Costa Rica 2011 Part 5: Don Juans Organic Farm

 Today we went to Don Juans Organic Farm. This farm amazed me since it is fully sustainable by itself. Electricity is provided by methane produced by cows.

Me pulling up some roots for our lunch

They grow yuca, tomato, coffee, lettuce, pineapple, papaya, sugar cane, cucumbers, corn and herbs. Tobacco, citronella, basil, oregano and flower of death are grown on the edges to keep insects off the produce. Crushed sugarcane is used to make their own candy and liqour.

Costa Rica 2011 Part 4: Adrenal volcano area

Today we drove to our next hotel: Hotel San Bosco.  After dinner we went to the Baldi Hot Springs. They are very gorgeous and had multiple pools of different temperatures. I do wish I could have seen it when it was natural and untouched but the man made ponds and waterfalls did have a certain appeal after a few days of hiking and snorkeling. Since we went at night it wasn't to warm or busy.

Our hotel had a very fragrant tree nearby with yellowish flowers. It was called Ylan Ylan and I would say is one of my favorite smells.

On our travels in the adrenal area we see adrenal lake which is 84km2 and  has a dam that provides the majority of Costa Rica's electricity.

We hike through the park on a hanging bridges trail. Strangle figs were seen choking out trees. Tarantulas were hidden in holes on the cliffs. We saw a broad billed mot mot and crested guans. Mot mots are one of my favorite birds I saw on this trip. They have long tails and are brightly coloured.  

Mot mot

 The bridge sways as you walk on it but it provided a fantastic view of the many bromeliads and orchids hanging on the trees.White collared swifts were seen nesting near a waterfall.  Belle billied woodpecker, orioles, keel billed toucans and peckeries were also sighted.

Duchmans pipe was a plant we frequently saw along the walk. The guide mentioned to us that the root of this plant was previously used by indigenous as a form of birth control.

My favorite find on this walk would have to be blue jean frogs. These small red and blue poison dart frog were calling on the moist forest floor at the base of some trees. I was the first person to see them.

The view of the volcano was really clear on some days and driving around we saw many great landscapes.

All volcanoes in C.R. are made into national parks

Adrenal volcano

 We go out for drinks at a local bar that night and enjoy a bit of the town. The locals are watching soccer on the TV in the bars.

Liz and Tarra

Costa Rica Field Course 2011 Part 3: Playa Gandoca WIDECAST Turtle Conservation Project

We were given a lecture today by Claudio Quesada Rodrigues from the WIDECAST turtle conservation project. We learned about all of the different kinds of sea turtles, current research and conservation. I would highly recommend volunteering for this program if you are interested and have the time/money to do so.

Later that night we got to see a leather back turtle laying eggs on the beach. This female was 1.5 m long and laid 80 fertilized and 30 unfertilized eggs.

No cameras or flashlights were allowed around her so I didn't get any pictures.

Costa Rica 2011 Part 2: Cahuita National Park

We spent most of the days at Cahuita National Park walking the trails and snorkeling on the reefs. Unfortunately my waterproof camera broke so I have no pictures of the reef.

We walking along the trails and you could see beach almond palm trees growing into the wind to help with seed dispersal.Leaf cutter ants follow distinct lines across the trails guarded by their soldiers. They use these leaves to grow a fungus in their nests. We searched for bats hidden in coconut leaves and found empty tents created from chewing the secondary veins but none held bats.  We did see five bats hanging onto a tree by the river.

There were some interesting snakes that I had never seen before. 

Vine snake, we actually got to see one of these guys grab onto another ones head. Possibly was trying to eat it?

Eyelash vipers came in many colours but these ones were found the most because they stood out so much

We saw large groups of howler and white faced monkeys. They were eating monkey guava fruit which is very fragrant and has long white flowers. A female would be seen leading the group and the alpha male would be seen at the back. Two toed and three toed sloths were seen moving very slowly or sleeping in trees. Some white faced monkeys got very very friendly.  Yes it is on my head and succeeded in opening up my backpack and pulling out my flip-flops. This was a pretty surprising but kinda cool experience.

The tour guide is poking it with a stick trying to get it off of me.

They are adorable when not trying to steal your shoes!

