Fiesta para mi Familia!

Today, to thank all the families for providing homestays for the program, we threw a party at the institute! Face painting, water balloons, frisbee, soccer, group presentations from Spanish class, scavenger hunt, and an awesome lunch with tasty desserts. Since my family lived 4 hours away from Monteverde and the party started at 10, I thought they wouldn't be able to come, but they did!!! I was so happy to see them again :) The day was fun, and relaxing, since we were cooped up at the station all week working on papers and tests. It was really nice to take a break and get fresh air outside. In just the 4 hours of the party, the weather turned from a shining bright day to a crazy downpour. Taxi cabs took everyone back to their homes, and it kinda seems appropriate that it would rain for the last goodbye. The two weeks were amazing with them, and I'll always remember my tica familia.

Dora and Alan are in the first picture, and Janany (who is the same age as me, I forgot to mention) is in the third. Elissa couldn't come, but Maria (a cousin, not pictured :\ ) took her place.

FROG HUNT!

There's an endemic species of toad in Monteverde called the Golden Toad, and it's supposedly extinct since it hasn't been seen for over 25 years. Still, every year, herpetologists go out into the reserve to search for it and inventory the other frog species in the forest. This year, I got to participate in the endeavor too, along with one other student from the program. The night hike was from 4pm to 10pm, and it was pretty cool. It could have been better if I wore rubber boots, since we trekked around in the swamp, but it wasn't too bad getting all muddy. The real kicker was getting rained on as a downpour started an hour into the search. We had to wait out the rain in a little cover set up in the forest, which was just a tarp stretched out over a branch, but it did a good job of keeping us dry. When the rain finally cleared, we continued our search and found tons of frogs! We saw even more on our way back along the trail than in the swamp off trail. We of course heard even more frogs than we saw, and it was entertaining hearing the staff imitate the calls as they consulted with each other to identify the species.

Nate (the other UCEAP student) and I went with Nestor and Jovio, and we later met up with the other two searchers. Flashlights are held up because they didn't know the potency of my camera's flash, hehe. I'd like to point out how muddy my shoes are: my feet sank in pretty deep at times. If and ever there is a next time, I will definitely remember to wear rubber boots. The hot shower after it all felt amazing, and it made me truly appreciate the feeling of being clean. Despite my weak flashlight and the mud, night hikes are still one of my favorite activities since I love looking for frogs! It's a great feeling when you successfully spot one, and it's always awesome to have photo opportunities. Hope you enjoyed the fruits of my efforts!

Cuajiniquil: Octopuses and Homestay

This picture makes me so happy :') Dora Ampié and her grandson Alan were the main members of my homestay family. Janany and Elissa were her daughters there too, but they were college students and were out of the house pretty often. This lovely family warmly accepted me into their home, and they were so kind and welcoming. Their charming home and comida típica made me truly feel like an actual tica, despite my broken Spanish speaking. I really enjoyed the experience, and I am very grateful for the chance to be part of their lives. The rest of the community in Cuajinquil were similarly friendly and receptive: every single person we encountered greeted us in passing. Key people I am particularly appreciative of: Minor and Anibal Lara, our boat captains and dive masters; Maria Fernanda (Mafe!), UCEAP resource person that accompanied us on our snorkel sessions; Marciano, owner of the fish receiver facility where I measured octopuses; and Sergio, an employee there that was very accommodating to my project. I can't forget the other students that made the Cuajini Bikini group! Carly, Cristina, Katie and Zoe kept me great company on the boat, and it was really nice to share experiences with them (and talk in English, haha).

In addition to our homestays, we collected data for our independent projects. I studied los pulpos! Octopuses!! I definitely upped my game in underwater pictures, and I have a few videos too! Once I stabilize them, you'll see the sea turtle, spotted eagle ray, and nifty octopuses I swam with! Again, in no particular order, here are the best photos in my collection for your viewing pleasure :)

One day, we went to Playa Junquillal, a beautiful beach that is part of the ACG (Area de Conservación Guanacaste). On the way there, we saw all 4 primate species of Costa Rica!! Howler monkeys, spider monkeys, white-face capuchins and squirrel monkeys! It was so exciting to see them climbing the trees above us, we were so happy that we saw them, all within a 30 minute period none the less! On the right is a long line fishing boat with the characteristic black flags that help make the fishing line more visible.

Here I am hard at work trying to identify the sex of these octopuses! The fishermen caught so many, it was both staggering and impressive. I measured 457 octopuses in total for my project, but individual count is different from total catch by weight. In the two weeks I conducted my study, the octopus fishermen brought in over 600 kg of octopuses from the ocean. I'll report more about the result of my project when I finish the analysis and writing portion. On the right is la Casa Verde, Frank's house, our rendezvous location and internet source, essentially the EAP base in Cuajiniquil.

Up next, awesome octopuses! Not only is it hard to spot a camouflaged octopus in the wild, it's also rare that it will stick around if you come too close, so it is with great pride that I present these pictures to you. Over the 2 weeks, I saw 32 octopuses in total! Thanks to Anibal and his crazy octopus catching skills, I got to hold one in my own hands!! Definitely one of the best moments in my life, I was all smiles for the rest of the day, and if I had taken out the snorkel, I would be grinning ear to ear in the photos. So happy!!

Some other cool critters I saw in the water! On the left is a blenny, which was Katie's study subject. These little guys were so cute, it was always a delight to see them pop out of the holes in the rocks and sway with the current as they looked at you with their big eyes. On the right, a pretty sea star.

