We’ve only been here for five days and have easily seen more than one hundred species of amphibians, reptiles, insects, birds and mammals, not to mention the vast array of plants (more than 12000 species exist in Costa Rica!). Everyday around the station has been a new, exhilarating adventure. For example, as we walk along the paths geckos, turtles, lizards, anoles, frogs and toads appear right in front of our feet!

Central American Spider Monkey, Ateles geofroyi, at Cano Palma Biological Station

Yesterday afternoon, some endangered monkeys swung by the station allowing me to snap some pictures and observe the Central American spider monkey Ateles geoffroyi swinging from branch to branch through the tall deciduous trees around us. The Mantled Howler Monkey Alouatta palliate also swung by, but is often heard in the early morning when it isn’t pouring rain. I’m starting to embrace the overwhelming diversity of this place and have faith that it will remain for centuries to come. Too bad that every minute of every day an area of rainforest as large as 37 soccer fields is cut down (with more than half of the world’s original rain forests already destroyed!). Thanks to Charlotte, the team at Cano Palma Biological Station and Tortuguero National Park for preserving this wonderful Caribbean lowland rain forest ecosystem. I can’t wait to see what lies ahead.

Mantled Howler Monkey, Alouatta palliate, at Cano Palma Biological Station

The Journey

Dad woke me up at 4 in the morning, we got all our stuff together, put it in the van, and drove for the next couple of hours.  When we finally got to the airport I was so excited! After we went through security, we sat and waited for the next hour or so.  When we boarded the plane I was pretty happy! Five hours later we were in Costa Rica but not at the end of our trip. We had to drive a bit to get to Hotel Cacts.  After that, we took a walk through downtown San Jose to get groceries and then we had dinner. The next morning we drove through the mountains for about two thirds of our drive.  For the next third, we drove through towns until we got to Pavona where our water taxi was waiting. Then we had to put garbage bags over our luggage before hauling it to the boat because it was raining. We had a nice boat ride through the canals and rivers until we got to the station. I was ecstatic (even though it was raining)!

The Experience So Far

As of today, we are one week into our six weeks.  Mario came in time for lunch on Monday.  Yesterday, Mario some of the students and I made a die with some fruit (Guaitil Fruit) that he collected on Monday.  First, Mario peeled the outer layer to get to the seeds.  Juliette helped with that too.  Me and Aiden’s job was to pull out the seeds to make the next step easier.  At the same time, Zach ground some charcoal.  Then, I mashed the seeds, charcoal, and water.  And there you have it, a temporary tattoo ink that will last about a week. Mario also gave us an introduction to botany and showed us edible plants, toxic plants, and plants with dyes.

Here’s a list of some of the things I’ve seen:

Reptiles: Red Coffee Snake, Brown Blunt-headed Tree Snake, Fer-de-lance, Golden Eyed Parrot Snake, Bromeliad Boa, Boa Constrictor, Festive Ameva (aka Central American Whiptail Lizard), Yellow-headed Gecko, Black River Turtle, White-lipped Mud Turtle, Litter Gecko

Amphibians:  Scarlet-webbed Tree Frog, Fitzinger’s Rain Frog, Tink Frog, Smokey Jungle Frog, Cane Toad, Strawberry Dart Frog

Birds: Keel-billed Toucan, Chestnut-mandibled Toucan, White-collared Manakin, Red-capped Manakin, Blue-gray Tanager, Slaety-tailed Trogon, Gray-necked Wood Rail, Green Hermit, Long-tailed Hermit, Little Hermit, Bare-throated Tiger Heron, Green Heron, Little Blue Heron, Anhinga, Great Green Macaw, Collared Aracari, Ringed Kingfisher, Green Kingfisher, White-winged Dove, Clay-coloured Robin, Great Grackle, Brown Pelican, Magnificent Frigate Bird, Montezuma’s Oropendula

Mammals: Brazilian Long-nosed Bats, Fishing Bat, Unidentified Possom