Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Couldn’t have asked for more from phase 104!

This past Friday, the final leg of the 2010 season was brought to a close with everyone returning home just in time for the Holiday Season. The last ten weeks have been filled with amazing wildlife sightings and data collection that would have been impossible without the hard work of our enthusiastic volunteer team (see photo below).
Despite days of rain and subsequent near flooding of the base, we were able to complete all our data collection and even summarize the year’s events! Please check back during interphase for our reports. Congratulations to all the volunteers that successfully completed their BTEC qualifications and will now be able to impart their knowledge in other capacities.
We recently had a visit from MINAE who let us know what a great job we were doing on base and how important our continued presence is for Tortuguero National Park, especially in regards to discouraging the poaching of turtles on the beach. Additionally, they offered suggestions for expansion of our research and we are in the process of implementing these changes for next year’s expeditions! We are very grateful for the opportunity to work side by side with MINAE and contribute to the conservation of this amazing ecosystem.
With the New Year we will be welcoming Sonja as she transitions from her role as an intern to a valuable addition to the staff, as well as newcomer Emily to the staff team. Three interns, Melissa, Simon, and Sahara will be continuing on with us for the final portion of their 6 month placement. Alas, we must bid farewell to few influential members of the staff. Our intern, Arno, who has been great during his 6 months in Jalova will be moving on to other projects. We wish Ian the best of luck at his potential new position with GVI! And finally, Jon, whose birding talent and unbridled enthusiasm for his work was infectious, will be greatly missed.




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