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The '''flora of Belize''' is highly diverse by regional standards, given the country's small geographical extent. Situated on the Caribbean coast of northern [[Central America]] the flora and vegetation have been intimately intertwined with Belize's history. The nation itself grew out of British timber extraction activities from the 17th century onwards, at first for [[logwood]] (''Haematoxylum campechianum'') and later for [[mahogany]] ([[Swietenia|''Swietenia macrophylla'']]), fondly called "red gold" because of its high cost and was much sought after by European aristocracy. Central America generally is thought to have gained much of it characteristic flora during the "[[Great American Interchange|Great American interchange]]" during which time South American elements migrated north after the geological closure of the [[isthmus of Panama]].<ref>Gentry, A.H. 1982. Neotropical floristic diversity: phytogeographical connections between Central and South America, Pleistocene climatic fluctuations, or an accident of the Andean orogeny? Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden, 69, 557-593</ref> Few Amazonian elements penetrate as far north as Belize and in species composition the forests of [[Belize]] are most similar to the forests of the
==Vegetation types==
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==Plant conservation and forest reserves==
Although deforestation continues to be a threat to Belize's natural environment<ref name="Servir">Cherrington, E.A., Ek, E., Cho, P., Howell, B.F., Hernandez, B.E., Anderson, E.R., Flores, A.I., Garcia, B.C., Sempris, E., and D.E. Irwin. (2010) “Forest Cover and Deforestation in Belize: 1980-2010.” Water Center for the Humid Tropics of Latin America and the Caribbean. Panama City, Panama. 42 pp. [http://www.servir.net/servir_bz_forest_cover_1980-2010.pdf]</ref> - and to the natural environment of almost all countries in Latin America - much of the native forest remains, facilitating a burgeoning [[ecotourism]] sector. [[National park system|National Parks System]] Act of 1981 declared numerous protected areas, and the Belizean Government has been working with a prominent non-governmental organization (NGO), the Belize Audubon Society (BAS) to promote nature conservation within the country. Founded in 1969, the BAS assists the Forest Department of the Government of Belize to manage several important forest areas including:
* [[Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary]] - established in 1990 as a result of the studies of the biology of the [[jaguar]] by [[Alan Rabinowitz]]. Although initially established for jaguar conservation it is very important for plant conservation.
* [[Guanacaste National Park (Belize)|Guanacaste National park]] - approximately fifty acres of tropical forest reserve in the Cayo District of Belize. The signature tree of the reserve is the Guanacaste (''[[Enterolobium cyclocarpum]]'') of which several giant specimens may be found.
* [[Tapir Mountain Nature Reserve]] - a forest reserve of {{convert|6750|acre|km2|0}}, in the [[Maya Mountains]] with rugged ([[karst]]) relief and relatively undisturbed subtropical moist forest.
In addition to the above there are numerous other important forest reserves such as:
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[[Image:Chamaedorea oblongata3.jpg|thumb|right|[[Chamaedorea|''Chamaedorea oblongata'']], understorey palm.]]
There are numerous conservation challenges in Belize. One is the extensive recent illegal cutting of the [[Understory|understorey]]
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