest reaches of the watershed are only accessible to the most hardy of hikers, the Mountain Pine Ridge area is available to travellers by auto (not bus). Most of the recreation in this reach is within the Mountain Pine Ridge Forest ReserveMountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve
Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve is a nature reserve in the Cayo District of southern central Belize. It was established in 1944 to protect and manage the native pine forest...
, a national Park of Belize. In addition to hiking trails into the wilderness, this reach is the location of Belize's largest limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
caverns, which allow subsurface exploration by tube flotation on the clear aquifers which are illuminated by occasional vertical lightshafts reaching the surface. The most extensive of these aqueous caverns is the Rio Frio area.
In the lowest reach there are a number of jungle resorts which offer access to the banks of the Macal for flotation or canoe
Canoe
A canoe or Canadian canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over A canoe (North American English) or Canadian...
trips to San Ignacio
Cayo District
Cayo District is a district in the west of the nation of Belize. The District capital is the town of San Ignacio.- Geography :The Cayo District is the largest district in Belize. It is located on the western side of the country which borders Guatemala. The nation's capital, Belmopan, is...
. Except for the peak flow periods of June to October, it is feasible to canoe upstream against the current in this reach. There are several rapids in the lower reach, but overall canoeing difficulty is only moderate. There is a replica working Mayan farm and a Morpho butterfly preserve as well as a small Mayan museum in the lower watershed on the western side of the Macal River.