This project, financed by the Costa Rica Forever Association (ACRXS), had the purpose of generating baseline scientific information on the state of conservation of the Focal Element of Management “Rocky Reefs” of the PNMA, PNISL and the RNVSPHPM, based on the application of the protocol for Marine Ecological Monitoring of Rocky Reefs and that allows the promotion of management actions that contribute to the adaptation and mitigation of climate change.

Rocky ecosystems are highly dynamic habitats, where communities and their organisms are exposed to tides, currents, waves, and even more so in the context of climate change and changing oceanographic conditions. These zones are characterized by the high energy released by waves and tidal changes that affect the distribution of the organisms that live there. Wave action and materials carried by the water, such as sand, rocks, and driftwood, affect the density of invertebrates and algae, depending on whether that side of the rock is protected or exposed to the waves. These subtidal communities are represented by various groups of organisms at different levels of the trophic web that assemble to form a complex network of interactions.

These ecosystems represent a clear opportunity for research and monitoring with a view to obtain quantifiable information that allows the construction of indicators that signal trends in the face of a changing climate scenario, and that constitutes the information base for management decision-making. In this sense, this initiative constituted an important contribution to the generation of skills and competencies in ACOPAC officials, both in terms of diving in safe conditions and the application of the protocol for monitoring rocky reefs (PRONAMEC) in the field – said Felipe Thomas, Marine biologist of RPT.

With the first year of monitoring, we have a picture of the ray’s habitat in the Térraba River. The contribution of this second year of study will be the strengthening of the baseline that allows knowing the use of habitat and generating management and conservation strategies for rays in this important ecosystem.

During the first year of monitoring we found that the only ray species captured was Styracura pacifica. All individuals captured were small, probably juveniles. Most of them captured in intertidal pools, so it is interesting to evaluate their residence during the current year. The CPUE increased in the rainy season, which suggests increasing the monitoring this season. In this way, it is important to develop training for fishermen in order to reduce the impact of individuals affected by bycatch – pointed out Graciela Pulido, Project Manager of this initiative.

The Térraba River is the largest river in Costa Rica and its mangrove swamp offers shelter and nursery areas to hundreds of fish species, including sharks and rays. Knowing the populations of rays and their distribution in the wetland is key to understanding their condition both in the wetland and in the ocean, as well as the development of future conservation strategies. This initiative financed by “beca azul” de Misión Tiburón for second time will pass to be part of normal monitoring of RPT in the future. We know that there is a need to generate knowledge in this area, which is aligned with our research objectives- pointed out Oscar Brenes, Director of RPT.

Photos and text by @f_thomas_photography

This initiative financed by “beca azul” de Mision Tiburon aims to learn about the distribution of stingray populations, estimate their population structure and involve volunteers and local community members on the monitoring activities.

The contribution of this study will be the construction of baseline that allows the generation of management and conservation strategies for rays in this important ecosystem such as the Térraba river- pointed out Graciela Pulido, Project Manager of this
initiative.

The Térraba River is the largest river in Costa Rica and its mangrove swamp offers shelter and nursery areas to hundreds of fish species, including sharks and rays. Some of these are threatened and the generation of basic information is the first step to move towards protection. Knowing the populations of rays and their distribution in the wetland is key to understanding their condition both in the wetland and in the ocean, as well as the development of future conservation strategies.

Normally, olive ridley turtles arrive in this sector and recently there were also historical records of Pacific green turtles, so now a new species is added!

The hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) nests on both the Caribbean and Pacific beaches of Costa Rica (mostly on the Osa peninsula) but its current populations are extremely small, and it is an endangered species mainly due to these threats :

the extraction of their nests

the hunt for meat

use of tortoiseshell from its shell

We look forward to continuing the good news during the 2021 turtle season. We appreciate the support of the Costa Ballena Lifeguard, park rangers, staff and volunteers from RPT and the community. And we remind you that those who wish to collaborate with night or morning monitoring at Playa Tortuga or Playa Hermosa can write to rptojochal@gmail.com or call 21013221

Before the sun rose over the mountain, the team of local volunteers and members of RPT were ready to tour the beach.Around 5:00 am one of them spotted a turtle footprint and that was how all were amazed to contemplate and witness the first nesting record of a Pacific Green Turtle (Chelonia mydas) in Playa Hermosa.They remained silent and calm in front of such a wonderful experience, so as not to interrupt the nesting process. The fact that they appeared during the day called a lot of attention, since according to the director of RPT, they are quite shy.

