El 26 de Noviembre 2011, Conservación Osa (CO) y el Área de Conservación Osa (ACOSA) organizaron un mini simposio en la Estación Biológica Piro con el objetivo de abrir un espacio de intercambio de los resultados de las investigaciones desarrolladas en ACOSA, tanto por CO como por otros investigadores.

En dicha actividad tuvimos la participación de 14 expositores de diferentes instituciones (Ver programa de la actividad). La actividad inicio con una bienvenida e introducción a Conservación Osa y luego, la Lic. Wendy Barrantes del departamento de investigación de ACOSA presentó un resumen sobre las investigaciones realizadas en ACOSA en los últimos años y los vacios en investigación que ellos han identificado.

A continuación cada investigador presento los resultados más relevantes de sus investigaciones. Debido al gran número de presentaciones, la gran cantidad de resultados presentados y la gran diversidad de los mismos, no pretendemos aquí entrar en detalles de cada uno de los temas expuestos. Sin embargo, si queremos rescatar como algunos de los participantes expresaron su interés en promover este tipo de actividades, que abren un espacio para compartir conocimientos científicos que se generan en la zona, y que muchas veces se complementan entre sí. Esta actividad también permitió el generar nuevas contactos y alianzas que favorece el desarrollo de mejores proyectos en el futuro.

The 2012 Osa Science Symposium was attended by 14 presenters and many members of the environmental community

Osa Conservation recently hosted a science symposium at the Piro Research Center. The event brought together scientists and conservationists to share information and results from various research conducted throughout the Osa Peninsula.  The symposium was organized in partnership with representatives from ACOSA (Osa Conservation Area) and was attended by 14 presenters and many members of the environmental community.

The day began with welcoming remarks from Osa Conservation’s executive director, Manuel Ramírez and ACOSA research department head, Wendy Barrantes.  The gathering provided a space to discuss the current status of Osa’s diverse ecosystems and wildlife, as well as identify priority areas for further research. Participants identified the need for comprehensive studies of land use change in Osa, methodologies for estimating costs of environmental damage, calculations for carbon sequestration potential in primary and secondary forests, scientific techniques for recovering degraded forests and the development of a model to build incentives for reforestation in the peninsula.

The symposium strengthened communication and collaboration among scientists and environmentalists and also fomented the role of Osa Conservation as one of the main facilitators of research in the area. The event was a great success and we would like to thank the following presenters and all symposium attendees.  Thanks for making this year’s symposium a success!

Wendy Barrantes, ACOSA
Conserving the Osa, Overview and Future Directions

Karen Leavelle, Osa Conservation
Spatial Biology and Conservation of the Yellow-billed Cotinga

Guido Saboío, Osa Conservation
Sea Turtle Conservation Project, Piro-Carate Beaches

Reinaldo Aguilar, Los Charcos de Osa
Vascular Plants of the Osa

Pablo Riba, Proyecto Carey, Universidad de Costa Rica
Population Structure of Two Dioceus Hardwood Species in the Osa Peninsula

Edgar Malayassi, Instituto Tecnológico de Cartago
Carbon sequestration in secondary and primary forest, Osa Peninsula

Jesús Mora Molina, Guillermo Calvo Brenes, Instituto Tecnológico de Cartago
Evaluation and Classification of the Quality of Several Water Bodies in the Osa Peninsula

Aida Bustamante, Yaguará
Research and Conservation of big cats and their preys on the Osa Peninsula

Gloriana Chaverri, Boston University
The Use of Social Calls in the Search for Bat Refuges

Julieta Carranza , Walter Marín, Universidad de Costa Rica
Inventory and distribution of macro-fungi at La Leona, Corcovado National Park

Hello!!

My name is Jo Garrett and I’m a television producer based in Madison, Wisconsin. I am also a BIG-TIME Osa admirer since I had the pleasure of traveling there to shoot a documentary called, “Our Birds.”

We produced the documentary for Wisconsin Public Television and you can view it at this link:

http://wpt.org/ourbirds/

The “we” is our production crew: location sound recordist, Kerman Eckes, me, and our videographer, Frank Boll.

So why was a Wisconsin television crew in the Osa? Our documentary began as an investigation into some of the problems confronting Wisconsin’s migratory birds.

Every spring and fall more than 240 species of birds travel to and through Wisconsin as they migrate between their summer breeding grounds in the north and their wintering grounds in Latin America.

These migratory birds are very treasured in Wisconsin. It’s a big deal when these beautiful birds arrive every spring. Wisconsin residents put up feeders outfitted with orange slices and grape jelly to feed hungry Baltimore Orioles, birders join “warbler walks” to catch sight of these beauties, and even the tiny hummingbirds are treated to sugar water served in bright red containers. Spring is a delight when they arrive and we miss the birds when they leave in fall.

