Animals
Anyone who knows me well knows that the REAL reason I'm here in Costa Rica is to see the animals. Well, and to try the fruits. Speaking of which, I tried passionfruit yesterday. Delicious! Definitely worth the fact that the flesh feels kind of like mucous.
Since we've been at Palo Verde, I've seen a few mammals and ton of different insects and birds. The coatis (we think they were coatis) were adorable, I'd really like to see more of them. One group saw one in a tree this morning eating a coconut. I'm so envious! We also saw a white-faced capuchin monkey who seemed just as curious about us as we were about him. We can hear the howler monkeys sometimes at night or very early in the morning. Their call is a little scary, the first time I heard them I thought a large and dangerous animal was growling right outside our dorm. There are peccaries who hang out behind the dining hall, including some very young ones, and they're also pretty adorable.
I love all the different birds here! There's a group of Great Curassows that hangs out behind the dining hall with the peccaries. We are right across the road from a marsh that is full of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks and Cattle Egrets. Occasionally I've also seen a Tricolored Heron or a Green Heron, a group of Roseate Spoonbills, some Jacanas strutting around, and Wood Storks flying overhead. Where we were sampling this morning there were three Great Kiskadees flying around. They have a magnificient yellow breast and call their name ("kis-ka-DEE, kis-ka-DEE). I love them. We also saw a pair of Orange-fronted Parakeets in a branch during one of our nature walks.
The station has a few resident ctenosaurs that can be seen lounging in the sun or frantically scurrying out of your path when you're walking along. They somehow get on the roof occasionally and we can hear them clattering around up there. They're large, and pretty funny to watch.
Also, tons and tons of bugs. I am not nearly as fond of them as I am of the rest of these guys, particularly when they sneak under the mosquito netting with me at night. There are some neat ones, like the mantids and some of the grasshoppers, but I've been trying to avoid the scorpions, tarantulas, and spiders at all costs. So far I've mostly avoided being bitten. I think I've only had about 3 mosquito bites, and they seem to have healed pretty quickly. Some of the students are covered in bites, so I think I'm pretty fortunate.
Back to work now, but I just wanted to put down a little update while I had the chance.
Since we've been at Palo Verde, I've seen a few mammals and ton of different insects and birds. The coatis (we think they were coatis) were adorable, I'd really like to see more of them. One group saw one in a tree this morning eating a coconut. I'm so envious! We also saw a white-faced capuchin monkey who seemed just as curious about us as we were about him. We can hear the howler monkeys sometimes at night or very early in the morning. Their call is a little scary, the first time I heard them I thought a large and dangerous animal was growling right outside our dorm. There are peccaries who hang out behind the dining hall, including some very young ones, and they're also pretty adorable.
I love all the different birds here! There's a group of Great Curassows that hangs out behind the dining hall with the peccaries. We are right across the road from a marsh that is full of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks and Cattle Egrets. Occasionally I've also seen a Tricolored Heron or a Green Heron, a group of Roseate Spoonbills, some Jacanas strutting around, and Wood Storks flying overhead. Where we were sampling this morning there were three Great Kiskadees flying around. They have a magnificient yellow breast and call their name ("kis-ka-DEE, kis-ka-DEE). I love them. We also saw a pair of Orange-fronted Parakeets in a branch during one of our nature walks.
The station has a few resident ctenosaurs that can be seen lounging in the sun or frantically scurrying out of your path when you're walking along. They somehow get on the roof occasionally and we can hear them clattering around up there. They're large, and pretty funny to watch.
Also, tons and tons of bugs. I am not nearly as fond of them as I am of the rest of these guys, particularly when they sneak under the mosquito netting with me at night. There are some neat ones, like the mantids and some of the grasshoppers, but I've been trying to avoid the scorpions, tarantulas, and spiders at all costs. So far I've mostly avoided being bitten. I think I've only had about 3 mosquito bites, and they seem to have healed pretty quickly. Some of the students are covered in bites, so I think I'm pretty fortunate.
Back to work now, but I just wanted to put down a little update while I had the chance.
posted by Allison at 10:14 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home