News + Stories

Sea Turtles / 11.09.2012

[caption id="attachment_4373" align="alignleft" width="300"] A Green sea turtle nests on Pejeperro Beach[/caption] With the same clumsiness as their mothers, the small reptiles descend slowly down the sloped beach. One by one they go, leaving behind a trail of life in the sand. Seven weeks ago, after a journey spanning hundreds, perhaps thousands of kilometers, an adult olive ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) pushed through the foaming waves on Pejeperro beach in the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica, to begin an ancient, unique and exquisite journey.
Uncategorized / 11.09.2012

[caption id="attachment_4373" align="alignleft" width="300"] A Green sea turtle nests on Pejeperro Beach[/caption] Con la misma torpeza que sus madres, los pequenos reptiles descienden lentamente por la playa inclinada. Uno a uno van dejando tras de si un rastro de vida en la arena… Siete semanas atrás, después de un viaje de  cientos, quizás miles de kilómetros una tortuga Lora  adulta (Lepidochelys olivácea) se abrió paso entre las olas espumosas de playa Pejeperro en la Peninsula de Osa, Costa rica, para dar inicio a un ritual milenario, único y exquisito en el reino animal.
Birds, Environmental Education / 07.09.2012

As part of conservation efforts for the Scarlet Macaw, artificial nests have been installed in two colleges and five schools. In each school, trees with easy visibility were chosen for students based on  characteristics of diameter and height for the installation of the nests. Students of these schools attended a workshop on ecology, life cycles and the importance of conservation of the species Ara macao. Students from the 5th, 6th, and 9th grades are in charge of monitoring macaw activities and noting events such as flights and perching near the nests and when a macaw investigates the inside of a nest. They also monitor the activity of other species near the nest.
Uncategorized / 07.09.2012

En el marco del Proyecto de Conservación de la Lapa Roja, se instalaron 7 nidos artificiales en centros educativos: 2 en colegios y 5 en escuelas. En cada centro educativo, se escogieron árboles de fácil visibilidad para los estudiantes con características de diámetro y altura apropiada para la instalación de los nidos. Los estudiantes de estos centros educativos recibieron un taller sobre ecología,  ciclo de vida y la importancia de la conservación de la especie Ara macao. Los estudiantes de 5to y 6to grado de escuela y los estudiantes de 9no grado de colegio, serán los encargados de monitorear la actividad de las lapas rojas como; vuelos cerca al nido, lapas perchando cerca al nido, investigación  dentro del nido, etc, como también la posible actividad de otras especies cerca al nido.
Sea Turtles / 05.09.2012

[caption id="attachment_4324" align="alignleft" width="300"] Osa Conservation staff taking a break during patrol training[/caption] This week, we had the pleasure of conducting our first Osa Conservation staff training for sea turtle patrols. The event was very productive for everyone, reinforcing knowledge for some, and training others for the first time. For me, the most interesting part of it all was the fieldwork, where for the first time this season, all of the land conservation staff, volunteers, Max, Manuel Sánchez, and myself (a total of 13 people) conducted a turtle patrol of Pejeperro Beach. We left the Piro Biological Station at 7:30 pm with our flashlights and our fieldwork equipment, and after we walked all the way to sector 10, we encountered our first nesting turtle that was just beginning to excavate her nest. While she was digging, Manuel demonstrated to us the data collection process, including tagging turtles, marking tracks, performing basic health assessments, and other things. After making these techniques clear to everyone, we were eager to perform the tasks ourselves.
Marine Conservation, Science and Research / 30.08.2012

By Brooke Bessesen [caption id="attachment_4304" align="alignleft" width="300"] The name "Brown pelican" belies the attractive hues of a mature bird.[/caption] I’m sure it comes as no surprise that during our 400+ hours of observation in Golfo Dulce, Jorge and I witnessed an astonishing array of marine life. Indeed, we were astounded by the intense biodiversity revealed to us during our research. In addition to the animals I’ve already blogged about in this series, many more are worth mentioning. Some were officially documented, others were not, but all helped define our emerging portrait of Golfo Dulce. Brown pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis) are commonly seen in Golfo Dulce and we located a year-round communal roosting area along the banks of Piedras Blancas National Park in the upper half of Golfo Dulce. We saw many other marine birds, too, including Brown boobies, magnificent frigates, osprey, several species of gulls, terns, swallows, herons, ibis and dozens more wading and estuary birds.
Uncategorized / 29.08.2012