We love “our birds” and conservationists in Wisconsin are working hard to tackle problems such as habitat loss and collision with windows. Some of that work is profiled in the documentary. (There is a very happy ending for a Canada Warbler that crashes into a skyscraper in the city of Milwaukee!! Check it out!).

But it became clear that an important part of the story of Wisconsin’s migratory birds was to look at what happens to the birds while they’re in their wintering grounds.

We came to the Osa to profile some of the amazing programs that Osa Conservation and partners are engaged in to save “our birds” AND, to show how important it is that we work together if these birds are to survive and thrive.

Conservation Birding is a concept whereby people who come down to the Osa on fantastic birding trips agree to make a donation to Osa Conservation to support protection and restoration of bird habitat and avian programs. These trips result in the raising of critical funds to protect not only migratory, but resident endangered bird habitat as well (in addition to supporting local jobs in eco-tourism and bird guiding!)

A picture is worth a 1,000 words so here are a few production stills from our trip

If you save the ocelot, you save the oriole. We explored that connection with Wild Cat Researcher Ricardo Moreno seen in the image above. He and fellow researcher Aida Bustamante have set up one of the largest camera trap grids in the world to capture photos and garner information about Costa Rican wild cat populations.

Ricardo got a photo of a margay that day. What a rare occurrence. Reason? Margays live in the trees of the rainforest and seldom, sometimes never, touch the ground. Amazing. The canopy cat.

Early morning. Rio Tigre. Barefoot. Working. I think this is a great production photo. Frank and Kerman are intent on their job, gathering images and sound, and all around them the day is unfolding

We were all changed by this trip. Kerman was so inspired by our shoot in the Osa and Thompson’s birding conservation trips that she returned to bird with Osa Conservation the next year!!

Frank has retired from Wisconsin Public Television but please note that he’s now in Peru on a three week shoot, volunteering his time as a videographer to document other conservation efforts. I know that the dedication of the folks in the Osa was SO inspiring for him. We talked about it when we retuned back home. He spoke of how determined he is to “give back” to conservation groups in his retirement, in part because of his experiences in the Osa and with Osa Conservation.

As for me, I have a renewed focus on how best to communicate the importance of caring for “our birds:” preventing window collisions, saving habitat, planting our backyards with the native plants and bushes that give these spent, exhausted migrants the food and shelter their need during their migrations.

I am writing this blog entry from Madison, Wisconsin on November 8th. We’re under a “winter storm watch” and the snow is tumbling down, winds are howling, and I’m so glad the birds we share (the Baltimore Oriole, the Indigo Bunting, the Scarlet Tanager, and all those many, many Warblers) are all safe and sound in the forests and wilds of the Osa.

Take good care our little feathered friends!! We’re counting on you!

We’ll do our best to watch out for them in Wisconsin.

Thank you!!

-JoAnne Garrett
Wisconsin Public Television

Let emily.angell@osaconservation know if you are interested in birding opportunities in the Osa!

DECEMBER 17-22

Space is still available on our Holiday Birding Trip, so join us for spectacular birding through the tropical forests of the Osa Peninsula! This five-day trip includes extensive birding, forest hikes, and nightly talks and excursions with our staff of biologists and conservation professionals.  The trip culminates in the National Audubon Society’s Christmas Bird Count—where you, along with thousands of other citizen scientists throughout the Americas, can participate in the longest running wildlife census to assess the health of bird populations.

The Osa Peninsula is the wildest, yet most under-birded, corner of the country.  It is home to over 460 species of birds, including the healthiest population of Scarlet Macaws in Central America, Red-capped Manakins, Yellow-billed and Turquoise Contingas, and even the Harpy Eagle.  Osa Conservation’s birding trips are led by resident ornithologist, Karen Leavelle, as well as trained naturalist guides who are intimately familiar with the bird species and tropical ecosystems of the Osa.

Your participation in the Holiday Birding Tour directly supports OC’s avian conservation and education programs. We invite you to be part of our mission to conserve the Peninsula’s globally significant biodiversity and we hope to see you on one of these fantastic trips!

For more information on our Holiday Birding Tour, or to see a trip itinerary, please visit our website at www.osaconservation.org/ConservationTrips.html. For trip registration or questions please contact Emily Angell at emilyangell@osaconservation.org or Karen Leavelle at karenleavelle@osaconservation.org.

September 18^th represented the 3^rd Annual Sea Turtle festival on Carate Beach.  About 100 members of Carate, Puerto Jiménez, and surrounding communities participated in sea turtle discussions, presentations fun activities with the theme of conservation.