I named the fish on the left Fred because he followed me around for 2 hours on one snorkeling session, and he came up so close to me that I was surprised he wasn't afraid of me. Most other puffers and fish swim away if you get too close, but Fred came to me! I think of him as a goodluck charm, since I saw 5 octopuses that session :) On the right, another spiffy puffer.

A pretty nudibranch and a cool scorpionfish.

Surgeonfish and snappers. There were tons of other cool schools of fish that I swam near. Every now and then in the water, I would look up from the sea floor and marvel at the fact I'm out in the ocean swimming with all these amazing fish. It was almost unreal being in the water, since I'm a land dweller and all. I had so much fun doing this project, and despite some times of struggle, it was an amazing two weeks that I'll never forget.

Peñas Blancas Backpacking Trip

Wowowow, I had the most intense hiking experience of my life so far. With a heavy backpack and rubber boots (double layers of socks this time), I hiked 14km down to Eladio's Refugio in Peñas Blancas, which is in a valley in el Bosque Eterno de los Niños, or the Children’s Eternal Rainforest. Starting from the reserve, we hiked down, stayed for five nights, then hiked all the way back! The picture above is our group at the start (clean and not yet sweaty and dirty), and the pictures below show only just a few of the amazing things we saw on the trip.

Before reaching Eladio's Refugio, we took a break and ate lunch at the Refugio Aleman, then had fun at a nearby swimminghole! We finished the second leg of the hike and arrived at Eladio's all exhausted and drenched in sweat. We set up our mosquito nets, showered, ate dinner, listened to Richard Joyce's talk about working with stingless bees, then slept oh so wonderfully. 

We spent the days going on awesome hikes, and we spent the nights going on frog hunts. We spent our free time hanging out together on the porch looking out on the beautiful view of the forest, and enjoyed our time without internet. We saw so many cool critters: frogs galore, insects, snakes, spiders, birds, and more! The following pictures are in no particular order, since the days kind of blurred together anyway. The entire trip was non-stop adventure and it was nice to lose track of time and be immersed in the moment.

Little lizard posing on a palm leaf and Frank posing with a freshly shed snake skin!

Stunningly red mushrooms and wickedly huge orb web spider!

SNAKES!! Both nonvenomous, but still so cool! I got to hold the little one on the right, and it was so smooth and slippery.

Aw yiss, frogs. Eladio was amazing at finding these frogs for us to see in the night hikes, and we saw/heard over 10 species during our stay! While the red-eyed tree frog (Agalychnis callidryas) is iconic for tropical forests, my personal favorite was the climbing toad (Incilius coniferus), since I personally spotted three of them! On one occasion, Eladio held it in his hand and we pet it; it didn't even mind. Muy tranquilo. It's the the large green one next to the fly picture.

The enormous fly on the right belongs to the Tabanidae family, and even though it's been even worse in previous years, these horseflies were my least favorite part of the trip. They're incredibly persistent, AND THEY BITE THROUGH CLOTHES. Along with the mosquitoes, these guys bit me all over, so even though I enjoyed the rest of the trip, I'm glad it's over and I don't have to suffer from these horrid flies anymore.

Cool looking caterpillar! I bet it will grow into an equally cool looking butterfly. On the right, another huge spider! Aside from frogs, spiders and grasshoppers/katydids were the easiest things to find, since they move/jump a lot, so searching for motion helped find these cool guys.

Stickbug and damselfly. There were so many more cool bugs on the hikes, I wish they stayed still long enough for me to take pictures of them. Alas, the challenge makes the reward more worthwhile!

This is the first antlion I've seen on the entire trip abroad, which is understandable since they're not that common to find. Katie present this little guy for Show and Tell. On the right is a colony of oropendolas, birds that make hanging nests on the tips of precarious branches to deter predators. This particular group was hanging high over the river, so if a predator tried to climb out on a branch, it would have broken and the animal would have fallen into the river.

Speaking of rivers, we crossed and hiked along plenty of them! Our boots were often filled with water, and we would hike with our wet socks squelching. The end goal was always worth it: the waterfalls were almost unreal in how beautiful they were. Pictures do not do these waterfalls justice. You have to experience the sound, the spray, the way the droplets catch the sunlight, the water trickling down the boulders and rock walls that flank the waterfall...everything. The best part? Swimming in the pool. Yes, it was cold, but it was such a fun and unforgettable experience. It's definitely going to be one of my favorite memories.

Finally and certainly not the least is the man that made it possible for us to survive in the middle of the forest and enjoy its wonders. The ever so humble Eladio Cruz was not only our cook and guide for the trip, but also THE pro naturalist and expert on the plants in the region. He conducted thousands of transects to inventory the vegetation, and he even discovered a new tree family. Ticodendron incognitum is the only species of the Ticodendraceae family, which is the last plant family discovered, and it's named after him! (Recall that tico is the colloquial term for a Costa Rican.) Some more things to brag on his behalf (since he certainly won't boast about it): every plank in the refugio was cut from trees cut by Eladio, who of course cut down the trees and built the refuge himself. He's quite handy with a machete, and we spent a day following him as he bushwhacked through the forest to get to a lagoon (which we unfortunately didn't reach, BUT! It was about the journey, not the destination). He was also bit by the deadly fer-de-lance, but he played it off and initially refused to get help. Only when he passed out, went to a clinic, and started bleeding from his pores did he go to a hospital, but the story doesn't end there. After incising his own hand to drain the pus, he got bored of staying at the hospital and requested a transfer, but instead of getting on the bus to the next hospital, he went home to Monteverde instead. Such a boss. Eladio also played a key role in creating the preserve in Peñas Blancas, with his friend Wolf Guindon (note: read the book, Walking with Wolf). He's truly a remarkable person, but doesn't even show it because of his humility and modesty. I am honored to have met him.