Andrea’s Blog
The past three days Radek, Brian, Josh F. and I have been collecting data on reptiles and amphibians between 08:00 and 11:30 on three different trails at Tirimbina. Our group has learned a lot about the species observed and their habitat preferences (among other things). The first two days we saw many amphibians, but it wasn’t until day three (today) that we first saw venomous snakes during our survey. Today we saw three hog-nosed vipers and one ferre-de-lance, all venomous (and dangerous) snakes. The most intense moment was when we observed an injured ‘Central American whiptail’, a lizard species that is common at Tirimbina, which we stopped to investigate. While observing the species, a hog-nosed viper (likely searching for its prey) passed between Radek and I, nearly touching my legs. I nearly croaked! I must mention, however, that snakes are misunderstood – their intention is not to hurt humans, but to protect and feed themselves.
Rad’s Blog
Holy crow folks! What an adventurous couple of days team Chimichongas which consists of: Brian, Andi and myself, have experienced. The AM reptile and amphibian surveys have been a very enjoyable way to start the day, especially the early morning light penetrating the canopy of the rainforest. We have had the opportunity to learn a great deal about the microclimates of the rainforest, and how these relate to the types of species that can be found within. Things just keep getting better and better here in Costa Rica! Yesturday after lunch, the team decided that we’d hike through the “jungle” over to the main center to check things out “on the other side”.
We managed to observe a Montezumas oropendula high in a tree, performing it’s courtship dance and song. The song of this bird sounds more like something a special effects program on a computer would produce, not a tropical bird. On our way back to our more remote center, we witnessed one of the most joyous moments I can recall: a troop of howler monkeys rolled over us in the canopy and decided to feed a stones throw away. The young were incredibly cute and inquisitive, and watched us while they munched on leaves. We were so close we could almost see too much (ask me about this in person). We had to be back for dinner so we decided to carry on before it got too late. About halfway through the walk, which I was leading something jumped in front of me and freaked me out… it was just a frog. Phew! I remained quite vigilant throughout, impressed with my observation skills thanks to the morning surveys, up until I took a step right beside a hog-nosed pit viper and it lunged the opposite way of my ankle. My heart must have skipped a beat, and we were all a bit freaked out. We calmed down and decided to keep going, thinking “that was a close call”… until about 500m from there, where I noticed a fer-de-lance right before I stepped on it. Luckily I managed to notice it early enough that this was not deemed a close call, after the last encounter. This was an eye opening experience for me, and I understood the fact that we are out of our element and must be EXTRA cautious. All I can say is that the Chimichongas learned a lesson, and now have a story to tell about it. I am absolutely smitten by this place and never want to leave, as there is hardly a dull moment. Not to rub it in, but I hope ya’ll are having as much fun as we are!
Pura Vida
Brian’s Blog
Hey everyone. Well, the past three days have been something else. I really can’t stress enough how amazing this place is. On a hike yesterday, my research team (Team Chimichongas: Radek, Andi and myself) saw a family of 6-8 Howler Monkeys. We were only about 20 feet away from them; it was an experience I will never forget. There were 2 juveniles in the group and they seemed to be as interested in us as we were of them. It was really interesting to just stand there and watch them eat and swing around in the treetops. My research team has been out with our professor, Josh Feltham, conducting morning amphibian/reptile surveys. I’m normally not a morning person but while I’ve been here I’ve turned into one. Waking up every morning at 6 a.m. and going on 3 hour hikes hasn’t been a problem. Getting out of bed and seeing the rainforest not even 100 feet away and mountains in the distance is amazing. I even woke up this morning around 5:45 a.m. to see the sunrise. Everyone heads down for breakfast at 6:30 a.m. and is treated to a delicious meal of fresh water melon, papaya, pineapple, rice and beans, and something new every day. The food here is awesome and gives you lots of energy for the long day ahead. The morning surveys have been challenging but a lot of fun and we get to see something new every day. This morning we saw 4 venomous snakes, a few different frogs and toads, and 2 courting lizards. This afternoon we headed down with some other students to a beautiful spot along the river. There were some rapids on the right side of the river but a deep pool of still water to the right. We were able to jump off the rocks into the water which was a lot of fun. J-Cron and I jumped off the bridge into the river that was about 20 feet high. This spot is just beautiful and we dubbed it ‘paradisio’, the Spanish word for paradise. Some of the locals were taking pictures of all of us sitting in the rapids and having fun, I guess they don’t see a lot of people that aren’t from Costa Rica. There is so much more that I could write about but it would take forever to type out. Tirimbina is a beautiful place and if you ever have the chance to come to Costa Rica I highly recommend a visit. I hope all my friends and family are doing well and having at least a quarter of the fun that I’m having here. Everyone back home should live a little more like Costa Ricans; take it easy and enjoy life.
Pura Vida
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