The festival began with an interactive discussion with children and adults about the principal biological characteristics of the Osa, the turtle species that nest here, and the objectives and activities of the Sea Turtle Conservation Program developed by Osa Conservation on the beaches of Piro, Pejeperro and Carate.

Club Ambiental Las Abejitas of the Saturnino Cedeño School, under Laura Castro’s direction, prepared a theatrical skit for the event about the life of a sea turtle and the natural hazards and human threats that they face as well as the precautions that we must take on the sea turtle nesting beaches.

Activities included games on the beach, like turtle races and turtle sand castles, and a quiz competition about Osa’s biodiversity.  All participants in the event received informative material about sea turtle conservation, stickers, posters, and t-shirts for those who correctly answered the most questions.

Thank you to everyone who helped make this year’s event a success in raising awareness of the importance of conserving these incredible species.

Special thanks to:

SEEturtles, Luna Lodge, La Leona Lodge, ASCONA, Finca Exótica, Dereck Ferguson, Hacienda Río Oro, the Bellanero family, ACOSA, Tranquility, Frontier, Lapa Rios, Hoja de Osa School, Club Ambiental Las Abejitas, Laura Castro, and Mauricio Gutiérrez.

Peltogyne Purpurea: An endemic species of Costa Rica and Western Panama, now very scarce because of overexplotation for its valuable timber.

Visiting a tropical forest can be overwhelming because of the enormous number of species found there, especially if you are talking about the Osa Peninsula, one of the most biologically diverse places in the world. This diversity is especially evident amongst plants which, as immobile organisms, are easily observed.  This same diversity, however, can be distressing for a person interested in identifying a species if they don’t have previous knowledge of the area.  This is why, for the last six months, I have been working at Osa Conservation’s Piro Research Station and Greg Gund Conservation Center identifying trees on site, georeferencing various individual trees of distinct species, and creating a digital catalog of the most common species found on the trails (among other things).  Osa Conservation is using all of this information to educate researchers and visitors about tree diversity in the Osa rainforest and for their forest restoration program.

With over 700 species of trees in the Osa rainforest, identification can seem very complicated for those without experience in the field.  A digital collection indicating the most significant characteristics of various species allows for easier recognition of species.  There are many simple characteristics that aid in identification, including the type of leaves and the position of the stem, the presence or absence of secretion, translucent dots, glands, or pubescence (“hairs”) which together can facilitate the recognition of families, genera and even species.  We’re also adding photographs and dried plant samples to this information to help us compare and verify the species with which we are working.

Georeferencing various trees at Osa Conservation will give researchers and education groups interested in finding and studying a certain species the ability to locate it effortlessly and, once there, see the living specimen and characteristics that are impossible to detect in a photograph or  plant sample (ie. trunk or secretion).  Georeferencing individual trees is also assisting Osa Conservation’s forest restoration program, which is carried out in partnership with NRDC and the Wisconsin Natural Resource Foundation.  Georeferencing allows us to easily locate and observe the fructification process of certain tree species whose seeds we collect and nurture on site in the OC nursery, better enabling us to restore degraded habitats with native species.

Within a determined site, there are generally groups of very common species while others may be very scarce.  For the more common species, and for the majority of individuals who are curious about tree identification yet lack previous knowledge, a digital catalog will be very useful; for the scarcer species, and for those individuals with more knowledge in the field (ie. researchers), georeferencing is fundamental, as locating the trees would otherwise be very difficult.

August 7^th represented the second Day of Beach Cleaning along sea turtle nesting beaches in Osa.  With the participation of around 150 volunteers from the community, local hotels, personnel from Osa Conservation Area, Frontier volunteers and Osa Conservation employees, we were able to collect waste along 12 km of beaches, from Carate to Matapalo.

Starting off early in the morning to take advantage of low tide, the groups divided up throughout the area with plastic bags, gloves, sun screen and lots of water.  The day of cleaning continued past noon, when the participants came together at the Piro Biological Station to have lunch and end with a soccer game.

As with every year, the majority of the waste found on the beaches was plastic bottles and pieces of Styrofoam, which shows us how businesses and consumers still have to work towards being more environmentally responsible.

We hope that this clean-up will help the sea turtles in their difficult journey from the sea to the beach and back again, a journey that, although short, implies a great physical effort on their part which they undertake with the goal of conserving their species.

Thank you to the following participants:
Lapa Rios, Bosque del Cabo, El Remanso, the Bellanero family, Hacienda Rio Oro,  ISEAMI, Lookout Inn, Finca Exótica, Luna Lodge, La Leona Lodge, ACOSA, FRONTIER, the community and Asdrúbal Cordero.