Some interesting facts about the Pacific Green Turtle:

• It is a species declared in danger of extinction and the populations of the Eastern Pacific are highly threatened and their numbers are low.
• Many call it Black Turtle since it has a darker coloration than those of the Caribbean.
• They are the second largest turtles in terms of size
• The length of the shell reaches about 89 cm
• They can weigh more than 100 kilos
• They reach their sexual maturity between 25 and 35 years
• It is believed that they can live to be 70 years old
• The biggest threats are: poaching and hunting of nests, the loss of nesting habitats and pollution of the oceans.

It seems important to us to make a call to the neighbors who frequent this beach, since although one part has been committed to the conservation of these species, on the other hand there is misinformation regarding the care that the turtle habitats should have, as is the case of Playa Hermosa.

Although it is a public beach, we must be respectful with the animals that use these same spaces, even more so when it comes to endangered species, so we call to keep pets controlled or on a leash, and not to leave burning fires, since these could be factors that would affect the nesting of a Turtle.We invite the community to continue working together, especially as it has been done this year.

Photos by Felipe Thomas

Thanks to this connection between the Reserve and the community, in these difficult times, help was immediate: our good neighbors have jumped on the scene and selflessly offered their time and energy so that the Reserve continued to carry out its monitoring.

Thus, several neighbors have joined the monitoring of monkeys, reforestation and morning walks while waiting for the arrival of the first turtles to Playa Tortuga.

This support from our friends is the main objective of our organization, what we call “participatory science”. Our vision of creating science at the service of the community made the community serve science.

If you want to be part of our local volunteer team write to rptojochal@gmail.com

We really hope that this help you to have fun during this quarantine and maybe it will become your new hobbie, you just need to go out to the garden and identify bird species. Good luck!

You can download the list by clicking here (press right button and save link as…)

During the 20 weeks that the study will last, the student basically search for the frogs at night with a flashlight and he takes note on which plant they are, then he tries to catch the animal and try to see if it is a male or a female. Then he measures the total length and the legs of the frogs to see if there is a difference between males and females.

The red-eyed tree frog mostly prefer plants with big leaves, such as palms, banana plants and the guacimo blanco, but this can change after the study is finished and he can analyze the results.

At this point, after 10 weeks, he has found 172 frogs and clutches of eggs. On his opinion males are way easier to spots than females: so far he counted around 140 males, but just 17 females.

Other important information is that he also detected some predators for the eggs of the red-eyed tree frog, like the cat-eyed snake and the big crickets.

For the final results of this study, we will have to wait for other 10 weeks, and keep learning more interesting facts about the red-eyed tree frog.

What is the trigger for macaws to visit Ojochal and the surroundings of the reserve? That is the main question for the research that the student Marnix van Schaik from HAS University (Netherlands) carried on during his 5 months internship this year at Reserva Playa Tortuga.

Some of the questions that help him during the study were: What are the macaws doing?, what do they eat?, are there nest opportunities?, do the macaws avoid predators and competitors like toucans or aracaris?

Following is a summary that Marnix prepared after he finished the study:

The populations of scarlet macaws (Ara macao) in Central America have been declining for a long time. In Costa Rica, it has been moving in the right direction since 1980. In order to understand the macaws better and maintain the populations, a study was conducted in February 2019 to July 2019 into the population of macaws in the coastal side of Ojochal, Costa Rica.

By monitoring trails, there is examined why the macaws came to Ojochal. Various factors were taken, such as the behavior of the macaws, food sources that the macaws use, whether there are nesting places and whether the macaws avoid predators and competitors.

The results show that the macaws come to Ojochal every morning to spend the day. In midday, the macaws can be found in the higher mangrove trees where the macaws socialize. In the afternoon, 33% of the population goes to their food sources. The majority of them foresee the almonds present. The other part of the population stays a little bit longer in the mangroves and after goes back to the overnight accommodation, south of the research area. No nesting sites were found during the research. So this is not a reason why macaws come to Ojochal.

Another factor that has been included in the study but has no influence on the population of macaws is the factor predators and competitors of nests. No nests are found because the macaws are picky in the habitat of nesting places and not because the predators are in the area.

The macaws use Ojochal to socialize in the high mangroves and the macaws come to visit the food sources. However, with the rising water level, these trees are endangered and threaten to disappear. So it is not only the aquatic animals that will suffer from climate change. Macaws are also losing their safe habitats. Knowledge about safe areas that the macaws pass on for generations will be lost. People will, therefore, have to be more aware of the environment in which they live in order to maintain these places. Through the effort of organizations such as RPT, more will become known about nature and nature will be better preserved.

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