Baby howler monkey

Pair of herons

 This park, although not very big, holds so much life that is right in front of you. We didn't even need to go out looking for things but saw them right from the trails.

The reef was also spectacular but you could see that it was quite damaged. Its a very good thing this area is now protected. The reef had a lot of interesting thing including Caulerpa (sea grapes), turtle grass, Verongula (vase sponges), fire coral, polychaete worms and fire worms. Gorgonian corals or sea fans were seen swaying back and forth with the waves.Spiny lobsters were hiding under the coral during the day. Long spined sea urchins were seen all over the reef.

As I glided over the reef many juvenile yellow tailed damsel fish with their bright blue spots were seen on elk horn corals.  Sergent majors, blue tangs and grunts were seen in schools around the reefs edges. Stoplight, queen and rainbow parrotfish were seen nibbling away at the reef as cleaning gobies eat off of them. A large tree underwater was home to some porkfish and sharpnose puffer fish.

Costa Rica Field Course 2011- Part 1 Cahuita Lodge

For University I am required to go on at least one field course or do an equivalent course at Guelph. I couldn't pass up the opportunity so I went to the tropics. The Costa Rica Rainforest and Reef course is amazing. The prof Hamish is equally as amazing. The group of us met up at Pearson airport in Toronto and flew into San Jose and stayed overnight in a hotel there.The area was very nice and we explored a bit but there wasn't many wild areas nearby.

Our wonderful tour bus for the two weeks

View in the city

On our drive to Limon the next day we stopped by the coast just to walk around a bit in a small town.This drive was long and as I was staring out the window I wished I could stop so many times. 

Lesser Kiskadee? on the coast

The lodge we stayed at (Atlantida Lodge) was near Cahuita National Park. It was fantastic. Close to the beach, very wild, nice atmosphere and so much wildlife right there. It rained pretty much every day but was clear for half the day too.

Very pretty orchid at the lodge

I dont know how to flip this around on here yet....

We saw many cool things in the ocean near our resort such as sand dollars. Walking down the dark sandy beach I eventually found some tidal pools in a rocky area. There where urchins, chitons, hermit crabs, small fish and anemones.

Taryn and her buried treasures

 There were always dogs wandering around and these two puppies were the absolutely cutest things ever!

Liz and the puppies on the beach

Many of the local boys played soccer on the beach every day and the group of us would always join in. Most of them spoke very good English and it was really fun.

Beach near the lodge

 We had lizards in our rooms every day and geckos at night...

 And many sloths were climbing around the lodge at night.

Mother sloth with baby holding on after we had a lot of rain

 We were supposed to have a fire on the beach with the group of locals that we played soccer with for two of the days but the intense thunderstorm kinda ruined that idea.

On the beach at night

 To my enjoyment I saw two of my favorite groups of frogs right at the lodge. Poison dart frogs (Dendrobates) and tree frogs (Hylidae).

Green and black poison dart frog (Dendrobates auratus)

Large toad!

 We saw many males and a few female red-eyed tree frogs in a shallow pond with a lot of vegetation that was nearby the pool. These guys were so cute.The males are smaller and brightly coloured but the females are dull and larger.

Red eyed tree frog (Agalychnis callidryas)

  We went birding every morning when I was there but I didn't have any field guides with me. I learned my lesson from that!

The place where we got on a boat to go out snorkeling had a beautiful orchid growing on a sign that I just couldn't resist taking pictures of. So many orchids were in bloom when I went. It was fantastic.

Cattleya?

Some cool invert life was crawling around too

Waking up early to go for a 6am birding walk near the lodge is where I saw:
Eastern kingbirds
Howler monkeys
Black cheeked woodpecker
Passerine tanager
Many iguanas and basiliaque lizards starting to sun themselves in trees

Blue-grey tanager

Black chested jay
Short billed pigeon
Great kiskadee
Grey headed chachalaca
Keelbilled toucans
Oropendulas
Rufus tailed hummingbird
White lined tanager
Clay colour robin
Social flycatchers
Banded back wren
Variable seed eater
Mastetyra- red face white body
Great kingfisher
Melodious black bird
Bright rumped tila
Crimson fronted parakeets
Blue headed parrots

Blue headed parrots nesting in a tree nearby our lodge

A lot of these birds were seen near or on a noni tree that has white fruit that they eat.