Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve

Hello friends, family and those interested in our travels. We are now staying in hotel El Bosque which is approximately a 10 minute walk from the Monteverde Biological Institute. These places are located near Santa Elena which is a small town that attracts both Eco tourists and researchers from around the globe. One of the most iconic biological reserves in the world is the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve which locals agree has now become a more touristy kind of attraction bringing in approximately 70,000 visitors a year.

The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve is located along the Cordillera de Tilaran within the Puntarenas and Alajuela provinces. The reserve was established in 1972 by Quakers and Ticos as a way to protect the water supply and species diversity of the area. Today the reserve is privately owned by an NGO and consists of over 26,000 acres of cloud forest with only 3% of forest being open to the public and the rest being used for ongoing research. The reserve contains 6 ecological life zones - 90% of which are primary forest.

We had a scheduled visit to this place and upon arrival we were divided into two groups, each with one excellent guide. We started the walk by using a hiker's telescope to see some beautiful micro-orchids (pictured below). We learned that there are approximately 600 species of orchids in the Monteverde Cloud Forest. Specifically there are special endemic species of micro-orchids in MV that are important because they store water and can be used as indicators of the effects of climate change depending on the level of water in the orchid.

The Monteverde Cloud Forest has many qualities which contrast with the forests we have seen thus far - La Ensenada, as the dry forest, and the Osa as the tropical rainforest. Like the other two forests, the cloud forest's geographical location plays a large role in predicting its characteristics. The cloud forest is greatly influenced by the trade winds and the continental divide. As a result, a defining characteristic of the cloud forest is the presence of the clouds that roll into the forest and envelope the flora and fauna. Since the forest is "in a cloud," it is constantly in moisture and thus it is an ideal environment for many species to grow and diversify. This was evident from the thick spongy moss that covered the trees that we did not see in Osa or La Ensenada.

While we did see some epiphytes in Osa and La Ensenada, there was a much greater abundance of them in the Cloud Forest. This is mainly due to the fact that the majority of the biodiversity in the cloud forest is on the tops of trees where sunlight is readily accessible. For example, in the cloud forest, only 3% of the sunlight reaches the forest floor while in the rainforest there was approximately 20% that reached the floor. Some epiphytes such as Vermilliads can hold onto approximately a gallon of water, making it a prime place for frogs, larvae, white tailed monkeys, etc. to obtain their water.

It is estimated there are 900 species of epiphytes in the MV cloud forest with a record number of 500 species being present on just one tree. As a result, epiphytes add approximately 1-2 tons of extra biomass to a host tree, which constitutes 40 % of the cloud forest's overall biomass. This added weight causes tree falls which are of significant importance because they allow for new life to occur. For example, our guide discussed with us that some seeds such as Cecropia seeds wait 2-3 years on the forest floor for a light gap to become available. As soon as a light gap occurs, the seeds quickly take advantage of the available sunlight beating out the other competition. This makes them light gap specialists because of their evolutionary adaptations that allow them to germinate so quickly.

Another important epiphyte we have been discussing and observing is the Matapalo, the strangler fig. During our walk we learned that each species of Matapalo has specialized species of wasps that pollinate the specific species of figs. Additionally, fig trees attract many mammals and birds and in this way is able to spread its seeds better than other flora of its kind. This is a prime demonstration of how biodiverse and specific this environment is.

The most impressive bird we saw while on our walk was the Quetzal, (pictured below). The Quetzal has iridescent feathers that allow it to change color from brown to a bright blue/green for mating purposes. The Quetzal is especially important for seed dispersal of the Lauricaea species (native, wild avocados). The Quetzal consumes the seeds and the bird's gizzard helps in scratching the seed and speeding the germination process. The Quetzal then regurgitates the seeds back into the forest near the tops of the trees allowing for prime seed dispersal to occur. In this way, the Quetzal aids in the sustainability of the forest's ecosystem. 

To finish our tour we walked over the iconic red hanging bridge of the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. From the bridge we had a bird's eye view of the untouched virgin forest below us. In the middle of the bridge, our guide pointed out a green pit viper that was digesting a mouse (Dr. Ribble only shed one tear) and had been immobile on the top of the tree for 2 weeks. Since this snake is one of the most venomous snakes in Costa Rica, we made sure to take our pictures from a safe distance (see picture below).

We were also fortunate to hear from renowned scientist Dr. Alan Pounds who has been conducting research on climate change and amphibian disappearance events in the Monteverde area since the 1980s. This was an informative lecture that helped us to better understand how our world is changing and the impact we have on it.

