The elephant, undoubtedly one of the world’s most iconic species and the largest land mammal on earth, is distinguished by its enormous body – it can weigh up to eight tonnes! All African elephants, including females, have tusks – sadly, the defining feature for which they are widely poached. Both species of elephant —African and Asian—need extensive land to survive. Roaming in herds and consuming hundreds of pounds of plant matter in a single day, elephants require extensive amounts of food, water and space. As a result, they place great demands on the environment and often come into conflict with people in competition for resources.

Monkeys are mischievous, undeniably cute and very clever too – in fact, in 2014, a grinning female macaque made headlines around the world for taking the first monkey selfie. Jokes aside, they are also one of the world’s most orphaned, abused and neglected animals with destruction of rainforest and threats from hunting among posing their greatest challenges – there are 264 species of monkey in existence on the planet today, of which a whopping 52 are on the endangered list. Not cool.

The most sociable of all big cats, the magnificent lion is a symbol of Africa. They live in prides, which usually consist of related females, their cubs, and dominant males that have an unmistakable mane of hair - a sign of fitness and virility. Powerful and majestic they may be, but they’re also incredibly vulnerable to loss of habitat and con?ict with people. About 30,000-35,000 African lions remain in the wild today, and numbers have plummeted by about 30 percent in the past 20 years. The International Union for Conservation of Nature classifies them as ‘vulnerable’, so they desperately need our help.

Erin Sparks, from our supplier, PoD Volunteer, shares her knowledge of the wildlife you can work with in Belize: “Our Caribbean Wildlife Centre houses over 150 animals in their natural habitat, keeping only native animals of Belize which have either been orphaned, born at the centre, rehabilitated, or donated to the centre from other zoological institutions. The centre is set in 29 acres of Belizean tropical savannah and the land has been sensitively fenced and maintained to ensure that the animals live in an environment as close as possible to their natural habitat. You’ll get to work with jaguars, pumas, ocelots, tapirs, harpy eagles, crocodiles, howler monkeys, gibnuts, scarlet macaws, toucans, king vultures, boa constrictors, coral snakes and many more beautiful and incredible animals.”