2010 Conservation Birding Group

There is no place more unique or pristine to go birding than where the rainforest meets the sea.  The Osa Peninsula harbors over 460 species of birds including the healthiest population of Scarlet Macaws in Central America, three species of Leking Manakins, Yellow-billed and Turquoise Cotingas and even the endangered Harpy Eagle.  Home to the largest remaining tract of tropical lowland rainforest and intact mangrove ecosystems along the tropical Pacific coast of Central America, the Osa Peninsula is the wildest and most spectacular region of Costa Rica.

Join Osa Conservation on a special Conservation Birding Tour.  The Osa Peninsula Holiday Birding Tour in December 2011 is a week-long winter holiday getaway of birding that culminates in the Audubon Societies’ Christmas Bird Count.  The Osa Peninsula Spring Birding Tour in March of 2012 will take you all the way around the peninsula, from rainforest to lagoons and beaches to mangroves.  Both trips happen at an exciting time of year when you can see both resident birds and neotropical migrants together.

Participation in OC’s Conservation birding trips supports the important mission of avian conservation in the Osa Peninsula.  These trips are led by Osa Conservation’s resident ornithologist Karen Leavelle as well as trained naturalist guides who are intimately familiar with the bird species and tropical ecosystems of Osa.  Conservation birding trips include intense birding, forest hikes, and nightly talks and presentations by OC’s staff of biologists and conservation professionals.  Topics include Osa natural history, sea turtle conservation, wild cat conservation, avian research and conservation, reforestation, and tropical amphibians as indicator species for climate change.  We welcome you to be part of our mission to conserve the peninsula’s globally significant biodiversity and we hope to see you on one of these fantastic trips!

So whether you are adding to your life list or simply have a love of birds, pack up your hiking boots and binoculars and come on down for lots of great birding and what will surely be a memorable journey into paradise!

TRIP  1: DECEMBER 17-22, 2010
Osa Peninsula Holiday Birding Tour
(Culminating in the National Audubon Society’s Christmas Bird Count)
Spend your holiday birding in the tropics!  This trip is designed to immerse you in one of the world’s most spectacular tropical rainforests and prepare you to participate in the longest running wildlife census assessing the health of bird populations in the Americas—The Audubon Society’s Christmas Bird Count, a tradition extending for over 100 years.  In addition to five exciting days of birding, you will gain an in-depth understanding of avian ecology and conservation issues in the Osa.  The Osa has been designated a Costa Rican Important Bird Area (IBA), an Endemic Bird Area (EBA) by Birdlife International, an Alliance for Zero Extinction Site, and is considered a global conservation priority. Don’t miss this incredible opportunity to give the gift of avian conservation!  For more trip details and itinerary visit our website.

TRIP 2: MARCH 3-10, 2011
Osa Peninsula Spring Birding Tour
Every day is a good day for spotting birds in the Osa, but Spring is a fantastic time to observe rare and endangered resident and endemic species  and neotropical migrants on the move.  We’ll be looking for Mangrove hummingbirds, Yellow-Billed Cotingas, and Black-checked Ant Tanagers, to name just a few.  You might even see a Baltimore Oriole or an endangered Golden-winged Warbler or two.  Spend 8 days and 7 nights in one of the most intensely biodiverse tropical rainforests on earth while learning about valuable research and conservation efforts in the region.  Click here to learn more.

For trip registration or questions please contact Emily Angell at emilyangell@osaconservation.org or Karen Leavelle at karenleavelle@osaconservation.org

These trips promise to be a delightful experience, chock full of great people, spectacular birds and wildlife and a very rare opportunity for hands-on exposure to one of Latin America’s most important conservation areas!  So don’t miss out!  We look forward to seeing you soon on the Osa!

Cover Photo: Alan Dahl

In order to restore these incredible forests, we must diversify the native tree species used as much as possible.  This is a laborious process because most of the sought after tree species are very scarce and searching for them requires long hours walking through the dense forest paying close attention to tree trunks and leaves.  Once located, you have to periodically visit the trees to determine their flowering and fruiting seasons. Many trees produce very few fruits or very small fruits—so finding native tree seeds requires a lot of patience and very careful observation.  Also, due to the abundance of fauna in the area, many of the seeds and fruits are dispersed, predated upon or parasitized once they hit the forest floor (or even while still on the tree) affecting the number of seeds that can be collected.

We estimate that many of the seeds collected over the course of our reforestation project will be species that have never before been cultivated in the history of mankind. So overcoming these challenges is an exciting step toward restoring the Osa’s magnificent forests and conserving the many endangered species therein.  In addition, this Project will allow us to generate very valuable information for future projects or reforestation efforts not just for the Osa, but for other tropical rainforest ecosystems as well.

A Bombacopsis sessilis seedling in the nursery of the Greg Gund Conservation Center. This species is endemic of Pacific Costa Rica and Panama.

- Juan Manuel Ley, resident botanist from the University of Costa Rica