While we did not set traps in the MV Cloud Forest Reserve, the walking tour provided us with a useful background of the general MV cloud forest before setting traps at the MV biological station in the next days. In the end we were happy to be 22 of the 70,000 visitors this year. Got to go! Stay tuned to read about our next instalment at the MV Biological Station. Spoiler: It's gonna be muddy! - Lauren & Javier

Finca Rodriguez

This forest is unique in that it is a retired farm! As such, it is dominated by secondary growth. The transects that we set in this forest were particularly difficult to navigate and maneuver through due to the high amounts of young trees and undergrowth that dominate a newly recovered forest. Unlike some of the other secondary forests we have set traps at, there were more Heteromys spp. captured. This is particularly unique because Heteromys tend to populate more in mature, wet forests. It is important to note, however, that Finca Rodriguez is very shady despite its recovery status. This shade provides good grounds for roaming mice that are hiding from predators as they hunt for food- namely, seeds or insects. This explains our success in trapping rodents at this location with at least 4-6 mice in each transect every morning. Finca Rodriguez's ample shade and undergrowth also likely explains how some of the mice trapped at this location were caught in the afternoon, something that does not happen often seeing as how rodents are primarily active during the evening and early morning. All in all, the Finca forest was one of our most successful trapping locations!

In addition to trapping, we also had the pleasure and privilege of mist netting for birds in the Finca Rodriguez. After a bit of waiting, we were able to catch two species of birds: one Golden-crusted Warbler and one juvenile Rufous and White Wren. Both were smaller species, but that is to be expected with the size of the nets we were using. Typically, only larger birds of prey are caught in the small nets by accident when they try to eat the smaller birds already caught in them... During this process, we learned about how mist netting is especially useful for gathering information about bird diets, disease, tagging for migration, and much more! This was a special opportunity to learn about field-research methods as well as the chance to get to hold a wild bird! This, of course, is a privilege because these nets are not used often. In fact, we learned that scientists try to use mist nets as little as possible because they cause the animals caught in them a great deal of stress, and in some cases, can result in harm or death. Fortunately, this only happens in rare cases and thus was not a problem for us. Both birds were caught, handled, and released safely and successfully.

The first bird of the morning: a juvenile Rufous and White Wren. 

Brian holding a Golden-crested Warbler!

San Gerardo

El Bosque Eterno de los Niños, or BEN: a safe haven from deforestation, funded initially by Swedish school children. It houses 7 life zones in 23,000 hectares and a disproportionately huge amount of species. Beyond even that, the BEN benefits local economy through ecotourism, improvement of water quality with 5 watersheds in the forest, protection against soil erosion, all the while providing hydroelectricity. But more important than benefits and statistics, the BEN is cool as hell. And deep in the heart of the patchwork of pristine primary forest and reforested pasture is the San Gerardo field station.
Just a hike an a half down (and inevitably back up) the steep mountain slope, riddled with animal sightings (a fabulous male quetzal takes the cake with flashy iridescence and brilliantly long tail feathers) and atmospheric views (both the Arenal volcano and a particularly tall waterfall were seen from the hike’s halfway point, enter photo here) lies the station. And once there, even more was to be seen- a king vulture, glass frog, rufous eyed tree frog, a cute and twisty caracolera snake, gbioluminescent fungus, bats backlit by lighting (“dope AF”- Hannah), and so, so many spiders. And every single one was beautiful. Camera traps captured even more life; we spent quite a while analyzing videos of a spotted cat, now known to be an ocelot. Night walks were plentiful, and the peace of the forest thrashing with the sounds of life was foregrounded by swathes of stars when cloud cover had passed. Our sleeping quarters were likewise thrashing with the sounds of life, though perhaps for more human-sourced reasons like impromptu dances and falling out of bunk beds.

-Hannah and Corrin

La Calandria

La Calandria provides a very distinct habitat to those we have previously visited on this trip. The land at La Calandria was previously used mostly for coffee farming, though much of it is in various stages of new forest growth. Despite having a nearly identical elevation to the San Gerardo station, the composition of the vegetation at La Calandria is drastically different due to the differences in climate. While the San Gerardo station’s wet climate is heavily influenced by trade winds coming from the Caribbean, the station at La Calandria is located on the Pacific side of the continental divide and thus receives far less precipitation. The property is part of the Bellbird Biological Corridor and is the site of a nursery that provides the community with many species of native plants that may be used in reforestation projects. 

On our first day at the station, we had the honor of accompanying don Eladio Cruz on a plant walk. Don Eladio is one of the most eminent botanists in the Monteverde area, having several species named after him. One of these, Zanthroxylum eladiumis a member of the same family as the coca plant, though he assured us that it did not have the same psychotropic properties as its better known cousin. One of the most important families of trees in this area is the Lauraceae family, which is composed of different species of aguacatillos (little avocados). The Monteverde area contains 93 species of these trees, and they play a vital role in the cloud forest ecosystem. In addition to their ecological value, they have an extremely high economic value, as they provide a primary food source for two of the region’s greatest ecotourism assets: the three-wattled bellbird and the resplendent quetzal. For these reasons, many conservation efforts (especially the Bellbird Biological Corridor) focus greatly on the reintroduction of many species of Lauraceaes, particularly those endemic to the region like Ocotea monteverdensis and Bleismedia tilaranensis. Tapping into Don Eladio’s vast reserves of knowledge, we learned a great deal about the natural histories of many types of trees in in this unique Monteverde cloud forest. 

