Community Outreach, Environmental Education, Science and Research, Volunteers and Visitors / 14.08.2015

World Environment Day, 2nd Anniversary of the Luis Jorge Poveda Álvarez Arboretum and inauguration of the Centenary Forest. In early June, we had three important celebrations: World Environment Day, the 2nd anniversary of the Jorge Poveda Álvarez Arboretum and the inauguration of the Centenary Forest. World Environment Day was celebrated in early June, and had participation from diverse groups of people. We had students from various educational centers participate as well as people from organizations and businesses with various fields of focus, like mangroves in the case of Fundación Neotrópica, sea turtles in the case of LAST (Latin American...

Environmental Education, Science and Research, Volunteers and Visitors / 14.07.2015

The Magnificent Gleaning Phyllostomines of the Osa Submitted by : Doris Audet and Elène Haave Audet, University of Alberta, Canada Among the rich bat fauna to call Osa Conservation home, a select group speaks to the pristine nature of its old-growth forest: the gleaning phyllostomines.  These large-eared members of the highly diverse leaf-nosed bat family favour habitats of high ecological integrity that include mature forests and undisturbed riparian corridors. [caption id="attachment_8035" align="alignleft" width="300"] They kindly allowed us to take their photos before going on with their lives.[/caption] Phyllostomines are typically found in low abundance...

Community Outreach, Environmental Education, Marine Conservation, Sea Turtles, Volunteers and Visitors / 25.06.2015

When I came to a yoga retreat in the wilds of Costa Rica, I had no idea one of the best memories I’d take home at week's end would center around turtles--tiny baby ones, all girls. But when Manuel Mendoza of Osa Conservation visited Blue Osa Yoga Retreat & Spa to tell us about the work he and his team of volunteers do to protect these magnificent, highly endangered creatures, I couldn’t believe how paramount the need was, and was excited to become involved. I dragged myself out of bed the...

Community Outreach, Environmental Education, Science and Research / 17.02.2015

Submitted by: Jim Palmer, Science and Education Director Osa Conservation took its new citizen-science stream-monitoring network, Ríos Saludables de Osa, on the road in February for a community workshop in the San Josecito area south of Dominical. Over 35 community members including kids convened in the scenic watershed of the Rio Higuerón for a full day of ‘immersion’ in stream ecology and hands-on measurement of aquatic health. Claudia Alderman, a resident of San Josecito and member of our Osa Conservation Science and Education Advisory Committee, hosted the event. Activities were...

Community Outreach, Environmental Education / 05.01.2015

Written by Erin Engbeck Tuesday, October 7th, marked the launch of Osa Conservation’s Rios Saludables de Osa program with the first of two workshops co-led by Jim Palmer, the Science and Education Director at Osa Conservation, and our partners from Stroud Water Research Center. The program is based on the involvement of community members and volunteers with the aim of creating a higher level of public awareness and involvement in response to water quality and pollution. Providing citizens with the knowledge and tools for the monitoring of their local...

Community Outreach, Environmental Education / 31.12.2014

Juan Carlos Cruz Diaz, Osa Conservation’s Wild Cat Program Coordinator, made a trip up to Westchester County in New York this year to visit Larry Regan and his son Jeremy Regan. The purpose of the visit was to check up on Jeremy and his camera trap mammal monitoring project that he had decided to introduce right in Westchester’s back yard. [caption id="attachment_7263" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Juan Carlos and Jeremy pose in front of a camera trap.[/caption] Like father like son – Larry Regan donated the first cameras that spearheaded Osa Conservation’s...

Environmental Education / 12.09.2014

[caption id="attachment_6945" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Photo of the La Paz student group[/caption] La Paz Community School’s 11th grade class visited Piro Biological Station to conduct field ecological research in the Osa Peninsula. They spent five days connecting with nature by exploring the rainforest and water systems, learning from experts, and collecting a variety of their own data with the goal of helping others to understand this region and be motivated to contribute to the efforts to conserve it. Their main focus was to study ecological relationships and examine the conflict...

Environmental Education, Land Conservation and Forest Restoration, Science and Research / 19.08.2014

This blog piece was taken and translated directly from Osa Conservation's Wetland Program Coordinator, Andres Jimenez, and his very own personal blog. *** While I wait here for the fog on my camera to evaporate, and while the few clean clothes I have left are drying, and while none of my shoes are fully covered in mud, here I am dedicating myself to editing photos and writing this blog! Little did I imagine (although one always has hopes) that on a rainy night…wait…let me correct myself - during the deluge,...

Community Outreach, Environmental Education, Marine Conservation, Sea Turtles / 04.08.2014

Written by: Pilar Bernal Edited & Translated by: Florencia Franzini On the 28th of July we received a visit at Piro Biological Station from 9 educators who are currently working throughout the Osa Peninsula and the Golfito region. [caption id="attachment_6829" align="alignleft" width="300"] A photo of the workshop participants and Osa staff.[/caption] Thanks to the help and directive from SEE Turtles, we managed to organize an successful and informative educational workshop on marine sea turtle conservation. During the day professors learned about sea turtle species biology, while also learning techniques to help motivate their students and...

Community Outreach, Environmental Education, Land Conservation and Forest Restoration, Marine Conservation / 15.07.2014

Written by: Luis Alberto Williams Fallas Translated by: Florencia Franzini We find ourselves in the middle of a project titled “Conservation and Management of Marine and Forest Resources in the National Terraba Sierpe Wetlands.” Our associates are APREMMA: a local community of fishermen and piangüeros working out of the Ajuntaderas area, a small community off the Southern Pacific coast of Costa Rica. This newly formed group is looking for a method to develop a healthy relationship between their community and efforts to conserve the local wetlands. APREMAA, like many of the...