Matura Forest and Coastal Zone
Location
The proposed Matura Forest and Coastal Zone Pilot Protected Area is located at the north-eastern quadrant of Trinidad, and includes the 9000 ha. of the existing Matura National Park Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA), and the seasonally-prohibited coastal beaches of Rincon, Matura and Fishing Pond (approximately 39 ha. of beach habitat).
Boundaries
The pilot protected area site boundaries are the existing Matura National Park ESA boundaries as described in Legal Notice 323 of 2004 (shown as the cross-hatched area in the map below) plus the beaches of Rincon, Matura and Fishing Pond.
- Environmentally Sensitive Area - Legal Notice No. 323 of 2004
- Prohibited Area under the Forests Act in 1990 (Satellite protected area - Matura and Fishing Pond being declared prohibited from 1st March to 31st August annually)
- The Matura Forest Reserve was proclaimed in three parts, the first being on 28th November, 1922, the Eastern Extension on the 14 November 1958 and the final Western Extension on 11 March, 1959 under the Crown Lands Act, now known as the State Lands Act (Chap. 57:01). Another extension, St. David, though unofficially recognized as a Reserve, was never officially proclaimed.
- The proposed pilot protected area is primarily State lands (parts of the Matura and St. David Forest Reserves) with about 10% privately owned or leased, especially in North-eastern and South-eastern areas (Salybia area).
- Forested areas are adjacent to the pilot protected area on all sides, except for the community of Salybia in the South-eastern corner.
- Adjacent fish landing sites are Salybia and Balandra to the South/South-east and Grande Riviere to the North.
Socio-economic descriptions
The pilot protected is located entirely within the Sangre Grande Regional Corporation and also occupies part of the ward of Matura. There are fourteen surrounding coastal communities. These are Matura, Salybia, Balandra, Rampanalgas, Tompire, Mission, Toco, L’anse Noir, Sans Souci, Montevideo, Grande Riviere, Matelot, Anglais Settlement and Cumana in which approximately 7,542 persons live.
The proposed pilot protected area is heavily used by the surrounding fourteen coastal communities. Local livelihoods are at least, partially derived from this site through subsistence farming and agriculture (Van den Eynden et al., 2007). However, at least 500 hunters use the area for subsistence and commercial hunting despite the area being designated as an ESA.
The coastal communities of Rincon, Matura and Fishing Pond have heavy seasonal ecotourism opportunities during the Leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) nesting season, with 15,000-16,000 visitors annually coming to the beaches for the purpose of turtle-watching (UWI, 2012). The nesting beaches which are part of the proposed protected area – Rincon, Orosco, Matura and Fishing Pond are listed as Prohibited Areas, and require a permit for turtle-watching during the months of March - September (http://www.turtlevillagetrust.org/turtle-watching.htm).
A livelihood assessment for communities surrounding the pilot protected area was conducted under the "Improving Forest and Protected Area Management in Trinidad and Tobago" project in 2017. The report from this study can be found at this link.
Ecological Notes
The forest habitats of the “core” protected area rise from sea-level to 575m in elevation and consist of moist tropical forest and premontane sub-tropical forests (Nelson, 2004), the former consisting primarily of the Carapa-Mora faciation and the latter the Brysonima-Licania faciation (Beard, 1946). Notably, the rapid elevation gradient at this site creates an extremely diverse plant community, and recent work has identified 5 distinct plant community clusters at this site with its high ridge areas being recommended as high priority for conservation (Van den Eynden et al., 2007).
Mora (Mora excelsa) is the dominant tree species in the Matura Forest, which can reach 40m or more in height. The Mora forests of Matura have been estimated to be over 30,000 years old (Beard, 1944).
This area is biologically very diverse with over 200 known tree species and eight endemic plant species from Trinidad. Of the eight endemic plants, three were assessed as endangered. They are the Clusia aripoensis, C. tocuchensis and Macrolobium trinitense.
The proposed protected area is home to the globally endangered Trinidad piping guan (Pipile pipile) (Hayes et al., 2009). The protected area is also known to have populations of the island’s largest carnivore, the ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) (Thelen and Faizool, 1980), the anteater, the Neotropical river otter and the Red Howler Monkey. There have been rare sightings of the Blue and Yellow macaw and the West Indian Manatee. A baseline ecological survey, currently being conducted by the University of West Indies, intends to provide fauna listings and population dynamics in the Matura National Park.
The coastal zones of the proposed protected area are well known nesting sites for the globally endangered Leatherback Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea). In addition, the proposed coastal waters are also sites for the Green Sea Turtle and Hawksbill Turtle, while the Loggerhead Turtle and Olive Ridley Turtle are rarely spotted on both land and sea as reported by the Turtle Village Trust (http://www.turtlevillagetrust.org/turtle-watching.htm).
The proposed protected area also has numerous other species of wildlife, includingTrinidad’s five terrestrial species of game animals (the agouti Dasyprocta leporina, the lappe Agouti paca, the red brocket deer Mazama americana, the collared peccary Peccari tajacu, and the tattoo Dasypus novemcinctus), which are hunted, along with native finches (Oryzoborus angolensis, Sporophila bouvronides and S. intermedia) from this site (Van den Eynden et al., 2007)
The TIDCO Tourism Master Plan (TMP 1995) encompassed much of the Northern Range in a planned Conservation area to encourage eco-based tourism.
