Blogpost written by Eli Boreth, 9 years old Conservation Volunteer This Butterfly Isn't Blue [caption id="attachment_10941" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Credit: Active Wild[/caption] This is a Blue Morpho Butterfly. This butterfly lives in tropical and neotropical (which are slightly drier) rainforests in Mexico and Central America, and throughout South America. Although this butterfly looks blue, it has no blue pigment. It appears blue because of how its wing scales are structured. The wing scales are made up of cells that are shaped like Christmas trees. When light bounces off the “branches” of these...
Blogpost written by Eleanor Flatt, Restoration and Biodiversity Monitoring Research Field Assistant and Birder. [caption id="attachment_10882" align="aligncenter" width="960"] Black-cheeked ant tanager, endemic to the Osa Peninsula; photo by Manuel Sanchez[/caption] In the 1900's, the first Audubon Christmas Bird Count was conducted in 25 areas with 27 birdwatchers in the US & Canada. 100 years later, the tradition has expanded to over 2,200 areas in 20 different countries. The Osa Peninsula is one of these locations and this year marked its 8th annual Christmas Bird Count. Data collected from Christmas Bird Counts form...
Blogpost by Patrick Newcombe, Volunteer and Student Researcher My time at Osa Conservation’s biological station was an incredible experience, full of birds, nature, and exploration in the tropical rainforest. It was particularly meaningful as I got to follow up on my highschool ornithology research in the Osa and present it at the Society for Neuroscience conference in Washington, D.C. [caption id="attachment_10804" align="aligncenter" width="387"] Society for Neuroscience Conference[/caption] Over 30,000 people from 80+ countries attended the annual meeting, which filled DC’s convention center. I presented a poster that included my research on...
Blogposts written by Cornell College students Cornell College visited our biological station for week-long field trip. While at the station, they collaborated with our science team, carried out primate point count surveys every morning and afternoon, and participated in the sea turtle program. The primate data collected will be analyzed and paired with the dung beetle research we have been carrying out, investigating the patterns of this link. The students worked incredibly hard trekking through the jungle for hours and we can’t thank them enough. Below is a series...
Blogpost by Luis Carlos Solis, Asistencia Técnica Each year from the middle of December through early January, Christmas bird counts are organized worldwide. These counts consist of the identification and registration of the number of bird species observed in a given period of time. This tradition has been established in the world of bird watchers and is taught to each new generation. The Osa Peninsula is no exception to this tradition, as different organizations collaborate in December for one day to participate in tracking the progress of endangered species and...
Uncategorized / 14.09.2017
The Circle of Life: Jacobin Chicks
Blog post written by Marina Garrido, Sea Turtle Research Field Assistant Several months ago, while returning to the station after spending a long morning working to build a new hatchery, some volunteers from the University of Costa Rica and I spotted the nest of a white-necked jacobin (Florisuga mellivora) close to the trail. We were very lucky to see the mother incubating her eggs in a nest made of soft vegetation and cobwebs. This delicate nest was on the surface of a large leaf covered and protected by other...
Uncategorized / 07.09.2017
The Osa Camera Trap Network
Blog post written by Juan Carlos Cruz, Feline Program Coordinator Osa Conservation is excited to have worked with our partners to host the very first workshop for the Osa Camera Trap Network! [caption id="attachment_10339" align="aligncenter" width="346"] Photo of Osa Camera Trap Network Workshop[/caption] This Network gathers together those in the Osa interested in doing research on wildcat conservation - including partners from communities, private companies, research institutions and conservationist organizations- to help inform conservation decision-making and provide a baseline of wildcat data for generations to come. Wildcats are keystone species, which are...
Volunteers and Visitors / 19.07.2017
A First Impressions of the Osa
Blogpost written by Sawyer Judge, Volunteer Before going to the Osa for the first time, I was looking forward to seeing rare big cats, incredible crawling insects and of course the famous scarlet Macaw's that thrive in the region. But the Osa was so much more than I could have ever expected and it amazed me from the moment I got here! [caption id="attachment_10222" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Photo by CIFOR on Flickr[/caption] The taxi ride to Osa Conservation's biological station is bumpy, but with taxi-driver Andi (a man from Germany who has lived...
Blogpost written by Mollie Carroll, Intern Most of us never think past the walls of the grocery store when it comes to our food. And, we definitely don’t often go as far as to think about the practices used to produce it. Yet, in an ever modernizing world, we should stop for a moment to question what really goes into making the food that we eat every day and ask ourselves, "What's the deal with sustainable agriculture?" In the United States, the amount of farms has drastically decreased as yield...
Sea Turtles / 21.06.2017
Every Day is Sea Turtle Day Here in the Osa
Blogpost written by Marina Garrido, Sea Turtle Volunteer World Sea Turtle Day was just last week and the sea turtle team at Osa Conservation was super excited. Why? Because to us, it is not just a day, but a day in which we hope the whole world can remember and think about, even if just for a moment, these amazing animals. Sea turtles are one of the most ancient animals alive. They belong to the family Quelonidae, which also encompasses terrestrial turtles. One interesting fact about sea turtles, is...