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
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