April 2022

Our research lab is coming along nicely

The rainy season has begun in earnest this April.  Here at Cloudbridge, that hasn´t slowed down our excellent local crew of builders, who have built our new research lab.   We are very grateful to all the donors who have made the manifestation of this dream a reality : )

The 9×9 meter main room is well lit by South-facing skylights.
Under Tom´s guidance, Mayi and our volunteers have been making beautiful tables to use in the research lab. Thank you for your efforts!
Before the start of the Chirripó race, San Gerardo waits expectantly for the start of this trail running event on April 9th. Photo credit: Greilin Fallas

San Gerardo de Rivas is host to the Chirripó Race, one of the most iconic trail running events in Costa Rica.  This is one of the year´s largest occasion in our small mountain town, and this year we were happy to collaborate with the Park Administration and Montaña Verde Ecological Association to implement parts of the environmental education program CONUBI (which we have also been providing in schools).  Congratulations to all of the amazing athletes!

In April 2021 this blog features a picture of Toño Pizote, the mascot for teaching children about wildfire prevention. I don´t know if this Tapir has a name yet, but he is a new addition to the SINAC´s educational tools : )
The director of Chirripó National Park, Laura Díaz, is able to take a moment to have fun with some local children.

As with every month, we were able to support Omar Garita and the community of San Gerardo by sorting and smashing the recycling.  A large percentage of the recycling is produced by visitors to Chirripó.  As many of you know, Omar Garita is a pioneer in the exploration of what is now Chirripó National Park, in addition to being an important member of the San Gerardo community.  A local journalist recently published this short video about don Omar, please check it out!

Celebrating a job well-done!

Pics from the reserve

Fiery-throated hummingbird (Panterpe insignis). Photo credit: Sandro Pérez
Photo credit: Natasha Lawson-Hale
Collared peccaries. Photo credit: Luc Dobrindt
The Central America Spider Monday is one of two primate species found at Cloudbridge. Photo credit: Jack Lee

 

Photo credit: Sandro Pérez
photo credit: Luc Dobrindt
photo credit: Luc Dobrindt
Photo credit: Sandro Pérez
photo credit: Luc Dobrindt
And of course, no blog post would be complete without a picture of Ricky the beautiful hawk-eagle. Over the last months we have seen her juvenile plumage begin to give way to the darker plumage of an adult…photo credit: Natasha Lawson-Hale

Suggested Reading

  • At the beginning of April the IPCC launched its third and final section of the sixth Assessment Report.  Unfortunately but certainly not surprisingly, the verdict is dire.  As this headline reporting on the report states:  “It´s now or never” if we wish to stave off climate disaster.
  • Costa Rica has launched its First National Plan for Adaptation to Climate Change this month.  As we all know, though a small country, Costa Rica has been positioning itself as a global leader in climate-related issues, this is an important step to create as much resilience as possible.
  • This lovely profile of Alice Waters, a long-time advocate of regenerative agriculture and seasonal cooking, shows how it is possible to implement cultural changes that make an impact not only on our health and well-being, but also on the health of our planet.
  • Citizen science has an important role to play both for obtaining important data, and engaging community members with the marvels of the world around them.  This year, those of you living in New York should consider contributing to the breeding bird atlas.  This article outlines why : )

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