Esta semana tuvimos el placer de realizar la primera capacitación del 2012 sobre tortugas marinas para todo nuestro personal, el cual fue muy productivo para todos nosotros, algunos reforzamos conocimientos y otros adquirimos por primera vez esta inducción. A mi parecer  lo mas interesante de todo fue el trabajo de campo cuando por primera vez esta temporada todos nuestros muchachos de manejo de tierras, algunas voluntarias,  Max, Manuel Sanchez y mi persona, para un total de 13 personas,  realizamos el patrullaje hasta Peje Perro.
Sea Turtles / 22.08.2012

By Jamie Cone [caption id="attachment_4122" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Photo: Claudio Giovenzana"][/caption] An anticipatory rumble of thunder sounds far away, off shore. It has an almost calming sound as we make our way through the dark squishy forest path, the sky patterned with silhouettes of tree leaves. The jungle is alive with night sounds, from the echoing song of the nightjar to the almost space-invader beep of frogs on Las Rocas trail. A silky white two-toed sloth is spotted, high up in a tree, taking the night off. I envy its slow slumber for just a moment before I remember that this trail is taking me down to the beach, down to witness a spectacular and sacred event, one that only a few people in the world have the chance to be a part of. Tonight, I am walking a stretch of beach along which nesting mother sea turtles will, with great care and diligence, lay their precious eggs in the sand.
Environmental Education, Volunteers and Visitors / 16.08.2012

By Bob Mason, Liz Lucas, and Kate Cleary   On our first day at the Cerro Osa Station, we met Max Villalobos, our Internship Coordinator. He led us on a hike through some of the beautiful trails between the Cerro Osa and Piro Biological stations. Along the way, Max taught us about the native wildlife, briefed us on Osa Conservation's mission to promote biodiversity and awareness, and explained how we would be able to lend a hand. Our contribution would be to survey the secondary forest and create a baseline of data for their reforestation efforts, which are now in their third year. After a day of photographing several patches of forest to help document changes in the landscape, we began our surveying project with a staff member, Agustin Mendoza. Without Agustin’s expansive knowledge of the Peninsula’s flora and fauna, not to mention his prowess with a machete, our work would have been almost impossible to complete. Over the next three weeks, we marked 117 12x12-meter subplots and took notes on the planted species within them. Additionally, we documented the percent canopy cover of each subplot and the number of Pachote trees, which are now remnants of the previous plantation here. With this data, Osa Conservation will be able to track their reforestation progress by pin-pointing the best locations for individual tree species.
Uncategorized / 08.08.2012

Escrito por Hansel Herrera Vargas Hansel Herrera Vargas, un biólogo costarricense con un bachillerato en Biología y un Diplomado en Química de Universidad Berry College, Georgia, Estados Unidos, es el coordinador de voluntarios nuevo de Conservación Osa. El siguiente es su relato de primera mano de su traslado a la Península de Osa. Hansel estado muy ocupado este verano, como la Tortuga Marina Programa de Voluntarios de 2012 está en marcha. Solicita hoy esta oportunidad para experimentar la maravillosa Península de Osa! [caption id="attachment_4049" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Mamon Chino (Photo: Mario Melendez)"][/caption] El primer vistazo de Osa sucedió justo antes del atardecer en una tarde lluviosa de julio. A la orilla del camino, poco a poco se asomaba un mundo nuevo y mágico; una tierra que mezcla la selva con el mar. Rápidamente se llenaron mis pulmones con decenas de olores nuevos: el dulce aroma del Mamon Chino (Nephelium lappaceum), el suave olor de la Carambola (Averrhoa carambola), la hediondez del Nonis (Morinda citrifolia), el pudoroso Mimbro (Averrhoa bilimbí), la Guaba (Inga edulis), el cacao (Theobroma cacao), y otros mas. Ay, que lugar de ensueño pensé, y pronto olvide como había llegado hasta allí.