By Alejandra Gallardo, of the College of Saint Benedict
We have arrived at Costa Rica! We met in San José on February 5thand were greeted by a warm, Central American sun. We stayed in town for two days and explored a bit of the city, sampling tropical fruits such as guanabana (soursop), maracuya (passionfruit), and marañon (cashew fruit).
Costa Rica’s tropical climate hosts over 5% of the world’s biodiversity on less than 1% of the world’s surface. The Osa Peninsula, alone, accounts for half of that percentage, with the largest remaining piece of continuous tropical lowland forest in Pacific Mesoamerica. Osa contains diverse ecosystems with over 700 tree species, 10,000 insect species, 463 bird species, and 323 endemic plant and vertebrate species. However, species diversity is threatened by a warming global temperature and human development.
Our first research project of the semester ran from February 8-12 on the Osa Peninsula in the Puntarenas region of Costa Rica. We surveyed the Yellow-billed Cotinga (Carpodectes antoniae), a rare and endangered species, endemic to patches of Pacific coastal mangroves and lowland forests in Costa Rica and Panama. The species is estimated to have a population between 250 and 900 individuals.
Red mangrove (Rhizophora mangle) trees lining the mangrove estuary by the Golfo Dulce.
During the surveying period, we had two teams out to record sightings on the Osa Peninsula: one along the Golfo Dulce mangroves by kayak and the other stood on a bridge that runs over the Rio Rincón. We recorded sightings along these areas in the couple hours following sunrise, when activity is expected to peak. I got to kayak on the Golfo Dulce on three out of the five mornings. On our first day, we stopped on an exposed shore from the low tide and spotted three male Cotingas swooping between tree canopies.
An excerpt from my journal on my first morning: “Before sunrise, the Golfo sits in a beautiful stillness, the current pulling you towards the horizon as it fills the mangrove channels up to a high tide. I could hear cicadas vocalizing and the distant calls of monos. The sun rises in my view a few minutes past 6 and the first birds in sight are families of Snowy egrets and parrots. The kayaking team splits into two and covers various channels across the Golfo, searching for the swoopy white bird.”
Sunrise on the horizon of the Golfo Dulce.
In the evenings, we indulged in the Golfo’s warm waters with a surrounding view of the tropical rainforest. Our nights culminated with a mandolin, a guitar, and singing voices. The group enjoyed sharing songs and dance before sleep.
Every moment we are surrounded by incredible species. Some days Mica and Gordon compete to create species lists with at least 100 species. With every sound, step, and sight we eagerly ask our instructors for guidance in identifying species and develop our own knowledge base as we go. Our instructors, Eli and Oscár, challenge us to sharpen our senses and use our resources as we quickly familiarize ourselves with the landscape.
Eli, Oscár, Megan, Gordon, Karl, and Mica explore the rocks at Piro.
This week, we travelled further south to Piro in the Osa Peninsula and started our research on indicator species in reforestation plots. Collective efforts provided samples to set up dung beetle traps in plots across grassland, primary and secondary forests on Osa Conservation’s property.
Our days are long and there is a lot to do and learn every hour, but Mica, Gordon, and Megan are determined to master handstands, following in the footsteps of our gymnast instructors.
Megan handstands as we pass the giant Ajo tree dedicated to Alvaro Ugalde for his efforts towards Costa Rica’s biodiversity conservation through the establishment of protected areas. Photo: Eli Brunner.
Osa Conservation hosted their first Día de Puertas Abiertas (open house) event where they invited local families to visit their station at Piro to learn about ongoing biodiversity conservation work. I met Osa’s EcoFarm manager, Carlos Viquez, that manages 40 acres of land with dynamic techniques ̶such as agroforestry, micro-irrigation, intercropping, and channel irrigation ̶ to provide sustainable land-use models that can be replicated across Costa Rica. I am looking forward to visiting the farm during the next couple of weeks.
Display of yuca, ginger, sugarcane, and turmeric grown on Osa Conservation’s EcoFarm.
Text and photos by Alejandra Gallardo, unless otherwise noted.