Bladen Nature Reserve in Belize is a landscape of caves, sinkholes, streams and rivers, old growth rainforest and an abundance of highly diverse flora and fauna which includes a great deal of rare and endemic species.

[citation needed] At 99,796 acres (40,386 ha) Bladen forms a significant portion of the Key Biodiversity Area[2] of the Maya Mountains which was identified as one of the most important blocks of protected areas within Belize and more broadly, Mesoamerica, itself a region considered a world ‘hotspot for species diversity’[3] and considered critical for the preservation of the biodiversity of the Western Hemisphere.

At its most sheltered points, west of the rugged karst (limestone) hills, Bladen has protection from many of the destructive storms that hit the Caribbean coastline, resulting in a forest with a little-disturbed structure, tall trees of impressive stature and intact ecosystems.

[4] Within the Maya Mountains, Bladen forms a crucial link between Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary to the northeast and Columbia River Forest Reserve to the southwest.

On a more local scale Bladen functions as a sanctuary for birds and mammals which are subject to hunting for bushmeat, with this large contiguous block of undisturbed rainforest these game species are able to increase population size thus creating a ‘spillover effect’ onto community lands where they may be hunted as a source of protein by indigenous Mayan communities which buffer Bladen and who have traditionally lived off the products of these forests.

Furthermore, Bladen protects the steeper slopes of the watershed areas, which, if cleared, would cause rapid erosion and sedimentation problems, not only within the river system downstream, but also on the sea grass and out on the fragile coral reef.

To the east and south-east lies rugged limestone topography of steep, conical hills pocked by vertical-sided sinkholes, underground streams and caves.

Smaller streams that emerge as springs within the hill slopes then disappear underground again after flowing a short distance – a characteristic of this limestone topography.

The character of the waterway changes from the fast moving streams of the headwaters to slower, wider, deeper, meandering rivers, interspersed in places with shallower riffles.

Conversely Bladen Branch, draining the volcanic rock and adjacent limestone, is low in phosphorus, but has a higher level of nitrogen, high conductivity, and a neutral pH.

A number of plant species that occur in these upper elevations of Bladen and the contiguous portions in Chiquibul National Park are found nowhere else in Belize (J. Marlin, pers.

Bladen is also expected to share some of the species recorded in the montane forest areas of Doyle's Delight, and the majority of those of the more intensively studied BFREE property.

The majority of species of concern listed for Cockscomb and Columbia River Forest Reserve are considered to be protected by Bladen as well, though in some cases this needs verification through further fieldwork in the area.

The second species, the Central American spider monkey (Ateles geoffroyi), appears to be more restricted to the forested hill slopes, overlapping less with the coastal areas of human impact.

The Belize sub-species, Ateles geoffroyi yucatanensis, is listed as vulnerable (IUCN, 2005), reflecting the decreasing population in the region, primarily through habitat destruction.

Baird's tapir (Tapirus bairdii) is the largest herbivore present in Bladen, and tends to be associated particularly with riparian areas where it grazes on the herbaceous vegetation.

Both the 1984 and the 1997 studies reported frequent sightings of tracks, suggesting that this species is widespread through the lowland areas of the nature reserve (Brokaw et al.).

All five of the cat species found in Belize, jaguar, ocelot, jaguarundi, puma and margay are reported to be present within the Bladen area, suggesting that there is a good prey base to support these key predators (Marlin, pers.

Whilst this has been possible in past years, the current rate of fragmentation of forest habitat and increase in human presence, with the agricultural development along the Southern Highway and the associated hunting pressure, is making this migration less viable, isolating the eastern hill slopes from the coastal areas, with their more accessible water sources.

Initiatives such as YCT's Golden Stream corridor and TIDE's Block 127 provide the crucial link between the two, and will be an important factor in the long term viability of larger mammal species in this southern area of Bladen.

Bladen Nature Reserve contains a wide variety of ecosystems, ranging from the fertile floodplain vegetation to the higher elevations of the Maya Mountains.

Bladen has two large resident game bird species, the great curassow (Crax rubra) and crested guan (Penelope purpurascens).

This was noted by the 1992 and 1997 expeditions to Columbia River Forest Reserve directly south of Bladen, with reports that game species were unexpectedly scarce in even the upper elevations, suggesting increasing hunting pressure, with relatively easy access from Guatemala.

The rare solitary eagle (Harpyhaliaetus solitarius) has been recorded from the adjacent Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary and Doyle's Delight, with a high probability that its range includes Bladen.

Other birds highlighted as being of concern include the second large game species crested guan (P. purpurascens), the ornate hawk-eagle (Spizaetus ornatus), and seasonally, the regionally endangered subspecies of the scarlet macaw (Ara Macao).

Ten species are considered to be of international concern (IUCN Red List), and of the additional 22-32 species that are likely to occur in the protected area (but which have not yet been recorded there), a further four are considered to be of international concern (IUCN Red List) – the endangered Sanderson's rainfrog (Eleutherodactylus sandersoni), and the near threatened Doflein's salamander (Bolitoglossa dofleini), broadhead rainfrog (Craugastor laticeps), and blue-spotted Mexican tree frog (Smilisca cyanosticta).

Whilst the south-eastern lower valley of Snake Creek is steep sided and was uninhabited in Maya times, the good agricultural soils of the north-western upper valley was found to have supported a modest Late Terminal Classic community with well constructed house mounds in complex groupings, with two main plazas flanked by an extensive range of structures.

To the south lies "K'antulai," located on the primary access route, straddling the mountain pass, and thought to have regulated the movement of people and goods into the Esperanza area during the Late Terminal Classic era.

All three of these structures were unlooted in 1994; however, with the increasing knowledge of these sites, and the continued access by hunters to the area and Guatemalan Xateros from the west, it is unlikely that they are still intact.

[23] Despite the environmental and social importance of Bladen, threats such as expansion of adjacent agricultural areas, hunting, illegal extraction and development ventures have the potential to severely impact the integrity of the reserve and must be accounted and planned for appropriately.