Animal Welfare Belize Project #61369

Saving Wildlife On The Cayes of Belize

by Aces Wildlife Rescue

Project Report | Dec 31, 2025
2025: Celebrating another year at Aces!

By Ben Sept | Board Chair and Wildlife Rescuer

Zuko

2025 proved to be a great year for Aces overall despite some financial setbacks. Being a non-profit we rely on tours and local donations for a lot of our day to day expenses and unfortunately 2025 had a very short tourism season here in Belize. Thankfully the local community stepped up and we were able to raise $12,500USD in November which got us through the end of the year and into the first quarter of 2026!

By the Numbers

We had 343 hotline calls this year and took in a total of 184 patients from 57 different species!

- 12.8% of our calls were regarding nest distrubances and habitat destruction, displacing animals

- 19.4% of our calls were related to human/animal conflict (majority is crocodile conflict as humans continue to build and develop in their habitat bringing, we try to work with local community to resolve the issues and coexist safely)

- 32.3% of our calls were orphaned or surrenderred animals (mostly raccoons that we bring in and then transfer to Wildtracks in Sarteneja for continued care in their raccoon rehabilitation program)

- 35.5% of our calls were grounded birds due to illness or injury

The Return of Zuko!

Zuko was the first croc I've seen that literally reacted in pain when you touched his back. We believe someone threw hot oil on him when he was in their yard and spent a couple of weeks nursing him back to health and helping his back heal. Zuko now has a white scar along his back making him easy to identify. He's looking great and so far he's staying out of trouble. Earlier in December I received a call about a crocodile that looked dead-- the caller told me that he'd spotted a croc in the mangroves that hadn't moved in a couple of days. When we arrived I was able to see Zuko's white back immediately as he rested on the top of the water. I was able to get a good look at him and he's put on some weight! As soon as he heard my voice he immediately dropped his head into the water-- Zuko still thinks he can hide with his natural colors camoflaging in the environment. He has no idea that we can still see him due to his scars. Thankfully, crocodiles have amazing healing capabilities and his scarring might become less noticeable over time.

Goodbye to a Legend

This week we said goodbye to Brigitte Bardot. This is the tribute Christina, one of our founding members posted:

I wanted to take a moment and honor an amazing woman. Brigitte Bardot was a power house in animal rights activism and wildlife conservation. Her organization, Fondation Brigitte Bardot, made monumental change in Belize. Thanks to extraordinary time and effort put into grant applications by Chris, as well as Cherie Rose in Aces’ years prior to 2017, Aces Wildlife Rescue was a chosen multiple years over as a recipient of funding for our many projects. Becaue of Brigitte Bardot, Aces has a vehicle, which has responded to THOUSANDS of calls for wildlife rescue and conflict day and night, rain and shine, and aided in so many environmental clean-ups (though that poor baby is hardly holding on these days). Aces was able to build species-specific enclosures to better rehabilitate the various types of animals who were brought to our doorstep. And one of the most incredible grants, the one Chris was working on in his last days, gave Aces the ability to construct a dedicated wildlife clinic, which was a dream we had been working towards for a long time. The gratitude I have for her and her admirable dedication goes beyond words. I want to thank her for helping make the world so much better. For selflessly standing up for and becoming a voice for the voiceless. For giving Aces the ability to serve our community and wildlife. She left a lasting legacy all over the world, and I am so honored to have been able to play even a small part in her extraordinry life’s work. Rest in peace, Brigitte Bardot.

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croc capture

frigate capture

Links:

Aces Website

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