Lastly, we received a lecture from Dr. Richard LaVal, who is one of the foremost researchers of tropical bats. Our talk with him solidified many of the things we learned on our walk with Don Eladio, particularly with regards to interactions between plants and bats. We also had a chance to trap bats using a mist netting technique. Bats play an important role both as pollinators and as seed dispersers, shown by the presence of seeds in the feces of the Carollia bat caught that night. Its relationship with the Piperaceae family of trees is particularly important at La Calandria, as they play a vital role as pioneer species in the reclamation of deforested lands. Sadly, this is our last stop on our journey, but it has been a great way to bring this awesome trip to a close.

Coffee Nation

           Brian and Chiara’s presentation went into the importance of coffee agriculture in Costa Rica.  They pointed out some similarities to the United States in that a lot of wealth was generated from these coffee plantations, and this allowed for some independence to be gained.  In the United States, plantations growing cotton and other crops allowed the country to gain wealth and was instrumental in winning independence from Britain. 

            The main bean grown in Costa Rica at this time was the Arabica bean.  Within the first ten years of coffee being grown in the country, its production surpassed that of all the other cash crops that had been important prior to its introduction.  However, there were many environmental impacts from this expansion, including erosion and clear cutting of the forests.  The coffee created a village economy, meaning the villages were the ones producing the crops and generating the money.  However, there was “puppetry” occurring because San Jose was the one directing the farmers in the villages on when to plant and harvest and were the ones who actually received the money from the crops.  Only a small percentage of people were truly benefiting from the wealth coming from the coffee.

            William Walker was an important figure during this time.  He was from the United States and wanted to find colonies for the country by enslaving Central American countries.  He first conquered Nicaragua and used this as a source of fighting forces and a base for his attack on Costa Rica.  CR was able to pull together a rag tag army, and after a bloody war, defeated William Walker and drove him out of the country.

            During our discussion, some were confused about how William Walker related to the coffee trade and how he was instrumental in creating the nation of Costa Rica.  We discussed how Walker’s defeat was an event that brought the country together against him and created a strong sense of national pride.  The country was also able to continue to accumulate wealth that they could put towards creating a stronger nation. 

Monteverde Biological Station

What’s unique about the Monteverde Biological Station is that it lies at the convergence of two biological life zones – that of premontane wet forest and lower montane wet forest —and is surrounded by mostly primary forest. Because of this environment, we were able to catch the greatest number of different small mammal species so far: Oryzomys albigularis, Heteromys desmarestianus and nubicolens, Peromyscus nudipes, and Didelphus masupialis. On the transect located along edge forest, where a grass field met the trees, we had the most trapping success—on our first day, we had a 70% capture rate on that transect. On the other two transects within the dense primary forest, we had a good success rate but not near as high. We also had a more even ratio of males to females caught, as opposed to other areas where we’ve caught significantly more females than males; this could imply greater promiscuity amongst the species in this area, rather than polygamy (which we have observed in other areas).

While walking on the trails and setting traps, we could discern several features attributable to the areas’ dual life zones. Characteristic of the lower montane wet forest and premontane wet forest, the slopes over which we walked were constantly slick with mud, a sign of great amounts of precipitation in the form of rain and mist. This made hiking difficult, and landslides were a common sight throughout most of the transects as the unstable soil would give in to the weight of epiphyte-ridden trees. On one trail, we came across a massive landslide that had cleared a significant portion of the forest, and which residents at the station sworn to have heard occurring during a particularly rainy night.

Another factor typical of these life zones was the additional sighting of a small mammal caught on transect’s two camera trap (a Dasyprocta punctate, or Central American Agouti) along with other small mammals previously mentioned, mostly along the stream. Curiously enough, bird sightings were the only factor that decreased in number, something uncharacteristic of either ecotone; however, this might have been due to the weather associated with our hikes (cold and rainy/misty) which results in lower bird activity.

While the amount of physical activity at the station was minimal in comparison with our previous stops, the sense of adventure was as high as ever. Since the trails were mostly carved out by us (especially along the stream on transects two or three), we felt like true adventurers on the hunt for some rare specimen. The energy was high amongst everyone in the group, and we had fun watching each other undergo the occasional mud-covered fall, although these occurred more often than many of us would’ve liked. It was a truly enriching experience, and it set the bar for adventurous hikes at our next stop: San Gerardo.

Pura Vida!