There may be private forestry initiatives in the surrounding area, supported by the Forestry Division.
The Institute of Marine Affairs has done some studies on the coast, and a study of water quality in the Oropouche area.
The University of the West Indies piloted a biological baseline survey in the pilot protected area in 2007.
Present Management
- Wildlife Section, Forestry Division responsible
- Environmental Management Authority
- Co-management arrangements exist for the prohibited areas of Matura and Fishing Pond with local NGO community organizations which are under the umbrella organization of Turtle Village Trust (Nature Seekers for the Matura Beach area, and the Fishing Pond Association for the Fishing Pond area).
- Illegal harvesting of wildlife for subsistence and commercial consumption including the five game mammals, as well as locally threatened species such as the ocelot (Leopardus pardalis), crayfish, land-crabs, tamandua anteater (Tamandua tetradactyla), and the globally critically endangered Trinidad piping guan (Pipile pipile) (Van den Eynden et al., 2007);
- Intense hunting is said to be practiced
- Agricultural squatting within the PAs – at least 10 such squatters are known within this proposed PA (Hosein, 2010);
- The use of chemicals to clear lands, especially private lands, for agriculture
- Forest fires during the dry season potentially threaten the boundaries of this PA (Hosein, 2010);
- Illegal logging and harvest of NTFPs remains a threat to biodiversity at the sites (Van den Eynden et al., 2007);
- Climate change impacts including
- changes in temperature and hydrological regimes particularly affecting high elevation forest communities, and affecting drought intensity and increasing forest fire risk
- rising sea level
- Illegal pet trade of protected animals such as the Blue and Yellow Macaw
- Illegal smuggling of horticultural specimens
- Marijuana farming exist within the pilot
- Invasive species and lack of fruit trees
Challenges to the coastal zone area of the proposed PA:
- Incidental catch of turtles in coastal fishery
- Unsanitary disposal of litter (specific attention to the impact of plastic beverage containers)
- Beach erosion
- Proliferation of Seaweed on Matura and Fishing Pond beaches especially during the turtle season, which prevents turtles from nesting
- Quarrying of the nearby forest sending heavy siltation down the North Oropouche river which ends up in the prohibited area
- Final Draft Municipal Development Plan (2010 – 2020): Excelling as a Premier International Eco-Tourism Destination
Sangre Grande Regional Municipality
More information can be sourced from the link, http://www.sgrc.gov.tt/Portals/0/Documents/Sangre%20Grande%20Regional%20Corporation%20Spatial%20Development%20Plan.pdf
- Improving Forest and Protected Area Management in Trinidad and Tobago
Food and Agriculture Organization / GORTT: The project document is available online.
Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Survey (2016-2017)
Livelihoods Assessment Study (2017)
Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Survey (2019)
Information brochure: Marvels of Matura to Matelot (2020)
References
- Information Brochure on Matura National Park ESA and Coastal Zone: Marvels of Matura to Matelot
- Beard, J. S. 1944. Forestry in the Windward Islands: Development and welfare in the West Indies Bridgetown, Barbados. pp.183.
- Beard, J. S. 1946. Natural vegetation of Trinidad. Oxford, Clarendon Press, UK. pp.152.
- Beard, J.S. 1946. The Mora forests of Trinidad, British West Indies. Journal of Ecology 33: 173-192.
- Hayes, F., Shameerudeen, C.L., Sanasie, B. and Lucas, F.B. 2009. Ecology and behaviour of the critically endangered Trinidad piping guan Aburria pipile. Endangered Species Research 6(3):223-229.
- Hosein, 2010
- Kairi Consultants Limited Sangre Grande Regional Municipality Final Draft Municipal Development Plan (2010 – 2020): Excelling as a Premier International Eco-Tourism Destination
- Nelson, H.P. 2004. Tropical forest ecosystems of Trinidad: Ecological patterns and public perceptions. Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Wisconsin, Madison.
- Thelen, K.D. and Faizool, S. 1980. Plan for a system of national parks and other protected areas in Trinidad and Tobago. Ministry of Agriculture, Lands and Fisheries, Port of Spain. pp. 105
- Turtle Village Trust website - http://www.turtlevillagetrust.org/turtle-watching.htm.
- UWI, 2012
- Van den Eynden, V. Oatham, M., Alexander, B., Naranjit, A., Quashie, J., Koonhow, B., Bruce, K., Barker, M., Roberts, R., O'neil, S., Thomas, W. Belcon, S., Thompson, V. Thomas, D., Mahadeo, E., Muhammad, K., Pierre, M., Miller, R., Cox, R., Peters, M., Ramnarine, B. and Murray, S. 2007. Matura National Park Environmentally Sensitive Area Participatory Biological Baseline Survey. The University of the West Indies Department of Life Sciences, St. Augustine, Trinidad. http://www.sta.uwi.edu/fsa/maturanp/
